Betting and Gaming Duties Act 1981

PART II Gaming Duties

Gaming licence duty

13 Gaming licences

(1) The authority of a licence (to be known as a gaming licence) shall be required for all gaming by way of any games to which this section for the time being applies taking place on any premises at a time when a licence is in force as respects those premises under the [1968 c. 65.] Gaming Act 1968.

(2) Subject to the provisions of paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to this Act, a gaming licence shall be a licence for the period from 1st October in any year to 31st March in the following year, or from 1st April in any year to 30th September in that year (all dates inclusive).

(3) Without prejudice to the following provisions of this section, the games to which this section applies are baccarat, punto banco, big six, blackjack, boule, chemin de fer, chuck-a-luck, craps, crown and anchor, faro, faro bank, hazard, poker dice, pontoon, French roulette, American roulette, tremte et quarante, vingt-et-un, and wheel of fortune.

(4) The Treasury may by order add to the games mentioned in subsection (3) above any game not for the time being mentioned in that subsection if it appears to the Treasury proper to do so for the protection of the revenue, having regard to the character of the game and the circumstances in which it is played.

(5) Any reference in this section or in any order under subsection (4) above to a particular game shall include a reference to any game (by whatever name called) which is essentially similar to that game.

14 Gaming licence duty

(1) A duty of excise shall be charged on gaming licences and, subject to the provisions of Schedule 2 to this Act, the amount of duty on a licence for any period in respect of the premises specified in the licence shall be—

(a) £250 payable on application for the licence, plus

(b) a further sum payable after the end of that period and chargeable at the rates specified in the following Table on the gross gaming yield from the premises in that period.

TABLE

Part of gross gaming yield	Rate
The first £250,000	2 ½ per cent.
The next £500,000	5 per cent.
The next £1,750,000	10 per cent.
The remainder	20 per cent.

(2) Subject to subsection (3) below, for the purposes of this section and Schedule 2 to this Act the gross gaming yield from any premises in any period shall consist of—

(a) the receipts in that period from charges made in connection with gaming on the premises by way of any game to which section 13 above for the time being applies, being charges authorised by regulations under section 14(2) of the [1968 c. 65.] Gaming Act 1968 but exclusive of value added tax and of any charge the payment of which does no more than entitle a person to admission to the premises ; and

(b) where a provider of the premises (or a person acting on his behalf) is banker in relation to any such gaming as aforesaid, the difference between—

(i) the value in money or money's worth of the stakes staked with the banker in such gaming; and

(ii) the value in money or money's worth of the winnings paid by the banker to those taking part in such gaming otherwise than on behalf of a provider of the premises.

(3) The Treasury may amend subsection (2) above by order.

15 Gaming without duly paid licence

(1) If at any time gaming takes place on any premises as respects which a licence is then in force under the [1968 c. 65.] Gaming Act 1968 by way of any game to which section 13 above then applies then, unless a person who is a provider of those premises—

(a) holds a gaming licence which is then in force, and

(b) has paid all amounts of gaming licence duty which are payable (or which he reasonably believes are payable) by him before that time,

every provider of those premises and every person concerned in the organisation or management of the gaming shall be guilty of an offence and liable—

(i) on summary conviction, to a penalty of the prescribed sum or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both ;

(ii) on conviction on indictment, to a penalty of any amount or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both.

(2) If a justice of the peace or, in Scotland, a justice (within the meaning of section 462 of the [1975 c. 21.] Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1975) is satisfied on information on oath that there is reasonable ground for suspecting—

(a) that an offence under subsection (1) above is being, has been, or is about to be committed on any premises, or

(b) that evidence of any such offence is to be found there,

he may issue a warrant in writing authorising any officer to enter those premises (if necessary by force) at any time within fourteen days from the time of the issue of the warrant and search them.

(3) An officer who enters premises under the authority of such a warrant may—

(a) seize and remove any records, accounts or other documents, money or valuable thing, instrument or other thing whatsoever found on the premises which he has reasonable cause to believe may be required as evidence for the purposes of proceedings in respect of such an offence, and

(b) search any person found on the premises whom he has reasonable cause to believe to be concerned in the organisation or management of gaming on the premises.

16 Supplementary provisions as to gaming licence duty

(1) Schedule 2 to this Act (supplementary provisions as to gaming licence duty) shall have effect.

