Betting and Sweepstake Duties Act

(CHAPTER 22)

(Original Enactment: Ordinance 40 of 1950)

REVISED EDITION 1999

(1st August 1999)

An Act relating to duties on betting and sweepstakes.

[21st November 1950]

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Betting and Sweepstake Duties Act.

Interpretation

2. For the purposes of this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“exempt organisation” means any person or organisation that is exempt from all of the provisions of the Betting Act (Cap. 21) under a notification made under section 22(1) of that Act, or from all of the provisions of the Common Gaming Houses Act (Cap. 49) under a notification made under section 24(1) of that Act;

“football game” means the game also known as soccer, whether taking place inside or outside Singapore;

“promote” includes controlling or supervising the receipt or negotiation of bets or the conduct of games of chance, and “promoter” and “promoting” shall be construed accordingly;

“promoter”, in relation to any racing club or association, means the secretary of the racing club or association which has promoted any totalisator, pari-mutuel or any other system or method of cash or credit betting or sweepstake;

“sporting event” means any type of game, sport or exercise prescribed by the Minister, whether taking place inside or outside Singapore;

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

“totalisator odds” means the odds paid on bets made by means of a totalisator at the scene of the event;

“winnings” includes winnings of any kind in money.

[14/99]

Duty on bets and sweepstakes

3.—(1) On every bet made on any totalisator, pari-mutuel or in any other system or method of cash or credit betting held, promoted, organised, administered or operated by any racing club or association exempted under section 22 of the Betting Act (Cap. 21) from the provisions of that Act, there shall be charged a duty of 25%¹ of the amount of the bet.

¹See Betting and Sweepstake Duties Order (Cap. 22, O 1)

[10/81]

(2) On every sweepstake promoted by any racing club or association on the result of a horse race or other race whether the race takes place in or out of Singapore, there shall be charged a duty of 30% of the amount contributed towards the sweepstake.

(3) The Minister may, from time to time, by order reduce or increase either or both of the rates of the duty specified in this section.

[10/81]

(4) The amount of the bet referred to in subsection (1) and the amount contributed towards the sweepstake referred to in subsection (2) shall exclude the amount of goods and services tax charged on the supply of the betting or sweepstake transactions, as the case may be.

[31/93]

Sports betting duty

4.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, there shall be charged a sports betting duty in respect of any betting at fixed odds on any football game or sporting event where the betting is promoted in Singapore by or on behalf of any exempt organisation.

[14/99]

(2) Sports betting duty shall be an amount equal to 20%, or such other rate as the Minister may prescribe by order in the Gazette, of the gross betting profit of the exempt organisation in respect of any betting at fixed odds it promotes in connection with any particular football game or sporting event.

[14/99]

(3) Sports betting duty shall be paid by the exempt organisation promoting the betting at fixed odds on any particular football game or sporting event within 15 days (or such further period as the Commissioner of Stamp Duties may allow in any particular case) after the date on which the football game or sporting event, as the case may be, takes place.

[14/99]

(4) For the purposes of subsection (2), the gross betting profit of an exempt organisation in relation to any particular football game or sporting event shall be the amount, if any, by which the value specified in paragraph (a) exceeds the value specified in paragraph (b) —

(a)	the aggregate value in money of the stakes on all bets at fixed odds received or negotiated in Singapore by or on behalf of the exempt organisation in connection with that football game or sporting event; and
(b)	the value in money of the winnings paid by or on behalf of the exempt organisation on the results of that football game or sporting event. [14/99]

(5) In calculating the amount of the stake on a bet under subsection (4) (a), the amount of goods and services tax charged on the supply of the betting transaction shall be excluded.

[14/99]

(6) For the purposes of this section, a bet is a bet at fixed odds only if the person making it knows or can know, at the time he makes it, the amount he will win, except in so far as the amount is to depend —

(a)	on the result of the event or events betted on;
(b)	on any such event taking place or producing a result;
(c)	on the numbers taking part in any such event;
(d)	on the starting prices or totalisator odds for any such event;
(e)	on there being totalisator odds for any such event; or
(f)	on the time when his bet is received by any person with or through whom the bet is made. [2A [14/99]

Exemption

5. The Minister may, in his discretion and subject to such conditions as he may think fit, exempt any sweepstake or betting held, promoted, organised, administered or operated by any racing club or association or exempt organisation from all or any of the provisions of this Act.

[14/99]

Keeping of accounts and delivery of statement by promoter

6.—(1) The promoter of any betting or sweepstake referred to in section 3 or 4 shall —

(a)

keep such books of accounts in respect of such betting or sweepstake as may be prescribed and shall enter in these books true and regular accounts of all moneys received by the promoter in respect of the betting or sweepstake and all costs, charges and expenses incurred by the promoter in promoting the betting or sweepstake;

(b)

draw up a statement showing the following:

(i)	the amount of stakes on all bets received in respect of each horse race, football game or sporting event, or other contingency in other forms of betting;
(ii)	in the case of a sweepstake, the amount contributed to each sweepstake;
(iii)	the amount of goods and services tax charged on the supply of the betting or sweepstake transaction; and
(iv)	where the promoter has received or negotiated bets at fixed odds on any football game or sporting event, the value in money of the winnings paid by or on behalf of the promoter on the results of the game or sporting event; and

(c)

pay to the Commissioner of Stamp Duties the amount of duty so chargeable in respect of the betting or sweepstake in Singapore dollar.

[14/99]

(2) The statement referred to in subsection (1)(b) shall be delivered and the duty so chargeable shall be paid to the Commissioner of Stamp Duties —

(a)	in the case of bets made on any totalisator, pari-mutuel or in any other system or method of cash or credit betting held, promoted, organised, administered or operated by any racing club or association referred to in section 3(1), within 15 days, or such further period as the Commissioner may allow under subsection (3), after the last day of the race meeting at which the bets were made;
(b)	in the case of any sweepstake promoted by any racing club or association referred to in section 3(2), within 15 days, or such further period as the Commissioner may allow under subsection (3), after the date on which the winners in that sweepstake are ascertained; or
(c)	in the case of any betting referred to in section 4, within 15 days, or such further period as the Commissioner may allow under subsection (3), after the date the football game or sporting event in respect of which the bet is made takes place. [14/99]

(3) The Commissioner of Stamp Duties may in any case or class of cases, as he thinks fit, extend the time within which the statement under subsection (1)(b) and the duty chargeable shall be delivered and paid to the Commissioner.

[14/99]

Production of documents

7. The Commissioner of Stamp Duties may, at all reasonable times, require the production of any books, accounts, vouchers or other documents relating to any totalisator, pari-mutuel or sweepstake or betting promoted by any racing club or association or exempt organisation.

[14/99]

Duty payable to be a debt due to Government

8. The duty required to be paid under this Act shall be a debt due to the Government and may be recovered as such.

Sweepstake open to public

9. Any person may buy a ticket or chance or take part in a sweepstake held, promoted, organised, administered or operated by any racing club or association exempted under section 22 of the Betting Act (Cap. 21) from the provisions of that Act notwithstanding that he is not a member of that racing club or association.

Penalty

10.—(1) If the promoter fails to deliver the statement within the time prescribed by section 6(2) to the Commissioner of Stamp Duties as provided in section 6, he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $500.

(2) If the promoter, with intent to evade the duty chargeable under this Act, fails to deliver the statement to the Commissioner of Stamp Duties as provided in section 6 or delivers such statement which is false in any material particular, he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $1,000 or 4 times the amount of the duty payable, whichever is higher.

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