“Cities and Villages Have Come to Resemble Las Vegas”: PM Radev Announces Ban on Casino Lights and Gambling Advertising

Cabinet introduces new measures to regulate gambling.

“Today we are publishing amendments to the Gambling Act for public consultation, introducing a stricter model for regulating and controlling the sector. The aim is greater transparency, fairer taxation and, above all, limiting gambling addiction. The first major change concerns advertising – we are effectively introducing a complete ban on gambling advertising. We do not want gambling to be something Bulgarian citizens see every day. We do not want aggressive advertising reaching young people and children. The only exception will be the possibility of supporting sport through advertising on sports kits and facilities. The lights on the façades of casinos and gaming halls are so bright and provocative that our cities and villages have come to resemble Las Vegas. That is why we are banning them as well. We are introducing a new approach under which the state will tax the activities of casinos and gaming halls. In practice, the actual financial result of their activities will be taxed, while strict controls will be introduced to prevent any attempts at money laundering and tax evasion. We are finally requiring all gaming equipment to be connected to the National Revenue Agency in real time – something that should have been done long ago. We are also significantly increasing the tax on online gambling, while creating mechanisms for part of the revenue to be channelled into sport and education. We are also requiring all foreign operators licensed to operate in Bulgaria to register their financial activities here. Anyone operating on the Bulgarian market and making profits from it will report here, pay taxes here and be subject to full control by the Bulgarian state,” Prime Minister Radev said.

Amendments will also be introduced to the Criminal Code to “criminalise customs violations”.

“Until now, they have been treated as administrative offences. Over the years, there has been no political will to make this happen, and not without reason. Because the provisions we are proposing strike deep into one of the most profitable areas of organised crime – the movement of goods across the EU’s external borders to the detriment of European and national finances. We are tightening customs controls, while smuggling will become a serious criminal offence. The law will apply not only to smugglers and ordinary customs officers, but also to so-called ‘on-call officials’ within the customs administration who deliberately turn a blind eye to such violations. Any information that is deliberately manipulated with the aim of diverting resources away from European and national finances will be treated as a criminal offence,” the prime minister stressed.

The cabinet will adopt a report on the implementation of the 2025 state budget.

A report will also be approved containing information on measures taken in response to the country-specific recommendations adopted by the Council of the European Union for Bulgaria this year.

At today’s government meeting, the conditions under which temporary interest-free loans will be granted to municipalities under the Strategic Plan for the Development of Agriculture and Rural Areas will be announced.

Additional expenditure under the budgets of several ministries is also expected to be approved.