(2) In sections 13 to 15 above and in Schedule 2 to this Act—

• " premises " includes any place and any means of transport, and

• " provider ", in relation to any premises used for gaming, means any person having a right to control the admission of persons to those premises, whether or not he also has a right to control the admission of persons to the gaming.

(3) In proceedings relating to gaming licence duty under the customs and excise Acts an averment in any process that a particular game is essentially similar to another particular game shall, until the contrary is proved, be sufficient evidence that it is so.

Bingo duty

17 Bingo duty

(1) A duty of excise, to be known as bingo duty, shall be charged on the playing of bingo in Great Britain except in the cases specified in Part I of Schedule 3 to this Act.

(2) Bingo duty shall be charged in respect of bingo played in a particular week; and the amount of the duty shall be—

(a) 10 per cent, of the total of the money taken by or on behalf of the promoter in that week as payment by players for their cards, plus

(b) (subject to section 19(1) below) one ninth of the amount (if any) by which that total, after deduction of the 10 per cent, chargeable under paragraph (a) above, is exceeded by the total value of the prizes won in that week's bingo.

(3) For the purposes of this section, a player's " cards " are the sets of numbers or symbols (in whatever form or lay-out) with which he plays bingo, matching them against calls made by the house ; and a player pays for a card when he gives money in exchange for, or for the use of, a particular card, whether it is appropriated to a particular game or can be appropriated by the player to a game of his choice.

18 Payment and recovery of bingo duty

(1) Bingo duty shall be paid by the promoter of the bingo.

(2) Bingo duty shall be recoverable jointly and severally from all or any of the following persons—

(a) the promoter;

(b) any person who took money as payment by players for cards or paid prizes to players ;

(c) any person who was responsible for the management of the premises on which bingo was played ;

(d) where any person within paragraph (a), (b) or (c) above is a company, any director of the company.

19 Play in more than one place

(1) Where bingo is promoted at one place and, for the purpose of a particular game, it is combined with bingo played at another place and promoted by another person, so that the players at both places share in the chance of winning a prize contributed partly by one promoter and partly by the other, then for the purposes of the charge to bingo duty under section 17(2)(b) above

(a) as against the promoter of the bingo at the place where the prize is won there shall be counted so much only of the value of the prize as represents his contribution, and

(b) so much of the value of the prize as represents the contribution of the other promoter shall be counted as a prize won at bingo promoted by him ;

and where the prize is provided wholly by or on behalf of one of the promoters concerned, its whole value shall be counted against him under section 17(2)(b), wherever it is won.

(2) It shall not be lawful for a game of bingo, being bingo which is chargeable with bingo duty and is promoted at a place in Great Britain, to be combined as mentioned in subsection (1) above with other bingo played elsewhere than in Great Britain, except where the other bingo is played in Northern Ireland or the Isle of Man and is chargeable, under an Act of the Parliament of Northern Ireland or, as the case may be, Tynwald, with duty corresponding to bingo duty and at a rate not less than that which is chargeable under section 17 above.

20 Supplementary provisions as to bingo duty

(1) The provisions of Part II of Schedule 3 to this Act (supplementary provisions as to bingo duty) shall have effect.

(2) In sections 17 to 19 above and in Schedule 3 to this Act—

• " bingo " includes any version of that game, by whatever name called;

• " Great Britain" includes the territorial waters of the United Kingdom adjacent to Great Britain ;

• " money " includes any token, voucher or other object given by a player in exchange for cards and recognised for the purpose of the exchange to represent a particular sum of money;

• " prize" means anything won or to be won at bingo, whether money or something else having a value, and " value " and " paid ", in relation to prizes, shall be construed accordingly;

• " the promoter ", in relation to bingo, means the person to whom the players look for the payment of prizes, and " promote" and " promotion" shall be construed accordingly; and

• "week" means a period of seven days beginning with Monday.

(3) In proceedings relating to bingo duty under the customs and excise Acts an averment in any process that a particular game is a version of bingo shall, until the contrary is proved, be sufficient evidence that it is so.

Gaming machine licence duty

21 Gaming machine licences

(1) Except in the cases specified in Part I of Schedule 4 to this Act, the authority of a licence (to be known as a gaming machine licence) shall be required for the provision of any gaming machine (other than a penny machine) for gaming on any premises situated in Great Britain.

(2) A gaming machine licence shall be either—

(a) a whole-year licence for the period from 1st October in any year to 30th September in the following year (both dates inclusive), or

(b) a half-year licence for the period from 1st October in any year to 31st March in the following year or from 1st April in any year to 30th September in that year (all dates inclusive).

