Denmark, home to reigning World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event Champion Peter Eastgate, is notorious for having one of the most heavy-handed taxation codes of any country in the European Union. Eastgate, who took down $9.1 million when he captured the WSOP Championship Event bracelet last November, was taxed at a 45% rate for the first $4 million he earned and at 75% for the remainder of the money, leaving the youngest WSOP Main Event champion with an estimated $2.5 million. Now, the long arm of the Danish tax police has taken down another player.
The Danish Supreme Court ruled that a 35 year-old unemployed man, who allegedly had been earning a living as an online poker player, would have to be taxed as a “professional gambler” and subjected to a similar tax rate as Eastgate. Over the past year, the Danish man in question, who has not been identified in court documents, allegedly earned approximately €26,000 from playing at several online poker rooms. Although the Supreme Court refused to enforce a DKK5000 fine issued by a lower court, the resulting tax bill amounts to €11,700 for the unemployed poker player.
The case is a highlight of the schizophrenic nature of Denmark when it comes to the issue of poker, be it online or live, and its treatment of players. According to the Danish press, a poker organizer was allowed to organize tournaments after the Supreme Court determined that he wasn’t violating any existing laws on the Danish books. They did state, however, that the rule applied to live games and not the online version, which Denmark has been vigilant against since earlier this decade.
As the online gaming world began to take form in 2002, Denmark was one of the first countries to introduce a state-sponsored gaming system. Known as Danske Spil (similar to Sweden’s Svenska Spel), the state owned and operated casino and poker room prohibited outside companies, such as PartyPoker, 888 Pacific Poker, PokerStars, and Full Tilt Poker, from freely competing for the Danish gaming market. For most of this decade, Denmark has been in a battle against the European Union over potential violations of free trade agreements.
In a move that shocked many, Denmark decided in 2008 that it would open its doors to outside gaming vendors and put in place a free-trade online gaming practice within the next two years. Denmark has demonstrated its commitment to this goal by recently opening up Hollywood Poker to access by Danish citizens. In addition to allowing Danes to play on the site, the Danish government has listed Hollywood Poker as a no-tax website. This is an important part of the addition to Denmark’s accessible list, as the Danish tax authority has a very exclusive set of poker rooms where players can be assured that their winnings will not be taxed.
