Swedish Tax Authority cracks down on poker winnings
Skatteverket carries out raids, demands full disclosure of income on sites outside of European Economic Area.
Swedish Tax Authority Skatteverket has raided the homes of full time poker players across the country as part of a campaign to unearth players’ income, profits and payment of taxes.
The action comes after many Swedish poker players received a letter demanding the full disclosure of their winnings between 2008 and 2011 on sites registered outside the European Economic Area (EEA), “such as PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker and Bodog”.
Winnings earned from beyond the EEA (the European Union plus Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland) are taxable in Sweden. The taxable gain is determined to net income of all poker games during the year, and applies whether the game takes place online or live.
Raids were reportedly conducted by the Serious Fraud Office on Tuesday, with players’ computers and mobile phones seized in a bid to disclose players’ winnings.
The letter, which can be read in full on pokermagazine.se, asks players to state which sites they have played on during the last four years, under what screen names they played, and for the details of bank accounts connected to their gaming accounts.
Players are also asked to provide bank statements and sponsorship revenues to the tax authority.
Last month Svenska Spel chief executive Lennart Käll said the Swedish monopoly operator faces a challenge to claw back market share from unlicensed operators against whom he argues action should be taken.
Sweden is yet to begin issuing online gambling licences, although it is expected to do so after the country holds its 2014 elections. A statement from Svenska Spel last month noted that unlicensed online operators continue to eat into its market share, which currently sits at 49% for online and offline combined.