Ukraine is set to take its draft gambling law to its second reading in June 2020, which if passed, would legalize land-based casinos, online casinos, sports betting shops, slot machine halls, online poker, totalisator and lotteries in the country.
Under the draft gambling law, a copy of which was translated by global law firm Dentons, the gambling activities would be carried out through 11 different licenses, which would be issued by a gaming regulator.
For a land-based casino license, there will be a yearly licensing fee of EUR1.9 million (US$2.1 million) if the casino is based in Kyiv. For cities other than Kyiv, the licensing fee will cost EUR 960,000 per year.
For cities with populations of above 500,000, it would be allowed 10 gaming tables and 50 slot machines.
Cities with a population below 500,000 would be permitted 5 gaming tables and 20 slot machines. It would be required to have one or more 5-star hotels with no fewer than 150 rooms, whilst the casino premises need to be a minimum of 500 square meters.
For an online casino license, the licensee would be required to pay a yearly fee of EUR 624,000 before the implementation of an online monitoring system, and EUR 208,000 afterwards. The license allows for both Ukranian and non-Ukranian players for online casinos.
The sports betting license, which allows for physical betting shops, would cost EUR 2.9 million before the online monitoring system, and EUR 960,000 after. Similarly, the licensee is allowed to take both Ukranian and non-Ukranian punters.
Slot machine halls, which allow for up to 250 slot machines, will have a yearly licensing fee of EUR 240,000. An online poker license will cost EUR 160,000 per year.
There are also license fees per slot machine and gaming table – which are EUR 28,000 for a roulette table, EUR 14,400 for any other table game, EUR 2,880 for a slot machine (not connected to online monitoring system) and EUR 960 after it is connected.
The country first started discussing gambling licenses in December 2015, which would lift a prohibition on gambling which was first introduced in 2009.