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Possible Latvian Live Casino Fee

Press Release 13th October 2017

News coming from Evolution Gaming today is the Latvian Parliament has decided to implement a fee for Live Casino tables provided from the country.

It’s not clear how much this fee/tax will be or what it will cover.

The fee will come into place next year, but there is a possibility things may change. 

Evolution has stated that:

The planned fee is not assessed to substantially impact the company’s position.

The decision was made against the advice of the Latvian Government and several other stakeholders.

Live Casino Comparer Comment

This is an interesting one, as Evolution, Playtech and LuckyStreak all have studios in Latvia.

All the suppliers already operate in regulated markets where they already pay a licence fee to operate.

Latvia is not a regulated market and actually prohibits online gaming to it’s citizens.

So this move appears to be some form of additional tax.

One of the main reasons Latvia is used as the studio base for some many Live Casino operators is it’s low labour and business rates.

It will be interesting to see how the operators react and whether the fee will be enough to encourage them to seek alternative locations.

One things for sure, if they do move, 1000’s of people will lose jobs and that can’t be good for the Latvian economy.

 

About Neil’s Casino Comparer Reviews

I have tried to be objective and consistent with all my live casino reviews. Hopefully, they will strike a chord with you, but I thought it might be helpful to explain the criteria I use to mark each of the casinos. Hopefully, the categories and explanations make sense.

Playability – What is the overall impression of the casino? Did I have a good time? are the dealers nice and chatty and is everything easy to understand? Does it have a good set of games and is there a comprehensive set of betting options? Are high stakes players taken care of?

Software – What is the software like to use and does it integrate well with the rest of the casino?. Are the images clear and is the video streaming fast? Have they taken more than the default shared tables? Is it available on mobile?

Payment Options – Does the casino have a good variety of payment options? Do they payout quickly and on time?

Security – How good is the reputation of the casino amongst other players? Do they hold a valid gaming license? Are they transparent about the security measures they have in place? Are they regularly audited? Do they publish this information?

Support – Do they have multiple methods for communication with me? Is support available 24×7? Do they have instant chat and are they quick to respond? Are they able to help me immediately? Do they have an online FAQ and self-help library? Are the support people knowledgeable about the product I’m playing?

Bonuses – Do they have bonuses?. How strict are the wagering requirements? Do they offer repeat bonuses?. Do they offer loyalty points and can they be redeemed for cash or playing credits?

After all that, would I play there regularly?

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