Tax Free Casinos for Kiwis

New Zealand is another country with a long history of gambling but a low number of land based casinos. The people of New Zealand have been gambling since the 17^th century, but the penal code prohibited gambling there in 1899. It wasn’t until the country gained independence in 1917 that the code could be abolished. Today, New Zealand is home to just one legal casino, which was built in the country’s capital of Helsinki in 1991.

Unlike Australian gambling law which allows most professional poker players to claim they are recreational, in New Zealand poker winnings are considered taxable income if the player has little to no income from other sources. Outside of professional poker play, it is very rare for gambling winnings to be taxed in NZ.

Winnings from land based and online casino gambling are not taxable in New Zealand. However, casino operators are responsible for paying 8.25% on their net profits.

The one and only casino in the country is Casino Helsinki, located in the capital city. It’s the only casino in the world that donates all profits to charity.

Gamblers in New Zealand do not have to pay taxes on gambling winnings with the exception of the lottery. Lottery winners must declare their prizes on their income tax. The gambling companies are faced with a series of taxes ranging from gross profits to the value of winnings.

If you search the web site of our tax authority administrative unit (www.ird.govt.nz) you may realize gambling is mentioned repeatedly however in only a few cases do gamblers ever ought to pay tax on their winnings. There's a standard idea that the explanation for this is often as a result of operators (lottery organizers, pokie house owners, casinos, TAB etc.) have already paid tax. The particular reason is as a result of gambling is most frequently thought-about recreation and not financial gain. This remains true even once victimisation overseas online sporting sites.