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Uganda has removed a tax exemption that allowed land-based casinos to avoid a 15% withholding tax on player winnings, bringing physical casinos into line with the country’s online gambling sector.
The change follows President Yoweri Museveni’s proposal to amend the Income Tax (Amendment) Bill 2026. Parliament approved the proposal, meaning the tax will now apply to net winnings from both land-based and online betting and gaming.
The previous distinction had left physical casinos with more favourable treatment than their online counterparts. That gap has now been closed.
The government expects the broader tax changes to generate around Shs65 billion ($17.5 million) in additional tax income.
Uganda’s finance committee backed the removal of the exemption on the grounds that maintaining separate rules for similar gambling activities could allow tax revenue to slip through the gap. The committee also linked the change to wider efforts to bring gambling tax rates into line.
Uganda is moving toward a single gambling tax framework
The latest measure follows a broader overhaul of Uganda’s gambling taxation.
In April, the country approved amendments to its Lotteries and Gaming Act that established a uniform 30% tax rate for betting and gaming. Betting had previously been taxed at 20%, reflecting the government’s earlier view that it presented less risk to players than gaming.
The new approach treats the two activities more similarly, regardless of how they are offered.
That matters in a market where online gambling has expanded rapidly. H2 Gambling Capital estimates that Uganda’s interactive gambling sector generated $435.3 million in gross win during 2025. Its forecast puts annual gross win above $1 billion by 2029.
The land-based casino change adds another layer to that tax restructuring. Rather than maintaining separate treatment based on the platform used, Uganda is increasingly applying common tax principles across the gambling market.
The shift also fits a wider pattern across African gambling markets, where governments are looking for new ways to capture revenue from betting and gaming.
Kenya introduced a 5% levy on betting-wallet withdrawals last year, alongside a 5% excise duty on deposits. In Lagos, Nigeria, authorities began enforcing a 5% withholding tax on player winnings in February.
Uganda’s latest move is more targeted, but its effect is straightforward: the old land-based casino exemption is gone, and winnings from physical casinos now face the same 15% withholding tax applied to the online sector.
Source: igamingbusiness.com
