Denmark taxes poker winnings
Peter Eastgate winner WSOP 08
Young Danish professional poker player, Peter Eastgate, made history at the 2008 WSOP when – at only 22 years old – he became the youngest player ever to win the Main Event. Before this, Phil Hellmuth’s earlier record setting victory at age 24 allowed him to carry this title. For his efforts in this tournament after defeating Ivan Demidov heads up, Eastgate won $9,152,416. Unfortunately for him he lives in Odense Denmark and Denmark is infamous for having one of the most heavy-handed taxation codes of any country in the European Union. Young Eastgate was then taxed at a whopping 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 of his $9,152,416 fortune.
The Danish Supreme Court now also 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 uphold a fine issued by a lower court, the resulting tax bill amounts to €11,700 for the unemployed poker player and this ruling is being upheld by the Higher court.
The case again highlights the perplexing 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 was not violating any existing Danish laws. They did specifically 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 grow rapidly in 2002, Denmark was one of the first countries to introduce a state-sponsored gaming system. This state-owned system is known as Danske Spil (similar to Sweden’s Svenska Spel). This resulted in a state owned and operated casino and poker room and it made it illegal for external companies to freely compete 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 an unexpected move that surprised 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. At the same time, the Danish tax authority has a very exclusive set of poker rooms where players can be assured that their winnings will not be taxed.
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