A one-time special tax of LKR1bn (US$7.2m) to be levied on each of Sri Lanka’s existing four casinos could threaten their viability, reported the Sunday Times of Sri Lanka.
The tax, proposed in the country’s 2015 interim budget, is still subject to approval by parliament. The new national government’s additional proposal to bar locals from entry to casinos - announced by Tourism Minister John Amaratunge - however would not affect the business badly, because locals represent only approximately a low single-digit percentage of the clientele, a casino owner told the Business Times section of the newspaper.
The news outlet reported that Indians and Chinese are the main patrons of Sri Lanka’s casinos, together contributing about 40 per cent of the revenue. A further 56 per cent of revenue comes from other foreign nationals, the newspaper suggested.
“We may be forced to close down our casinos as a result of these heavy taxes,” the person said, according to the newspaper.
Casino owners will also have to pay a gaming levy of 10 per cent and will have to charge an entrance fee of US$100 from every customer entering a casino premises according to the 2015 budget proposal, said the report. The newspaper didn’t clarify whether the 10 per cent levy was payable on gross gaming revenue.
