Latvia’s Association of Licensed Gambling Operators warns 20 closures will follow latest tax increase
Number of gambling halls has fallen by 70 per cent
Latvia’s Association of Licensed Gambling Operators (LLAB), an industry association, has warned that another increase in taxation will force more closures and job losses.
It believes that more than 20 gambling venues will be forced to shut their doors across the country.
Increases in taxation have been brought forward by a year with licences on slots increasing to €7,440 per per machine whilst table games licencees will increase to €40,440 per year. The latest increase will come into play in January 2026. Online gaming will be taxed at 15 per cent of gross gaming revenue, an increase from 12 per cent whilst mobile betting will increase to 18 per cent.
The Ministry of Finance claims ia aiming to bring in an extra €9.2m, but Latvia’s Association of Licensed Gambling Operators has warned it’s a step too far.
Juris Celmārs of Latvia’s Association of Licensed Gambling Operators and Chairman of Olympic Casino Latvia, said: “By raising the tax rates on gaming halls and machines, the promised budget increase will not happen. On the contrary, budget revenue will decrease. Not only are the principles of good governance not followed, but misleading forecasts have also been made about the impact of tax changes on budget revenues.”
“They were made without taking into account market rules and trends: a decrease in turnover in the land-based segment and a significant drop in the number of gambling halls.”
The number of gambling halls in Latvia has dropped by more than 70 per cent in the last two decades with only 168 currently open compared to 327 in 2005.
The number of slots have fallen from 4,916 in January 2024 to 4,037 in September 2025.
The Constitutional Court of Latvia ruled last year that the prohibition on gambling organisations within Rīga, which led to the closure of 42 gambling venues in the city centre, is unconstitutional.
Brought in six years ago by Riga City Council, the ban prohibited gambling in Rīga except in four or five-star hotels. Added to this, the council then moved to revoke the licences for 139 gambling halls outside of the city in last September 2023, giving them five years to close.
In 2023, gambling revenues reached €288,633m in Latvia, marking an increase of nine per cent with 52.4 per cent of this total generated by land-based gambling. This was down from 80.4 per cent in 2019. Currently, only three casinos, 194 amusement arcades, one bingo amusement arcade and 76 betting venues operated in Latvia in December last year.
Of the total 194 gambling halls, 79 (40.7 per cent) were in Rīga, 52 (26.8 per cent) were in six largest cities, while 63 (32.5 per cent) were in 31 Latvian municipalities, employing a total of 2,722 people.
