Brazil Seeks Greater Betting Control and Taxation

Brazil.– 28 July 2026 – www.zonadeazar.com Finance Minister Dario Durigan states that the federal government intends to increase industry oversight and taxation, reduce advertising and restrict access for people in financially vulnerable circumstances. The strategy also involves using information supplied by operators to identify frequent betting behaviour.

Overview

Brazil’s federal government seeks to strengthen the controls applied to the regulated betting market, increase the tax burden on companies and limit access for certain groups regarded as financially vulnerable.

Dario Durigan presents these positions during an event organised by XP Investimentos, where he also discusses household debt, credit policy and the country’s fiscal environment.

The minister argues that the industry should be subject to a control-based approach comparable with the treatment applied to products such as tobacco. The comparison relates to the use of taxation, oversight, access restrictions and prevention campaigns as mechanisms for reducing social harm.

The strategy outlined by Durigan combines economic, health, technological and regulatory measures. Its stated purpose extends beyond generating additional revenue and includes reducing frequent participation and identifying circumstances that may require preventive intervention.

More Information About Customer Activity

One of the principal measures involves expanding the government’s use of data supplied by authorised companies.

Operators must pay the applicable authorisation fee and provide the government with information about the bets made through their platforms.

According to Durigan, this data can help identify habitual bettors, meaning individuals who participate on a continuous and frequent basis.

Monitoring may enable relevant indicators to be shared with departments such as the Ministry of Health and support measures directed towards customers showing higher levels of exposure.

The use of individual information requires clear rules concerning purpose, storage, security, confidentiality and access. It also requires objective standards to prevent frequent participation from being treated automatically as proof of illness or compulsive behaviour.

Risk patterns should be examined alongside expenditure, income, losses, time spent gambling and sudden changes in customer behaviour.

Higher Taxation as a Deterrent

Durigan again supports an increase in the tax burden applied to betting businesses.

The minister considers additional taxation fair, appropriate to the characteristics of the activity and capable of functioning as a deterrent to a product that, in his assessment, creates difficulties for part of the population.

The proposal introduces two connected objectives. It seeks to increase the resources collected by the state while also using tax policy to reduce the attractiveness and expansion of betting consumption.

Its final effect depends on the structure of the increase. A higher tax burden on authorised operators may raise government revenue but can also change odds, promotions, investment and the commercial conditions offered to customers.

The design must additionally consider competition from illegal platforms that pay no domestic taxes and do not comply with the obligations imposed on the regulated market.

Restrictions for Social Benefit Recipients

The government intends to prevent recipients of certain social programmes from using betting platforms.

Durigan states that people receiving Bolsa Família or the Continuous Cash Benefit, known as BPC, cannot place bets.

The approach is based on preventing resources intended to cover essential needs from being spent on an activity carrying a risk of financial loss.

The minister also includes individuals who declare that they are in debt and use the Desenrola programme to obtain discounts and restructure their obligations.

From this perspective, someone seeking a public or negotiated solution to reorganise debt should not simultaneously use funds for betting.

Effective implementation requires identification and data-matching mechanisms capable of blocking access or transactions involving the relevant individuals.

It also requires rules concerning the duration of restrictions, the updating of databases and the procedures available for correcting mistakes.

Reduction of Betting Advertising

The government is also working to reduce the population’s exposure to betting advertising.

The expansion of brands across sports broadcasts, club shirts, social media and other channels has made commercial communications one of the main issues within Brazil’s regulatory debate.

Durigan’s position reinforces a movement towards tighter advertising restrictions, particularly when messages can reach children or present betting as a solution to financial problems.

Measures may include limits concerning broadcasting times, content, formats, public figures, promotions and audience targeting.

The challenge is to reduce exposure among vulnerable groups without removing the ability of authorised operators to distinguish their services from illegal platforms.

Household Debt and Credit Policy

During his presentation, Durigan also connects the high level of household debt with the need to improve the criteria used when granting credit.

In his assessment, both the government and financial institutions can use available information to encourage or discourage new transactions depending on each consumer’s financial circumstances.

This approach connects betting with a wider policy of financial protection.

A person with substantial debt, seeking restructuring or depending on social benefits may require different safeguards from a customer who shows no indications of financial vulnerability.

Data integration can help prevent additional problems, although it also requires protections against discrimination, inaccurate automated decisions and the excessive use of personal information.

Industry Context

Since 2025, Brazil has been consolidating a nationally regulated fixed-odds betting market supervised by the Ministry of Finance.

Authorised businesses must comply with requirements involving customer identification, anti-money laundering controls, technological security, advertising, sports integrity and responsible gambling.

The debate is now progressing from the initial creation of the system towards an assessment of its fiscal, health and social effects.

Durigan’s statements indicate that the government considers the licensing of companies and collection of taxes insufficient on their own. The next phase involves closer monitoring of customers and restrictions aimed at specific profiles.

Next Steps and Industry Impact

The proposals must be converted into specific rules, procedures and technological systems before they can produce practical effects.

The government must define how the data will be used, which authorities will have access, the standards for identifying habitual bettors and the method for implementing blocks.

It must also establish the scope of the tax increase and the future advertising restrictions.

For operators, the measures may create additional obligations involving technological integration, customer controls and communication with the authorities.

For consumers, they may increase protection, although implementation must preserve privacy, transparency and the right to correct inaccurate information.

The eventual outcome will depend on the balance achieved between state control, health protection, the sustainability of the authorised market and effective action against illegal supply.

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