The Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority has given cellular community operators (MNOs), together with MTN, Airtel, Globacom, 9mobile, and licensed value-added service (VAS) suppliers 30 days to verify the licensing and tax compliance standing of gaming companies utilizing their platforms to supply providers within the state.
The directive requires affected firms to present transaction data, service billing information and income sharing data for gaming operators protecting the interval from November 22, 2024, to the date of the authority’s public discover.
The authority additionally directed telecom operators and VAS suppliers to cease onboarding gaming companies that can’t reveal legitimate state licensing and to droop present gaming providers that aren’t duly authorised.
Telecom operators face new compliance obligations
Under the directive, cellular community operators, VAS aggregators and VAS suppliers should verify the licensing and gaming tax compliance standing of each gaming operator utilizing their platforms to supply providers in Lagos State.
The authority stated the data could be used to decide the gaming taxes, statutory levies and different funds due from affected operators, together with relevant penalties and curiosity.
The necessities place further compliance obligations on telecommunications firms and expertise intermediaries that facilitate gaming providers, even the place they don’t seem to be the businesses immediately working the betting or lottery companies.
- “The Authority hereby clarifies that a licence, authorization or approval issued by the Nigerian Communications Commission (“NCC”) for telecommunications or VAS actions doesn’t represent a licence or authorization to conduct or facilitate lottery, betting or gaming actions in Lagos State,(*30*)” it acknowledged.
It additionally clarified that the involvement of a telecom operator, VAS aggregator, cost channel or service billing platform doesn’t take away the requirement for the underlying gaming enterprise to maintain a sound licence recognised by the state regulator.
Lagos warns towards facilitating unlicensed gaming
The authority stated the compliance directive is backed by provisions of the Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority Law 2021, which prohibit the operation and facilitation of gaming actions with out the required authorisation.
Section 33(3) of the regulation prohibits an individual and not using a subsisting licence or authorisation from working or conducting gaming actions, deploying gaming gear, managing or accepting wagers, renting property, using personnel or promoting for gaming actions in Lagos State.
The discover additionally drew consideration to Section 101(5), which offers that the place an offence dedicated by an organization is established to have occurred with the consent or connivance of a director, supervisor, secretary or different principal officer, or is attributable to that officer’s neglect, the person and the corporate could each be held liable.
The authority subsequently suggested administrators and principal officers of telecommunications firms, VAS aggregators and different intermediaries to train due diligence to guarantee their platforms will not be knowingly or negligently used to facilitate illegal gaming actions.
It warned that after the 30-day compliance interval expires, it might subject the suitable statutory notices and pursue accessible regulatory and enforcement measures towards operators and entities discovered to be non-compliant.
What it is best to know
Earlier this yr, Nairametrics reported that the Nigerian Tax Act 2025 has officially exempted “stakes” from Value Added Tax (VAT), eradicating a key provision that beforehand impacted the operations of gaming and lottery operators.
This is in accordance to Section 185, Subsection M of the Act, which incorporates “money, stakes or securities including interest in money or securities”(*30*) in its record of VAT-exempt objects.
The transfer offers readability that the quantity wagered on a recreation (stake) mustn’t entice VAT, prompting operators to replace their programs to mirror this exemption.
