Ireland’s betting industry is mounting strong opposition to proposals that the government raise its 2% betting duty as part of sweeping gambling reforms.
The current 2% duty is applied to customer stakes but is paid by operators rather than bettors, making it a significant cost burden on the industry.
Reports in the Racing Post and other Irish outlets suggest the government is considering increasing that rate ahead of the October 6 budget, alarming bookmakers across the country.
Flutter Entertainment has already taken direct action, writing privately to Finance Minister Simon Harris last month urging him not to raise the tax before the budget announcement.
The Irish Bookmakers Association has similarly warned Simon Harris that any increase to the 2% duty would push bettors toward unlicensed operators, undermining the regulated market.
The warning comes against a backdrop of accelerating shop closures, with one large operator shutting 39 shops in a single move in early May 2026.
In early September, a separate multi-operator confirmed that up to 100 shops across Britain and Ireland are under review for closure by year-end, putting around 400 roles at risk.
The Irish Bookmakers Association expects 40 or more of those closures to fall in Ireland, pushing the 2026 total above 80 shops before any Budget 2027 decision is made.
The association attributes the mounting pressure to rising rents, rates, and energy costs, the near-doubling of remote gaming duty in Britain, the continuing shift to online betting, and compliance costs tied to the Gambling Regulation Act 2024.
Ireland’s 2% turnover-based betting duty was doubled from 1% in 2019, and the Irish Bookmakers Association’s budget submission states that 222 betting shops were closed and “roughly 1,000 retail jobs” were lost as a direct result of that earlier hike.
The long-term trajectory for Irish retail betting is stark, with the number of betting shops falling 46% since 2008, dropping from 1,385 outlets to just 643 today.
That decline has accelerated in recent years, with 47 closures recorded in 2025 and a further 41 already confirmed so far in 2026.
Anthony Kaminskas, founder of AK Bets, warned that a higher turnover tax would leave regulated firms with very limited choices going forward.
Kaminskas argued that operators would either need to strip back their sportsbook and focus solely on casino products, or offer poor odds that ultimately drive punters toward competitors.
Ireland would join the UK, Netherlands, and other European nations in raising gambling taxes if the government presses ahead with the proposal, making it the latest domino to fall in a continent-wide trend of tapping gaming revenue to boost state finances.
