Netherlands gambling tax hike, deposit limits and sponsorship ban miss targets, leaving the government €100 million short

The Dutch government expected the higher gambling tax to bring in €108 million in extra revenue in 2025 and €216 million in 2026. Instead, a joint review by the Ministry of Finance and the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) says the actual outcome was €2 million in 2025 and €57 million in 2026, with tighter rules and margin pressure doing most of the work.

1. The tax rate was lifted from 30.5% to 34.2% on 1 January 2025, then to 37.8% in early 2026. According to the report, the base shrank enough that the higher rate did not translate into the expected gain.
2. The KSA points to a combination of regulatory changes that hit Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR): monthly deposit limits introduced in October 2024, set at €300 for adults under 24 and €700 for everyone else; a ban on gambling sponsorship in television programs from July 2024; and a ban on sponsorship of sports teams in 2025. The report also notes that the temporary lift from Euro 2024 faded quickly.
3. Several operators closed or restructured, citing the heavier tax burden and compressed margins. The report says ongoing regulatory scrutiny added uncertainty to the market, which is exactly the kind of environment where licensed operators start reworking product, marketing and acquisition economics.
4. State-owned operators took the hardest hit. Holland Casino reported a decline in pre-tax profit of about €27 million in 2025 and €54 million in 2026, while Nederlandse Loterij projected reductions of €16 million in 2025 and €34 million in 2026, including corporate tax, mandatory fees and combined profits.
5. Footfall at casinos and gaming halls fell by about 11% between Q1 2025 and Q1 2026, and the number of gaming halls in operation kept falling over the same period. Charitable contributions rose 1.8% between 2024 and 2025, while sports funding dropped 3.6%.

The report also raises the familiar high-risk question: did the tax hike push some players toward unlicensed operators? VNLOK, the Dutch gambling industry trade association, has recently filed a formal complaint with the European Commission over ads for those illegal platforms being carried by Me.