The UK Gambling Act of 2005 introduced strict new laws around the subject of gambling. Amongst other things, the act requires that you report any winnings of more than £300 to the relevant tax authorities. This could potentially nullify all your previous bookmaking profits, or at least half of them! Fortunately, there are work-arounds to avoid the act’s new rules. Here’s how to declare your gambling winnings and avoid any potential tax problems.
Poker
While it’s perfectly legal to play poker in the UK, you must officially declare any winnings you make. If you’re playing at a licensed poker site, then you’ll need to make sure you register for an account with The Gambling Commission. This way, you’ll be able to report your winnings to the authorities as required. If you’re playing at an unlicensed poker site, then you’re at risk of breaking the law. Fortunately, there’s also a way to play poker legally without having to declare your winnings.
The 2006 UK Gambling Act introduced a brand new law that allows players to withhold certain information about their gambling. More specifically, Section 75 of the act allows individuals to be exempt from declaring their gambling winnings, provided that they meet the following three criteria.
- They are aged 18 or over
- They are a UK resident
- They are carrying out sports gambling or betting with gambling companies that are based or registered in the UK.
This law was designed to benefit high-profile sports players, TV presenters, and famous actors. To be clear, you don’t need to meet all three criteria to be able to benefit from this law. You just need to meet two of them. And in the case of poker players, the last one is the most important one.
If you’re a high-profile sports player or a TV presenter and you want to be able to keep your gambling winnings under wraps, then you have options. You can find out how to play poker legally in the UK by contacting a reputable poker site. Some of the biggest names in the industry, such as Full Tilt, have offices in the UK and operate under the radar for players and media members alike. Whether you’re playing for fun or for money, you’ll need a good working relationship with the people you’re playing with to ensure you can trust them.
Sports Betting
If you’re a sports fan and you want to place bets on the results of various sports games, then you can do this legally in the UK as long as you’re 18 years old. The problem is that bookmakers often try to trick customers into paying them money they don’t have. If you suspect that this is happening to you, then you have options. You can either play at a reputable sport betting site or you can play at a bookmaker. If you play at a bookmaker, then you run the risk of them trying to trick you into believing that your bets are being accepted when they aren’t. Reputable sites like Bet365 and BetVictor have processes in place to ensure that customers are treated fairly and their money is protected.
Taxation
The UK Gambling Act of 2005 places restrictions on the types of bets you can make regarding sporting events. For instance, you can’t bet on whether a certain player will score a certain number of points or whether a team will win or lose a sporting event. The list of what you’re allowed to bet on is available on The Gambling Commission’s website. Naturally, you’ll have to pay attention to the types of bets you make, as they may be taxed differently. For instance, if you bet on whether a player will score a certain number of points or whether a team will win or lose a game, then you may owe money to the government. In this case, you’ll need to pay income tax and national insurance on your betting winnings. Fortunately, there are also ways to avoid this kind of tax altogether. You can get a tax exemption for the gambling you do as long as it’s for the social good.
The UK government provides more information about tax relief on gambling and which types of gambling are eligible for it at https://www.gov.uk/tax-relief-on-gambling. If you or your business can demonstrate that gambling is helping to provide for social causes such as healthcare or education, then you may be able to qualify for some relief.
Summary
To summarize, as long as you meet the criteria set out in the UK Gambling Act of 2006, then you’ll be able to keep your gambling winnings out of the public eye. The best way to avoid any trouble is to play at reputable sports betting and poker sites. If you’re playing at a bookmaker, then you run the risk of them trying to trick you into paying them when you don’t have the money.