Kenya MPs scrap proposed uniform 50% gambling tax plan

Gambling operators in Kenya have been spared punitive tax hikes after members of parliament opted to remain the status quo.

On Tuesday, Kenya’s National Assembly voted to scrap plans to impose a uniform 50% tax on all gambling revenue that the government had claimed was necessary to reduce gambling-related harms among its citizens. Betting operators will continue to pay 7.5%, lotteries will pay 5%, gaming operators will pay 12% and prize competitions will pay 15%, exactly as they did before this whole mess kicked off two months ago.

In late March, Kenyan Treasury Secretary Henry Rotich shocked the gaming industry with his 2017-18 budget, which contained the dramatic tax hikes. A flurry of protests ensued, including a legal challenge of the tax plan’s constitutionality by local betting operator Sportpesa.

Last Thursday, MPs voted to maintain the sports betting tax at 7.5% while imposing the new 50% rate on other forms of gambling. But objections were raised almost immediately after the vote by legislators who claimed that a quorum wasn’t present and thus the vote wasn’t official. National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale invoked parliamentary procedure to require a fresh vote on the subject.