If the latest draft amendments to the Tax Code are signed into law, the gambling industry could be “suffocated” and eventually collapse, said representatives of the industry during public hearings held by Parliament’s Economy Commission.

One particular draft amendment proposes to reinstate the tax on gambling income, as the current exemption is regarded as a money laundering and corruption risk. “Money of dubious origin can be declared as gambling winnings,” argues the Ministry of Finance.

Yet Vadim Hîncu, general manager of the National Lottery, thinks it doesn’t make sense to tax small winnings, and establishing a threshold for larger taxable winnings instead would be a better idea. The tax wouldn’t affect the National Lottery, but rather the winners would be those hit. The sentiment among players that the government “is stealing from them” could affect sales of the National Lottery, which by the way, – Hîncu recalls – is a state-owned company.

Another fiscal proposal is to cancel the local tax exemption currently enjoyed by state monopolies, gambling included. According to Hîncu, local councils decide independently on the size of local taxes, and to compensate for the small populations, local authorities tend to set those taxes rather high. This could cause many gambling houses to close down, says Hîncu.

At the same time, sports betting operators argued that the new rules would make it harder for them to play the social role of popularizing sports.

It is also proposed to cancel VAT refunds on capital expenditure currently enjoyed by private-public partnerships of national interest. The purpose is to protect fair competition and create equal conditions.