HMRC terminates 10% Bingo Duty tax for land-based venues

(AsiaGameHub) –   HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will no longer impose a 10% tax on gross profits earned by land-based bingo venues across the UK.

This policy change was rolled out as part of the Budget announced by Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves back in November 2025, and the new rules officially take effect as of today (1 April 2026).

HMRC has clarified that bingo operators will no longer be required to file tax returns for profits generated from land-based bingo play, and the department will update its official guidance in due course to reflect these new adjustments.

A statement from the agency reads: “Bingo Duty operators currently registered with HMRC will retain the ability to submit any outstanding returns online until April 2030, and notify HMRC of any over-declarations or under-declarations from previous accounting periods.”

The elimination of Bingo Duty will soften the financial blow for land-based bingo hall operators, coming into force the same day that HMRC enforces an increase to remote gaming duties (RGD) from 21% to 40% – a change that will impact all wagering on online bingo.

HMRC reiterated: “Bingo Duty does not apply to non-profit making bingo, private domestic bingo, or machines that are already subject to Machine Games Duty.”

After the Budget announcement in November, Rank Group Plc, the operator of Mecca Bingo, publicly welcomed the decision to remove the 10% tax from land-based bingo halls.

The company stated that the change will help support local jobs and investment in the land-based sector, having previously warned that a failure to reform bingo taxation could lead to widespread venue closures.

However, the wider response across the industry has been more cautious. Buzz Bingo CEO Dominic Mansour described the abolition of the tax as a “full house win” for local clubs, but warned that its positive impact is being diluted by the near-doubling of RGD.

Ahead of the Budget, Mansour stressed that fairer tax treatment was essential to protecting around 2,500 jobs and sustaining the company’s network of 79 venues across the UK.

Tensions remain around broader regulatory developments, with the government indicating that the sector needs to provide further assurances on player protection, particularly in higher-stake gaming environments.

Frustration also persists over whether the Labour government will implement planned changes to the current 80/20 rule, which sets a limited ratio for category B and C/D gaming machines in high street bingo venues and Adult Gaming Centres (ADCs)

This April, DCMS announced that it had intervened to freeze planned changes that would shift the machine ratio to 50/50.

Citing pressure from local councils over high street gaming operations, DCMS noted that changes to gaming machine ratios would not be implemented during the current legislative cycle. Instead, DCMS will prioritise White Paper commitments such as the statutory levy and binding online stake limits for UK gambling licences.

Land-based gambling trade bodies, including BACTA, as well as major operators, have expressed frustration over the slow pace of reform, arguing that delays are preventing bingo halls from generating the revenue needed to modernise and recover from pandemic disruption and rising operating costs. The Treasury had previously backed targeted reforms for gambling venues as part of a package of measures to ease rising cost pressures on high street businesses.

While the abolition of Bingo Duty represents a long-awaited concession for the sector, its overall impact is softened by the broader tightening of gambling taxation, leaving operators to navigate a far more challenging operating environment under the UK’s new 40% RGD era.