Tax authorities going after foreign poker winnings
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Tax offices have sent letters to Finnish poker players asking them for a declaration of winnings that they have made over the past five years.
The request applies to winnings earned outside the European Economic Area, says Raimo Kinnunen, a top official at the Finnish tax administration.
Kinnunen and Taneli Lallukka, the head taxation expert of the Tax Office of the greater Helsinki area, estimate that a few dozen such letters may have been sent to players.
The letters ask for information on money won both on the Internet, and in casinos. Winnings within the EEA are untaxed.
Mikko Hirvonen, the chairman of the Finnish Poker Players’ Association, says that the vagueness of the request and the short timetable put forward have raised discussion among players. Many players received the letter on Monday last week, and the deadline for a reply is mid-August.
One open question is whether or not it is sufficient for tax-free status that the organiser of a poker tournament is registered in an EEA country, or if the application for the licence for the tournament needs to have been made in the EEA as well.
Lallukka says that the matter is open to interpretation, as there are no legal precedents. At present, the deciding factor is where the organiser of the game is registered.
Another thorny issue is when a player has the right to deduct gambling losses from his or her taxes.
Lallukka feels that a full-time player can deduct only those losses incurred in games played outside the EEA from winnings earned outside the EEA.
Recreational players can only deduct the participation fees of the games in question.
Discussion has also been sparked on Internet message boards on what criteria were used for choosing the players that were sent the letter.
Kinnunen says that the names were largely collected from winners’ lists on the Internet and in poker publications.
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 4.8.2008 - TODAY |
 Tax authorities going after foreign poker winnings |
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