Colombia Bill Taxes Betting Deposits at 19%, Not Operator Revenue

The Taxable Base Is the Deposit, Divided by 1.19

The bill, signed by the finance minister, reached the Chamber of Representatives as Bill 477/2026C, the Ley de Rescate Económico. According to camara.gov.co’s legislative tracker, it is currently in the committee stage, "Trámite en Comisión".

Article 41 reframes literal “e)” of article 420 of the national Tax Statute. It puts 19% VAT on deposits into online betting accounts, including cash, bank wire, and crypto-asset transactions. The VAT applies when money reaches the account, not when a bet is resolved. The base is the deposit divided by 1.19.

The divisor does real work. A 19% rate over a base of the deposit divided by 1.19 gives 15.97% of the deposit, not 19%. That is a 15M calculation straight from the formula printed in article 41: 0.19 ÷ 1.19 = 0.1597. On a 100,000-peso deposit, the Treasury will retain 15,966 pesos before the bettor places a bet.

The explanatory memorandum states the trigger plainly. "VAT is triggered when the user deposits money or transfers funds or crypto-assets to their account in order to obtain the right to bet," writes Miguel Gómez Martínez, Minister of Finance and Public Credit.

Taxation will fall on the betting operators, regardless of their place of establishment, provided the bettor is a Colombian tax resident. Loterías, the traditional draw games, will be exempt. Venue games get a base fixed monthly fee in Tax Units of Value. It is 40 UVT for a slot machine, 580 UVT for a table, and 6 UVT for a bingo seat.

Two further articles hit the sector. First, Article 52 increases the tax rate on gambling winnings from 20% to 30%. However, Article 93 allows Colombia’s tax authority, DIAN, to forego shutting down gambling operations in person. It can instead order internet providers to block the operator’s sites from Colombia for three days.

Colombia Already Taxed Online Play Twice

Colombia pioneered online betting regulation in Latin America in 2016, with Coljuegos issuing its first official license in June 2017. There are currently 14 operators with active licenses. Temporary VAT charges came under Decree 175 of 2025, in response to the Catatumbo emergency. A consumption tax followed under Decree 240 of 2026.

Neither dented the market, by the ministry’s own reckoning. Online gambling’s exploitation-rights income up to the end of September 2026 grew by more than 100% in nominal terms against the same period in 2025. With this track record, and an elasticity of demand of -0.733, the ministry’s memorandum argues that its charge will not shrink play.

Source: Cámara de Representantes, Proyecto de Ley 477/2026C "Ley de Rescate Económico", https://www.camara.gov.co/ley-rescate-economico