France could launch online casino by 2025 after budget amendment

France could see regulated online casino as early as next year after the government sought to legalise the activity in its budget.

The government added an amendment to the Draft Finance Bill 2025 which would introduce a licensed online casino market.

It comes as prime minister Michel Barnier aims to slash the country’s budget deficit to below 5% of GDP, down from its current level of 6.1%.

The government said in a summary of the amendment: “This opening is the result of aligning the gaming framework with our main European neighbours, France being, along with Cyprus, the only country in the European Union to ban online casino gaming.”

The push follows the failure of a scheme last year that would have seen a competitive online casino market launch in 2030 after a five-year period where French companies would have exclusivity.

Floated 55.6% online casino tax rate

If passed, iGaming operators would be subject to among the highest taxes in Europe at 55.6%, which is currently the rate that applies to online lottery games.

This would comprise a 27.8% GGR tax alongside additional social security contributions.

The rise of the French online casino black market was highlighted by the government as a reason to repeal the ban on the activity.

According to a National Gambling Authority (ANJ) study, illegal gambling operators generated between €748m and €1.5bn of GGR in 2023, representing between 5% and 11% of France’s overall market.

Online casinos, the government claimed, were responsible for 50% of the black market, with 79% of the total spend in the market coming from at-risk players.

Combating the black market is one of the core elements of the French gambling regulator’s 2024-2026 strategic plan.

As part of this push, the ANJ has recently begun a new information campaign that aims to remind consumers online casino is illegal in France, and of the dangers of unlicensed operators generally.

The government added: “While one in two consumers of illegal offers are unaware of their illicit nature, playing these games is not without risk: there is no approval of the games used, making cheating possible, winnings may not be paid, minors are not protected, bets are not supervised and the theft of personal data is frequent.”

Government warns blocking powers ineffective

Since the ANJ was first granted administrative blocking powers in March 2022, it has issued 506 administrative blocking acts, resulting in 2,365 URLs being blocked.

This, the government outlined, is more URLs blocked than in the previous 12 years of judicial blocking proceedings.

However, the government said success in this area “remains relative” due to the widespread use of mirror sites by unlicensed operators after blocking actions.

The government said: “In order to limit the impact on the public health of consumers of online games, to control this ever-growing supply of games and to try to dry up the illegal supply, it is necessary to ensure real regulation of online casino games.”

Any authorisation will be accompanied by specific regulation which will be developed by the ANJ and all relevant stakeholders, it added.

The amendment is welcome news for French online gaming operators, which have long pushed for an open market.

La Française des Jeux, now among the largest operators in Europe following the closing of its Kindred acquisition, may be a particular beneficiary if it is able to leverage its increased size to grab market share.

Land-based casinos warn of ‘catastrophic’ consequences

However, the amendment has been criticised by land-based casino interests, which have warned online legalisation would cannibalise revenue.

Speaking to French financial newspaper Les Echos, head of the Casinos de France union Gregory Rabuel warned online casino regulation would have “catastrophic” consequences.

He said: “This is a completely ill-considered choice, without any consultation with stakeholders.

“According to our calculations, opening up online casinos to competition will lead to a 20-30% drop in gross gaming revenue for land-based casinos, and the closure of 30% of establishments.

“There will be catastrophic consequences, particularly social: it is estimated that 15,000 jobs will be lost. More generally, this amounts to signing the death warrant for land-based casinos.”

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