India cracks down on illegal online gambling ahead of IPL season
India’s Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence has released an overview of its crackdown on offshore online gambling firms.
Under Indian financial laws, online gambling money is classified as ‘goods’ and is, therefore, subject to a 28% tax. As offshore operators don’t register under the goods and services tax, these companies avoid paying the 28% tax.
The Directorate has noted approximately 700 offshore online gambling platforms that aren’t registered for goods and services tax and has blocked 357 websites through Section 69 of the IT Act of 2000.
Among its operations, the Directorate has blocked almost 2,000 bank accounts linked to online gambling and frozen another 392 accounts. Meanwhile, three individuals in India have been arrested for operating mule bank accounts to collect money from Indian customers.
In a press release, the tax agency said, “Non-compliance by foreign entities distorts fair competition, harms local businesses, and skews the market. These unscrupulous foreign entities circumvent restrictions by creating new web addresses. Investigations also revealed that these companies operated through ‘mule’ bank accounts to process transactions. Funds collected through mule accounts leave the potential to be funneled into illicit activities which may also be dangerous for the national security point of view.”
It was also noted that Bollywood celebrities, social media influencers, and cricketers were being used in advertising for offshore online gambling platforms.
The Directorate reminded Indian players to be cautious while selecting platforms and warned measures against illegal gambling would get stricter ahead of the Indian Premier League cricket season.
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