TLDR
- Brazil is targeting influencers and marketing agencies who promote unlicensed betting platforms with shared tax liability.
- Fintechs and banks that process payments for illegal betting operators can now be held jointly responsible for unpaid taxes.
- Funds seized from illegal operators will go toward public safety programs.
- The Federal Revenue Service will collect income tax and other levies from promoters and payment processors of illegal betting platforms.
- The measures aim to cut off both the financial and promotional lifelines of unlicensed offshore betting companies.
Brazil’s government has launched a new crackdown on illegal betting operators, targeting the people and businesses that help them run — including social media influencers and financial technology companies.
The measures, announced by the Brazilian Federal Government, go after two key pillars of the unlicensed betting industry: the payment channels that move money, and the promotional channels that attract players.
Influencers Face Tax Bills for Illegal Operators
Under the new rules, influencers and marketing agencies that promote unlicensed betting platforms could be held liable for the taxes those operators fail to pay in Brazil.
Robinson Barreirinhas, Secretary of the Federal Revenue Service, was direct about the policy. “If an influencer goes on social media and promotes an illegal betting operator, the Federal Revenue Service will collect income tax and PIS/COFINS taxes,” he said.
He added that if an influencer earns money from an illegal betting company based abroad, they will be expected to cover the tax bill that company owes Brazil.
This is a shift in how the government handles the promotion of illegal gambling. Previously, penalties were mostly administrative. Now, financial liability follows the money.
The policy also extends to the marketing agencies and companies that run advertising campaigns for unregistered operators, not just individual social media figures.
Fintechs and Banks on the Hook Too
The government is also going after the payment infrastructure that keeps illegal betting platforms alive.
Banks, fintechs, and other payment processors will be jointly liable for unpaid taxes if they continue handling transactions for illegal operators after being formally notified by the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA).
“If a fintech processes funds for an illegal betting operator, we will collect the taxes that were not paid by that operator from the fintech itself,” Barreirinhas said.
The taxes in question include income tax, PIS/COFINS, and a contribution directed to the Ministry of Health.
Barreirinhas made clear how central payment firms are to the illegal market. “Illegal betting operators would not exist without these financial transactions,” he said.
The government believes that cutting off payment access is one of the most effective ways to shut down unlicensed operators, many of which are based offshore.
Any money seized through these enforcement actions will be directed toward public safety programs.
The new measures are part of a broader effort by Brazil to clean up its regulated betting market, which has grown quickly since legal sports betting was introduced. Authorities are focused on pushing players toward licensed operators and away from unregulated offshore platforms that fall outside Brazilian consumer protection laws.
