The ACCJ calls for intensive regulation of online gambling in Chile
The Chilean Association of Casinos and Gaming (Asociación Chilena de Casinos y Juegos) once again raised its objections to the treatment given by the Internal Revenue Service (Servicio de Impuestos Internos) to online betting platforms. This was explained by former minister and external legal advisor to the association, Luis Cordero, in statements to the newspaper La Segunda, regarding the appeal filed with the Comptroller General's Office. The argument stems from a central difference: for the association, paying taxes does not equate to being authorized to operate. Cordero questioned whether the mechanism promoted by the tax authority could convey a signal of normalization for an activity that, according to the association's interpretation, still lacks a licensing and sectoral control regime.
The advisor maintained that the decision is illegal and inconvenient, arguing that registration with the tax authority and the payment of taxes can create an appearance of legality for operators who are not subject to a specific system of authorization, oversight, and user protection. Far from suggesting that online gaming should remain unregulated, the association's position is to move towards an intensive regulatory framework, where the discussion incorporates issues beyond tax payment, such as accessibility to gaming, advertising, consumer protection mechanisms, operator control, and the conditions under which activities can be developed. Cordero referenced the model of land-based casinos, which have controls on access, users, and money flows that, in the digital environment, are more difficult to apply without a specific framework.
In his argument, the advisor placed the debate in three sensitive areas. The first is public health and consumer protection, questioning that the online model lacks mechanisms equivalent to those of land-based casinos to control user access and exposure to gaming. The second is economic integrity and crime prevention, mentioning risks associated with money laundering and the differences between controls applicable to land-based establishments and those that can be established for digital platforms. The third relates to the signal conveyed by the tax treatment, as allowing a platform to register and pay taxes can create the perception that its activity is authorized, even without a sectoral license.
The argument takes on an additional dimension due to the type of markets offered by some platforms, and Cordero drew attention to the possibility of betting on public decisions, such as the processing of bills or Supreme Court rulings, a practice he described as extremely risky for democracy. The association's central argument is that tax collection alone should not determine the treatment of online gaming, and that the challenge lies in first defining what conditions an operator must meet to operate legally, what controls it must accept, and what obligations it must assume towards consumers and the State, with taxation being part of that scheme and not a substitute.
Tags: Chilean Casinos and Gaming Association, Luis Cordero, Internal Revenue Service, online gambling regulation in Chile