Peruvian President urges online operators "to register and pay taxes" after new regulatory framework enacted

The President of Peru, Pedro Castillo Terrones, enacted Friday the law that creates a regulatory framework for the operation of online games and sports betting in the country. During the event in which the law was promulgated, he encouraged Peruvian and foreign operating companies to register before the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (Mincetur) in order to pay the corresponding taxes.

"We call on Peruvian and foreign companies to invest responsibly, to register in Peru and pay the corresponding taxes," said the Peruvian President in a ceremony held at the Government Palace, located in downtown Lima.

Moreover, Castillo Terrones highlighted that this law, which was approved by Congress on July 15 and which establishes a direct tax applied on the Net Win of 12%, was made possible thanks to the coordinated work between the Government and the Parliament.

"The approval of this norm is a clear example that when the Executive and the Legislative chambers work hand in hand, that when we put the interests of the country ahead and when we prioritize the agenda that the population needs, we can promote growth and development for the benefit of all citizens," he emphasized.

Peruvian president, Pedro Castillo Terrones

Additionally, the Peruvian President affirmed that this law will benefit Peru because "it will allow the State to have more resources to fulfill its obligations in economic and social matters, which will result in better living conditions for the population." He also emphasized that the law "represents an important step towards the regulation of activities that until now operated without oversight."

It should be noted that, as explained by Mincetur, the law will come into force 60 days after the Supreme Decree approving its regulations is published. This decree, they add, must be published within 120 working days from the enactment of the law.

The ceremony at the Government Palace was attended by the head of Mincetur, Roberto Sánchez; the vice-president of the Peruvian National Chamber of Tourism (Canatur), José Koechlin Von Stein; the general secretary of the Peruvian College of Psychologists, Fernando Ibáñez; the general director of the National Institute of Mental Health - Honorio Delgado, Orlando Cruz Campos; and the president of the Peruvian Sports Institute, Máximo Pérez Zevallos.

Also present were the Minister of Health, Jorge López; the Minister of Education, Rosendo Serna; and the Minister of Women and Vulnerable Populations, Diana Miloslavich, among other guests.

The head of Mincetur, Roberto Sánchez, and the Peruvian President Pedro Castillo

About the new law

During the ceremony, Minister Roberto Sánchez explained that online gambling and sports betting are activities that "should be regulated because no one should conduct the activity without paying taxes." In addition, he stated that "vulnerable sectors of the population must be protected through access controls for minors and the implementation of responsible gambling policies" and that "the activity must be prevented from being used for computer crimes, fraud, and other illicit activities."

The head of Mincetur stated, as he had done on other occasions, that "remote games and sports betting move around $1 billion, without paying any income to the national treasury." In line with this, he pointed out that "with this enactment it will be possible to collect around 160 million soles ($41.5 million) per year to be invested in the reactivation of tourism, as well as in public infrastructure works, promoting sports and mental health."

Sanchez also mentioned that "the new law determines that of the 100% collected from the Tax on Gambling Games, 40% of the total will be destined to the development of tourism, 20% to the promotion of mental health, 20% to the development of sports, and 20% to the public treasury."