22 Gaming machine licence duty

(1) A duty of excise shall be charged on gaming machine licences and the duty on a licence shall be determined by reference—

(a) to whether the premises in respect of which the licence is granted have or have not local authority approval under the Gaming Acts, and

(b) to whether the licence authorises the provision of machines chargeable at the lower, the higher or the peak rate and to the number of machines of each of those descriptions which it authorises.

(2) Subject to subsection (4) below, premises are to be treated as having local authority approval under the Gaming Acts if there is for the time being in force in respect of the premises—

(a) a permit granted under Schedule 3 to the [1976 c. 32.] Lotteries and Amusements Act 1976 (permit for provision of amusements with prizes under section 16 of that Act), or

(b) a permit granted under section 34 of the [1968 c. 65.] Gaming Act 1968 (conditions under which gaming may be carried on by means of machines).

(3) Premises are also to be treated as having local authority approval under the Gaming Acts at any time when—

(a) there is for the time being in force in respect of them a licence under the Gaming Act 1968, and

(b) by virtue of a direction of the licensing authority under section 32 of the Gaming Act 1968 (approval for provision of more than two machines) section 34 of that Act has effect in relation to the premises.

(4) Premises are not to be treated as having local authority approval under the Gaming Acts if a club or a miners' welfare institute within the meaning of the Gaming Act 1968 is for the time being registered in respect of them under Part III of that Act (which regulates gaming by means of machines).

(5) Subject to subsection (6) below, for the purposes of a gaming machine licence—

(a) a machine is chargeable at the lower rate if it can only be played by the insertion into the machine of a coin or coins of a denomination, or aggregate denomination, not exceeding 2p;

(b) a machine is chargeable at the higher rate—

(i) if it is on premises which have local authority approval under the Gaming Acts and is not within paragraph (a) above, or

(ii) if it is not on such premises and it can only be played by the insertion into it of a coin or coins of a denomination, or aggregate denomination, exceeding 2p but not exceeding 5p; and

(c) a machine is chargeable at the peak rate in any other case.

(6) Where the game playable by means of a machine can be played more than once for the insertion of a coin or coins of a denomination, or aggregate denomination, exceeding a sum mentioned in subsection (5) above, the machine is to be treated for the purposes of that subsection as if it can only be played by the insertion into it of a coin of a denomination not exceeding that sum if in effect the amount payable to play the game once does not exceed that sum.

23 Amount of duty

(1) The duty on a whole-year gaming machine licence shall be in accordance with the following Tables and—

(a) Table A shall apply where the Commissioners are satisfied that the premises in question will, on the date on which the licence is first in force, have local authority approval under the Gaming Acts; and

(b) Table B shall apply in any other case.

TABLE A

Premises with local authority approval

Description of machines authorised by the licence	Number of machines of that description so authorised	Duty on whole-year licence
Chargeable at the lower rate.	One or more machines	£25 per machine.
Chargeable at the higher rate.	One machine	£60.
	Two or more machines	£60 plus £120 per machine in excess of one.

TABLE B

Premises without local authority approval

Description of machines authorised by the licence	Duty on whole-year licence
Chargeable at the lower rate.	£75 per machine.
Chargeable at the higher rate.	£200 per machine.
Chargeable at the peak rate.	£400 per machine.

(2) The duty on a half-year licence shall be eleven-twentieths of that which it would have been if the licence were a whole-year, but otherwise identical, licence.

24 Restrictions on provision of gaming machines

(1) Except in the cases specified in Part I of Schedule 4 to this Act, no gaming machine (other than a penny machine) shall be provided for gaming on any premises situated in Great Britain unless there is a gaming machine licence for the time being in force in respect of the premises.

(2) No more than one gaming machine licence shall be in force at any time as respects the gaming machines on any premises except that there may be one licence as respects the gaming machines chargeable at one rate, and one licence as respects the gaming machines chargeable at another rate.

(3) Gaming machines chargeable at a particular rate shall not be provided on any such premises in excess of the number authorised by the licence authorising the provision of gaming machines chargeable at that rate.

(4) Where a licence which authorises the provision of gaming machines chargeable at one rate only is in force in respect of any such premises, gaming machines chargeable at any other rate shall not be provided for gaming on those premises unless another licence authorising the provision of gaming machines chargeable at that other rate is also in force in respect of the premises.

