AIGF Projects Offshore Illegal Betting Firms’ $2.5 Bn GST Loss

The gaming industry association AIGF has requested that the government take swift action to shut down offshore illicit betting and gambling websites, estimating that these companies cost the national exchequer USD 2.5 billion annually.

Roland Landers, CEO of the All India Gaming Federation (AIGF), said that since offshore companies combine a variety of illegal games with unlawful betting and gambling, players are unable to distinguish between legal and illicit gaming.

According to him, users suffer as a result of dealing with illegitimate offshore companies, and this might negatively impact India’s legal sector.

“It is implied that the government is losing at least USD 2.5 billion in GST revenue as a result of offshore illegal betting and gambling platforms receiving deposits totaling USD 12 billion annually,” Landers said.

According to him, in an attempt to entice consumers, offshore corporations have intensified their promotion throughout the present IPL season. Some of them have even gone so far as to brazenly state that their platforms are GST and TDS-free.

Users are often harmed by offshore companies, and they frequently mix together games that are legal and illicit. The threat posed by unlicensed offshore betting and gaming sites has to be severely curbed, according to Landers.

He said that in order to lessen the threat posed by illicit platforms, the government needs to move more quickly to implement models such as the Self Regulatory Organization (SRO).

“There are no formal offshore entities in India. They say they’re not legal, but an SRO-like body’s inspection may help distinguish between real and fake platforms, Landers said.

The government intended to introduce SRO, but it was unable to accomplish it within the allotted 90 days.

Several business leaders have submitted applications to establish SRO. According to Landers, the players have not provided any updates on their application to AIGF.