Poland criticised for delay in simplified online betting sign-ups

A Polish trade association has criticised the government severely for making the registration process with Polish-licensed online sports betting operators too difficult.

Late last month, Pracodawcy RP (Employers of the Republic of Poland) sent a letter blaming the Ministry of Finance of “making it difficult to develop the bookmaking market” and “hindering” local operators’ ability to compete with internationally licensed gambling sites.

Specifically, the group accused the Ministry of dragging its feet on allowing locally licensed online bookmakers to offer simplified account registration for new customers.

Under this process, customers could fill in minimal data, make a deposit and place a wager before the impulse escapes them. Full registration would have to be completed within 30 days, and withdrawals would be impossible until full registration was done.

This simplified process is something local operators have been advocating for a long time, but the situation is growing urgent as the 2018 FIFA World Cup – and the accompanying betting bonanza – draws ever nearer.

Studies have shown that online gamblers have a tendency to abandon the account registration process if too many steps are required. Łukasz Czucharski, Pracodawcy RP’s in-house tax expert, was quoted in the group’s appeal saying frustrated Polish punters would opt for simpler sign-ups with international sites in order to place their World Cup wagers.

Czucharski added that the Ministry has approved simplified registration for some Polish-licensed bookmakers but not others, a scenario Czucharski blamed on “the mentality of the Polish official and ordinary bureaucracy.”

Czucharski attempted to motivate the Ministry by pointing out that losing punters to international bookmakers doesn’t just hurt Polish operators but also the government, given that the state charges a preposterously high 12 per cent rate on betting turnover. (That’s the real reason punters are choosing international sites, but we digress.) 

Source: CalvinAyre.com