HMRC records higher UK gaming tax receipts after April Remote Gaming Duty rise
HMRC’s first provisional post-April snapshot shows UK betting and gaming receipts up 19% year on year, with Remote Gaming Duty receipts rising after the rate increased to 40%.
HMRC updated its UK Betting and Gaming Statistics on 30 September with the first provisional 2026-27 receipts data covering the months after April’s Remote Gaming Duty increase. The tax authority said UK betting and gaming receipts totalled £1.933bn for April to July 2026, up £309m, or 19%, on the same period a year earlier. [1]
Within that release, HMRC said provisional Remote Gaming Duty receipts reached £376m for April to June 2026. That was £67m, or 22%, higher than the same quarter of the previous financial year. [1]
HMRC said Remote Gaming Duty made up 50.0% of provisional betting and gaming receipts in April to July 2026. Its commentary added that increases in total receipts are expected to reflect, in part, the rise in the duty rate from 21% to 40% from April 2026. [1]
The figures are the first official post-change snapshot from HMRC, but they do not settle the wider debate about how higher gambling taxes affect channelisation or unlicensed play. The suggestion that the numbers cast doubt on black-market warnings was made in secondary reporting, not in HMRC’s own statistics commentary. [1] [2]
That distinction matters because HMRC describes the 2026-27 receipts as provisional, so later revisions remain possible. The release supports that the rate increase contributed to higher receipts in part, but it does not present a broader conclusion on black-market activity. [1]
Sources
Prepared with AI assistance. Our editorial policy
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