Latvia has merged the functions of gambling taxation and regulation under one government body, streamlining the supervision of the domestic sector.

The Inspectorate for Supervision of Gambling and Lotteries, which was responsible for licensing and regulatory compliance, is no more as a standalone entity. 

Instead, it is being integrated into the State Revenue Service alongside all of its responsibilities. Ministry of Finance officials argued that the change was necessary to bring a more structural approach to an expensive system.

Officials saw a system in which both entities were required to exercise two separate enforcement mechanisms that essentially govern the same sector as inefficient.

For the purpose of improved regulatory oversight, the State Revenue Service, which previously only handled taxation, has set up two new divisions to divide the workload between each other. 

One will handle licensing and compliance monitoring, while the other will take on remote and on-site inspections to exercise technical and financial control.

Centralising these regulatory functions would essentially optimise coordination and remove unnecessary bureaucracy, especially given that online gambling is becoming the single dominant vertical, the Finance Ministry added, in what is a clear sign that Latvia is pursuing the foundations of a market that would bring regulatory friction to a minimum.

Elsewhere in the Baltics…

It is not the only country in the Baltics to do so, however. Moving from Riga over to Vilnius, Lithuania has tabled a regulatory proposal for the introduction of a “mandatory gambler’s card”. 

If approved, it will act as a centralised monitoring system, which Finance Minister Kristupas Vaitiekūnas said will accurately assess how users are engaging with Lithuania’s gambling sector – with the country planning to completely overhaul its gambling regime in 2028.

Once implemented, the new regulatory framework will most likely set the groundwork for a more liberal market, where such a card could, in theory, prove invaluable for easily generating a holistic overview of the new landscape. 

Still, reservations do exist, particularly around the question of privacy.

Meanwhile, Estonia, the last country in the Baltics, is also going through a regulatory overhaul of a major significance for the domestic gambling sector. The country is targeting a 4% gambling tax rate by 2028, which would make it one of the lowest in Europe – and 1% lower than that of Malta, a major international iGaming hub.

All of the three developments listed above signal that the Baltic region will certainly be one to follow closely over the next few years, especially given that it is populated by heavyweights such as Entain (Enlabs), Fortuna Entertainment Group (TOPsport), and Olympic Entertainment Group (OlyBet).

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