Lottery operators across the country are to withhold 10 per cent of winnings and pay same as taxes to the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) effective August 15, this year.
The lottery operators, including private lotto operators, sports betting operators, casino operators, route operators, remote interactive games and other games-of-chance operators, are also expected to pay a 20 per cent tax on their Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR).
At a forum to announce the implementation of the law in Accra yesterday, Edward Gyamerah, Commissioner of Domestic Tax Revenue Division of GRA, said, the Authority was seeking to raise about GH¢1.2 billion as revenue from lottery operations by the end of year.
This followed the implementation of the Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2023, Act 1094, which cites GGR of operators and winnings of players as taxable income.
According to him, GRA was estimating to mobilise more than GH¢3 billion in 2024 alone.
He explained that, the move formed part of efforts aimed at improving Ghana’s domestic tax revenue which stood at 11.4 per cent and was lower than the average of other low to middle income countries estimated at 20.02 per cent and that of its neighbours, such as Togo and Burkina Faso.
Per the law, he noted that, lottery operators were required to withhold tax from the gross winnings at the rate of 10 per cent adding that, for casino and route operations, the withholding tax was on the final gross payout by the player.
Mr Gyamerah said, if the gross winnings to a player through lottery operations and the payment was a prize other than money, lottery operators were required to withhold tax based on the prevailing market value of the prize.
Failure to withhold the tax and pay same to the Authority, he stated, could result in the withdrawal of the license of the lottery operator.
“As the withholding agent, you are obligated to withhold and pay same to GRA. Failure to do so will result in withdrawal of license.
You’re required to ensure that by August 15, you start full implementation of the tax deductions. The sanctions will apply if you fail to do so,” Mr Gyamerah added.
To enable the GRA assess the correct tax from lottery operations, Thomas T.K Agorsor, Chairman of GRA Gaming Revenue Committee, said, the Authority had established a Revenue Monitoring System (RMS) to verify the actual revenue that accrues to lottery operators.
Also, he noted that, the GRA would obtain physical access to the physical infrastructure or system of the lottery operator at an equivalent point in the infrastructure or system to conduct checks when necessary.
He reminded lottery operators of the requirement to modify their software to display stake amount, possible winnings before tax, tax rate, tax withheld and possible winnings after tax on the bet slip and store the values for reporting.
Mr Agorsor said the measure was to ensure that the Act was effectively implemented and administered.
BY CLAUDE NYARKO ADAMS