(5) If any gaming machine is provided for gaming on any premises in contravention of this section, any person who at the time when it is so provided—

(a) is the owner, lessee or occupier of the premises, or

(b) is for the time being responsible to the owner, lessee or occupier for the management of the premises, or

(c) is a person responsible for issuing or exchanging coins or tokens for use in playing any gaming machine on the premises, or otherwise for controlling the use of any such machine, or

(d) is for the time being responsible for controlling the admission of persons to the premises or for providing persons resorting thereto with any goods or services, or

(e) is the owner or hirer of the machine, or

(f) is a party to any contract under which a gaming machine may, or is required to, be on the premises at that time,

shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a penalty of £500.

(6) If any gaming machine is provided for gaming on any premises in contravention of this section and any such person as is mentioned in subsection (5) above knowingly or recklessly brought about the contravention or took any steps with a view to procuring it he shall be guilty of an offence and liable—

(a) on summary conviction to a penalty of the prescribed sum or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both ; or

(b) on conviction on indictment to a penalty of any amount or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both.

25 Meaning of " gaming machine "

(1) Subject to subsection (3) below, a machine is a gaming machine for the purposes of this Act if it is of the following description—

(a) it is constructed or adapted for playing a game of chance by means of it;

(b) a player pays to play the machine (except where he has an opportunity to play without payment as the result of having previously played successfully), either by inserting a coin or token into the machine or in some other way; and

(c) the outcome of the game is determined by the chances inherent in the action of the machine, whether or not provision is made for manipulation of the machine by a player.

(2) In subsection (1) above, " game of chance" includes a game of chance and skill combined and a pretended game of chance or of chance and skill combined; and the fact that a game contains an element of skill shall not prevent it being treated as a game of chance if nothing but superlative skill can overcome the element of chance.

(3) A machine shall not be treated as a gaming machine for the purposes of this Act if either—

(a) it is constructed or adapted so that a person playing it once and successfully receives nothing except an opportunity, afforded by the automatic action of the machine, to play again (once or more often) without paying, or

(b) it is constructed or adapted so that, where a person plays it once and successfully, that which he receives is determined by the automatic action of the machine and is either—

(i) a money prize not greater than the amount payable to play the machine once, or

(ii) a token which is, or two or more tokens which in the aggregate are, exchangeable only for such a money prize.

(4) For the purposes of determining whether a machine is a gaming machine, it is immaterial whether it is capable of being played by only one person at a time, or is capable of being played by more than one person; but for the purposes of sections 21 to 24 above a machine which two or more persons can play simultaneously (whether or not participating with one another in the same game) shall, instead of being treated as one machine, be treated—

(a) in the case of a machine which no player can play except by (the insertion into the machine of a coin or coins of a denomination, or aggregate denomination not exceeding 2p, as a number of machines, all chargeable at the lower rate, equal to the number of persons who can play the machine simultaneously ; and

(b) in the case of a machine which is on premises which have local authority approval under the Gaming Acts and is not within paragraph (a) above or which is not on such premises and which no player can play except by the insertion into the machine of a coin or coins of a denomination, or aggregate denomination, exceeding 2p but not exceeding 5p as a number of machines, all chargeable at the higher rate, equal to that number of persons; and

(c) in a case not falling within paragraph (a) or (b) above, as a number of machines, all chargeable at the peak rate, equal to that number of persons ;

and the number of persons who can play a particular machine simultaneously shall be determined by reference to the number of individual playing positions provided on the machine.

26 Supplementary provisions as to gaming machine licence duty

(1) The provisions of Part II of Schedule 4 to this Act (supplementary provisions as to gaming machine licence duty) shall have effect.

(2) In sections 21 to 25 above and in Schedule 4 to this Act—

• " coin " means coin lawfully current in the United Kingdom;

• " Great Britain " includes the territorial waters of the United Kingdom adjacent to Great Britain ;

• " penny machine " means a gaming machine which, in order to be played once, requires the insertion of—

  (a)

  a single new penny, or

  (b)

  a single new halfpenny, and which cannot be played in any other way; and

• " premises " includes any place whatsoever and any means of transport.

(3) A machine is provided for gaming on any premises if it is made available on those premises in such a way that persons resorting to them can play it; and where on any premises one or more gaming machines are so made available, any such machine anywhere on the premises shall be treated as provided for gaming on those premises, notwithstanding that it is not so made available or is not in a state in which it can be played.