Due to the high demand and diversity in directions, the gambling market is actively expanding across the planet, even despite the numerous legislative nuances. This time, the Login Casino team has prepared a general overview of gambling in Turkey.
Today the gambling industry in Turkey is strictly regulated. It is known that casinos have been banned for 22 years (at the time the ban was introduced, the total number of casino employees reached 20 thousand people), and non-state online gambling has been banned since 2006. It is noteworthy that in the context of the ban on gambling activities, Turkey became the first country in the world that aims to supervise not only gambling companies but also players. The government was especially active before the 2018 FIFA World Cup, when tough measures were taken against illegal bets on the outcome of sports events. By such actions, the authorities additionally showed that no relaxation of control is expected in the near future. If anything changes in this regard, you will be among the first to find out about changes to online gambling laws in Turkey thanks to news about the gambling industry.
Turkey’s casinos and other gambling activities
At present, the National Lottery Administration (Milli Piyango), as well as the state sports betting association SporToto and several other betting services, including those on equestrian sports, operate in Turkey. Lottery games are administered by the Ministry of Finance and governed by the National Lottery Administration. The Ministry of Sports controls SporToto. There is also a jockey club under the control of the Ministry of Agriculture, which offers betting on horse racing.
IDDAA represents the state-owned online gambling company. Only the companies listed above are taxed, there is currently no tax on winnings for players, which is a common practice for the industry of gambling in Europe.
The current legal framework states that the following gambling activities are legal in Turkey, operating on behalf of the state:
- lottery;
- number games;
- games with instant winnings.
Organizations applying to conduct gambling activities under the authority of the state must be tested according to the following criteria:
- Turkish citizenship or place of residence;
- no previous convictions;
- tax registration;
- availability of a deposit;
- the presence of a minimum area of 25 square meters for the arrangement of the establishment.
It is worth noting that private companies can only cooperate with the government through a tender, which puts forward the relevant requirements. General requirements for bidders to obtain a license are:
- only a legal entity or joint venture has the right to participate;
- the presence of a portfolio with a specific amount of assets;
- no previous convictions;
- not being blacklisted in open tenders during the past five years;
- the asset ownership structure must be transparent.
To apply for participation in the tender, it is necessary to sign a confidentiality agreement, pay a non-refundable deposit to receive an information memorandum and tender specifications, pay an additional deposit, submit financial and technical applications for a preliminary specification for evaluation by the Turkish Privatization Administration, and provide a surety in the form of a specific amount.
According to the latest news reports, there is still a shadow Turkish gambling market operating within the country. Locals are most likely to use VPN extensions to access prohibited sites. The government, in turn, blocks illegal resources and, if possible, imposes appropriate fines. Financial institutions stop gambling transactions, the use of digital currencies is limited, in spite of the fact that the popularity of Bitcoin casino sites is growing in the world, search engines are monitored, and citizens are sent responsibility notices when the transaction is completed. It is known that such major international online gambling operators as William Hill and Pinnacle no longer accept bets from players with Turkish IP. Some participants in the gambling sector associate the ban with a discrepancy between the requirements of religion and gambling.
The most significant events reflecting the market situation
Among the recent and famous measures against gambling by the government and the president were police raids in Istanbul and provincial areas. In total, about 5 thousand law enforcement officers took part in the operation, while almost 400 people were detained. The reason for the raid was information about shell companies. Online gambling websites had a turnover of $671 million. In this case, transactions were carried out through local banks. Penalties were imposed on the players.
At the same time, the government encourages the activity of the aforementioned state lottery and sports betting service, and shortly before the raids in Istanbul, a tender was launched to open the sports industry. It is aimed at finding a company that, on behalf of the Spor Toto public service, would manage a centralized gambling system in six thousand outlets throughout the country for ten years.
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