PART 3General betting duty, pool betting duty and remote gaming duty

CHAPTER 4General

Definitions

183Bet

In this Part “bet” does not include any bet made or stake hazarded in the course of, or incidentally to, any gaming.

184Pool betting

(1)

For the purposes of this Part, a bet is to be treated as being made by way of pool betting unless it is a bet at fixed odds.

(2)

In particular, bets are to be treated as being made by way of pool betting wherever a number of persons make bets—

(a)

on terms that the winnings of such of those persons as are winners are to be, or to be a share of, or to be determined by reference to, the stake money paid or agreed to be paid by those persons, whether the bets are made by means of a totalisator, or by filling up and returning coupons or other printed or written forms, or in any other way,

(b)

on terms that the winnings of such of those persons as are winners are to be, or are to include, an amount (not determined by reference to the stake money paid or agreed to be paid by those persons) which is divisible in any proportions among such of those persons as are winners, or

(c)

on the basis that the winners or their winnings are, to any extent, to be at the discretion of the promoter or some other person.

(3)

Where there is or has been issued any advertisement or other publication calculated to encourage in persons making bets of any description with or through a bookmaker a belief that such bets are made on the basis mentioned in subsection (2)(c), then any bets of that description subsequently made with or through the bookmaker are to be treated for the purposes of this section as being made on that basis.

185Fixed odds

(1)

A bet is at fixed odds for the purposes of this Part only if, when making the bet, each of the persons making it knows or can know the amount the person will win, except in so far as that amount is to depend on—

(a)

the result of the event or events betted on,

(b)

any such event taking place or producing a result,

(c)

the numbers taking part in any such event,

(d)

the starting prices or totalisator odds for any such event, or

(e)

the time when the person's bet is received by any person with or through whom it is made.

(2)

A bet made with or through a person carrying on a business of receiving or negotiating bets and made in the course of that business is not a bet at fixed odds for the purposes of this Part if the winnings of the person by whom it is made consist or may consist wholly or in part of something other than money.

(3)

In this section—

“starting prices” means, in relation to any event, the odds ruling at the scene of the event immediately before the start, and

“totalisator odds” means the odds paid on bets made—

(a)

by means of a totalisator, and

(b)

at the scene of the event to which the bets relate.

186UK person

(1)

In this Part “UK person” means—

(a)

an individual who usually lives in the United Kingdom, or

(b)

a body corporate which is legally constituted in the United Kingdom.

(2)

The Treasury may by regulations—

(a)

amend the definition of “UK person” in subsection (1),

(b)

make provision as to the cases in which a person is, or is not, a UK person for the purposes of this Part, and

(c)

make provision about bets made, and arrangements to participate in remote gaming entered into, by bodies of persons unincorporate.

(3)

The Commissioners may by notice published by them—

(a)

specify steps that must be taken in order to determine whether a person making a bet or entering into arrangements to participate in remote gaming is a UK person,

(b)

specify who must take those steps,

(c)

specify circumstances in which a person making a bet or entering into arrangements to participate in remote gaming is to be treated as a UK person because of a failure to produce sufficient evidence to the contrary, and

(d)

specify circumstances in which a person making a bet or entering into arrangements to participate in remote gaming is to be treated as not being a UK person on the basis of evidence of a description specified in the notice.

187On-course betting and excluded betting

(1)

A bet is an on-course bet for the purposes of this Part if it—

(a)

is made by a person present at a horse or dog race meeting or by a bookmaker,

(b)

is not made through an agent of an individual making the bet or through an intermediary, and

(c)

is made—

(i)

with a bookmaker present at the meeting, or

(ii)

by means of a totalisator situated in the United Kingdom, using facilities provided at the meeting by or by arrangement with the person operating the totalisator.

(2)

A bet is an excluded bet for the purposes of this Part if—

(a)

it is not made in or from the United Kingdom, and

(b)

the facilities used to receive or negotiate the bet or (in the case of pool betting) to conduct the pool betting operations are not capable of being used in or from the United Kingdom.

(3)

The Treasury may by regulations amend subsection (2).

188Gaming

(1)

In this Part—

(a)

“gaming” means playing a game of chance for a prize, and

(b)

“game of chance” has the meaning given by section 6(2) of the Gambling Act 2005.

(2)

For the purposes of subsection (1)—

(a)

“playing a game of chance” is to be read in accordance with section 6(3) of the Gambling Act 2005, and

(b)

“prize” does not include the opportunity to play the game again.

189Other definitions

In this Part—

“betting facilities” means facilities for receiving or negotiating bets or conducting pool betting operations;

“bookmaker” means a person who—

(a)

carries on the business of receiving or negotiating bets or conducting pool betting operations (whether as principal or agent and whether regularly or not), or

(b)

holds himself or herself out or permits himself or herself to be held out, in the course of a business, as a person within paragraph (a);

“the Commissioners” means the Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs;

“operator”, in relation to bets made by means of a totalisator, means the person who, as principal, operates the totalisator;

“promoter”, in relation to any betting, means the person to whom the persons making the bets look for the payment of their winnings, if any;

“remote operating licence” has the same meaning as in the Gambling Act 2005 (see section 67 of that Act);

“winnings”, in relation to any betting, includes winnings of any kind, and references to amount and to payment in relation to winnings are to be read accordingly.

190Index

The Table lists the places where some of the expressions used in this Part are defined or otherwise explained.

bet

section 183

bet at fixed odds

section 185

bet made for community benefit

section 153

betting facilities

section 189

bookmaker

section 189

Chapter 1 pool bet

section 134(1) to (4)

Chapter 2 pool bet

section 143(1) to (4)

Chapter 1 stake fund

section 134(5)

Chapter 2 stake fund

section 143(5)

chargeable person

section 155(2)

the Commissioners

section 189

excluded bet

section 187(2)

financial spread bet

section 128(2)

game of chance

section 188(1)(b)

gaming

section 188(1)(a)

gaming payment (in Chapter 3)

section 159

gaming prize fund

section 154(2)

gaming provider

section 155(1)

general bet

section 126

non-financial spread bet

section 128(2)

on-course bet

section 187(1)

operator

section 189

ordinary Chapter 1 pool bet

section 134(6)

ordinary Chapter 2 pool bet

section 143(6)

ordinary gaming

section 154(3)

pool betting

section 184

pooled prize gaming

section 154(2)

pooled stake Chapter 1 pool bet

section 134(5)

pooled stake Chapter 2 pool bet

section 143(5)

promoter

section 189

provision of, and expenditure on, a prize (in sections 156 and 157)

section 160

registrable person

section 170(6)

remote gaming

section 154(1)

remote operating licence

section 189

spread bet

section 128(1)

stake money (in Chapter 1)

section 139

stake money (in Chapter 2)

section 148

UK person

section 186

winnings (in Chapter 1)

sections 140 and 189

winnings (in Chapter 2)

sections 149 and 189