Estonian MP: Remote gambling tax cut not to blame for revenue drop
Eesti 200 MP Tanel Tein rejects claims that the remote gambling tax cut is responsible for falling gambling tax revenues, urging the government to give the agreed strategy more time. Estonia's prime minister has promised a debate on the issue in coming weeks.
Estonian Riigikogu member Tanel Tein of Eesti 200 has defended the government's controversial cut to the online gambling tax, arguing it would be premature to reverse the policy now.
The debate follows claims by Isamaa leader Urmas Reinsalu that the tax cut will cost the state €31 million in lost revenue, while Cultural Endowment head Margus Allikmaa called the cut unjustifiable, saying it has reduced funding available to the culture sector.
The tax break, introduced last December, gradually lowers the remote gambling tax rate from six to four percent over two years, aiming to attract more online casino operators to register in Estonia. Although total gambling tax revenue fell by 9.7 percent in the first seven months of 2026, Tein argued this decline cannot be attributed solely to the remote gambling tax cut, since the total figure also includes revenue from the state lottery and traditional gambling, whose rates were unaffected by the reform.
Tein pointed to a two-month legislative error early in the year and noted that the Cultural Endowment's actual shortfall from remote gambling was about €956,000 — a small fraction of the overall gap. He also disputed Reinsalu's €31 million figure, calling it a forecast through 2029 rather than a confirmed loss, and warned that raising the rate from five to seven percent would increase the tax burden on operators by 40 percent.
New market entrants
Tein highlighted that six companies previously absent from the Estonian market received operating licences in 2026, already surpassing the total for all of 2025. He said 2026 is also a transitional year, as operators adapt to stricter security and anti-money-laundering requirements, and cautioned that raising the tax now could jeopardise efforts to attract larger international operators.
Tein concluded that before reversing course, an impact assessment is needed to show that a higher rate would actually generate more collectible revenue for the state and the Cultural Endowment in the coming years. Prime Minister Kristen Michal has confirmed the government will debate the issue in the coming weeks, stressing that the culture sector must not lose funding as a result.
