Poland’s Parliament plans to increase the tax on player winnings to 15%, a move that, according to Dr. Justyna Grusza-Głębicka, will undermine efforts to draw gamblers away from the black market.
The Sejm is preparing to amend the Personal Income Tax Act to capture a larger share of winnings from gambling, betting, lotteries, and marketing prizes.
The official draft has not yet been published, but insiders report that the plan is expected to take effect in January 2026. It will include provisions to “extend taxation to winnings obtained abroad.”
Thus, Poland intends to expand its tax jurisdiction even within the supposedly borderless EU/EEA market. In short, the government wants a bigger cut from every winning cent – whether wagered in Warsaw or anywhere else.
In Poland, the main tax paid by entities engaged in gambling is the gambling tax. Its rate is set out in the Gambling Act of November 19, 2009, and varies depending on the type of game. For betting, the rate is 12%, while for slot machines or roulette it is 50%. Each type of game has its own tax base. For example, for betting it is the total amount of stakes placed, while for slot machines it is the difference between the total amount wagered and the total amount paid out in winnings.
In addition, there is already a tax on winnings, which represents an additional fiscal burden on top of the gambling tax. Currently, this tax amounts to 10% of the prize or winnings. If a player participates in a game organized in Poland, the tax is withheld at the source by the gambling operator. The player does not need to declare it in their annual income statement.
However, if the tax is not withheld at the source, the winnings are subject to a flat-rate income tax, provided that the player is a Polish tax resident. In such cases, double taxation treaties may also apply.
In practice, this means that if someone wins PLN 10,000 (about €2,100) from a bookmaker, 10% (PLN 1,000) is automatically withheld at payout. Because of this, players often develop strategies to avoid exceeding certain thresholds. However, the game would be much simpler if they didn’t have to be so cautious.
Winnings from number games, cash lotteries, telebingo, betting, promotional lotteries, audiotex lotteries, and prize lotteries are exempt from tax if their single value does not exceed approximately €520.
Winnings from slot machines, card and dice games, roulette, cash bingo, and prize bingo organized by an authorized entity under the gambling laws of an EU or EEA member state are fully exempt from tax regardless of the amount. However, this exemption may soon change.
The draft amendment proposes raising the tax on winnings from 10% to 15%, as the current rate no longer reflects the real value of betting in today’s market.
The government also refers to the concept of “behavioral taxation,” claiming that higher rates are intended to increase the “corrective effect” of such taxes. According to officials, low tax rates fail to influence consumer behavior, and the related “health benefits” (in the case of certain product taxes) are too minor to be measurable. The planned increase is therefore aimed at boosting state budget revenues and restoring balance in the taxation of prizes.
For players, this means that a larger portion of their winnings will go to the tax authorities. For example, a person who wins PLN 10,000 will now have to pay PLN 1,500 in tax instead of PLN 1,000.
So far, the government has presented only the general outline of the proposal, not the full text. It is still unclear what exemption thresholds will apply, what minimum amounts will be taxable, and whether the increase will affect all types of games and prizes or whether some categories will be excluded.
Representatives of Poland’s gambling industry oppose the proposed changes, as consumers have always viewed taxes on winnings negatively. The additional burden will only make the gray and black markets more attractive.
For licensed operators, history repeats itself: the Polish government is once again giving a “free hand to bad actors.” And if the new rules are implemented in their current form, it may turn out that, paradoxically, the state treasury will lose more than it gains.
In theory, gambling taxes are meant to strike a delicate balance – punishing vice without encouraging illegality. In practice, they achieve neither. The plan to raise the rate from 10% to 15% may look like a neat way to boost revenue, but in the world of gambling policy, it’s a bet with very long odds.
Don’t forget to subscribe to our Telegram channel!
