Legislation
Brazil – Government authorises the creation of online gambling board
By James - 5 February 2024
The federal government has published Presidential Decree 11,907/2024, which establishes the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (Secretaria de Prêmios e Apostas no Ministério da Fazenda).
The publication in the Official Gazette of the Union outlined the competencies of the agency, the implementation of three sub-secretariats, and the reallocation of positions and functions to the new division within the Ministry of Finance. The Secretariat was linked to the Ministry of Finance to improve government actions, with special attention to the regulation process of online sports betting and casino games.
In a statement, the ministry said that the new structure will improve government actions, “with special attention to the process of regulating the fixed-odd betting market, which covers sports betting (so-called bets) and online games, and also to fulfil the legal duties of the Ministry of Finance regarding lotteries and commercial promotions.”
According to the Ministry of Finance the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA) will be responsible for “money laundering monitoring and prevention actions will also be carried out by the new secretariat, as well as market monitoring, aiming, among other points, at establishing responsible gaming policies, which consist of measures, guidelines and practices to be adopted to prevention of compulsive or pathological gambling disorders prevent and not induce debt and to protect vulnerable people, especially minors, in addition to monitoring and supervising communication, advertising and marketing actions, among other duties provided for in Law No. 14,790, 2023. ”
In total, the new Secretariat will have 38 professional positions. The SPA’s three sub-secretariats are: the Authorization Sub-Secretariat, the Monitoring and Inspection Sub-Secretariat, and the Sanctioning Action Sub-Secretariat. The Authorization Sub-Secretariat will be responsible for analyzing requests for authorization of licenses. The Sub Secretariat of Monitoring and Inspection will oversee and carry out inspection actions, monitoring the correct payment of taxes owed by operators and bettors, as well as ensuring the fight against corruption, money laundering, and other crimes. The Sub Secretariat of Sanctioning Action will adjudicate administrative proceedings, deciding whether or not to impose sanctions.
