Companies currently operating online gaming in Peru have to apply for a permit as of March 2024

The Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism of Peru, Juan Carlos Mathews, highlighted the publication of Supreme Decree N° 005-2023-MINCETUR, which approves the Regulation of Law N° 31.557 modified by Law N° 31.806, which regulates remote gaming and remote sports betting since it constitutes a vanguard rule in the country which has as its premises the security for the bettor, responsible gaming and the formalization of the activity.

The regulation establishes that it will become effective in 120 days, on February 9, 2024. During the following 30 days, between February 10 and March 10, 2024, all the operating companies of the technological platforms that offer these services must submit their application to the Mincetur virtually to be granted the authorization to operate.

Those who do not register within this period cannot continue operating in the country. The penalty for those operators who do not comply with this provision will be not less than 150 UIT, and will also be subject to a criminal charge, according to article 243-C of the Criminal Code in force, and will be disqualified from exercising this activity.

In this sense, all companies without distinction, whether national or foreign, must adapt to the new regulation and comply with the correct payment of the special gaming tax, which as of April 2024 will begin to be applied to remote gaming and remote sports betting. The referred tax is 12% of the net income.

"The regulation will allow the Peruvian State to collect close to 162 million soles per year, to be invested in the reactivation of tourism, tourism infrastructure works, promoting sports, and attending mental health programs. Furthermore, we make it clear that it will not affect betting and the payment of prizes. The money won as prize money will be collected in full. The tax will apply to national and foreign online gaming and betting companies", said Minister Mathews.

It is important to point out that with the publication of the regulation, mechanisms are created to protect players from potential non-compliance in the payment of prizes. It also establishes online access controls to protect vulnerable sectors (minors and people affected by gambling and will also allow controlling money laundering since there are no anonymous bets).

"This is the first time that this important economic activity is regulated in the country. In South America, Peru becomes the third country to regulate it, after Colombia and Argentina (in the provinces of Buenos Aires, Cordoba, and Mendoza)," commented the minister.

The publication of the Regulation is an event of great significance since it was the first one prepared following the methodology of Supreme Decree 063-2021-PCM, which established the new regulatory framework in the Executive Power to regulate enacted Laws.

According to Mincetur authorities, "this led to a process under the methodology of the Ex Ante Regulatory Impact Analysis (AIR Ex Ante), the Regulatory Quality Analysis (ACR) and a regulatory public consultation of the draft Regulation. Thus, 772 suggestions, opinions, and contributions were received from public and private stakeholders, such as the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Financial Intelligence Unit - UIF-Peru, operators of remote gaming and sports betting, certification laboratories, manufacturers of software, related products and services, law firms and international consulting firms, among others".

"Subsequently, the Mincetur held informative coordination and socialization meetings with professionals from the public and private sector, as well as unions, companies operating Technological Platforms and Certification Laboratories, among others," Mincetur's authorities added.

"This result is of utmost importance because it demonstrates the articulated work carried out by Mincetur with transparency, predictability, and openness, considering that all the actors involved in the subject participated in the process of drafting the regulation", Minister Mathews commented.

The Law that regulates the exploitation of remote gaming and sports betting states, among other aspects, that Mincetur is the administrative authority at the national level that regulates, authorizes, revokes, supervises, and sanctions the exploitation of remote gaming and remote sports betting.

The legal provision also clearly states that only individuals of legal age, of Peruvian or foreign nationality, previously registered in the technological platforms of remote games or sports betting authorized for their exploitation by the Mincetur, may participate in this activity.

In the case of establishments of remote sports betting gaming rooms, these may be located in premises exclusively for this activity or others that have as their main line of business the sale of other products or services.

Regarding betting, the new law indicates that the player must make the payment of his bets with circulating money, credit cards, debit cards, or any other means of payment, except cryptocurrencies. In the case of obtaining prizes, these may be collected by the means of payment chosen by the player or, by default, through an account in his name, opened in a company of the financial system under the supervision of the SBS.

It should be noted that only sports events that are part of national or international sports associations, federations, or leagues may be subject to sports betting.

Finally, "Mincetur makes available the e-mail [email protected] for consultations on the new Regulation. There are approximately 50 online gaming and sports betting technology platforms operating in the country, as of October 2023, and the gross revenues of online gaming worldwide in 2022 reached $102 billion, according to an international study by H2 Gambling Capital. It is estimated that the volume of bets made in Peru during 2022 was close to 3.8 billion soles", Mincetur concluded.