Key points
- Since 2 April 2025 no 10% is withheld from betting winnings at the point of payout.
- The tax ran from 15 August 2023 for sports betting and applied to winnings only, never to the stake.
- A deduction made on or after 2 April 2025 should be refunded by the operator.
- Whether winnings count as income for annual tax filing was left open; the repeal covered withholding at payout only.
For almost two years every winning slip in Ghana paid a toll. You staked GH₵20, the acca came in at GH₵500, and GH₵48 went to the Ghana Revenue Authority before the money reached your wallet. That deduction is gone. Parliament voted the Income Tax (Amendment) Bill 2025 through on 26 March 2025 and the President assented. On 8 April 2025 the GRA told operators that the change took effect on 2 April 2025. The bookmaker now pays the full amount it approves.
What the betting tax in Ghana actually took
The tax came in under the Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2023 (Act 1094), and the GRA began collecting it on 15 August 2023. The rate was 10% and the base was the winnings, meaning the profit on the bet, not the stake you put in. The operator withheld it at payout and passed it to the GRA each month, which is why it never appeared as a separate bill. Lotto was given until 1 January 2024 to start, as the Ghana News Agency reported in December 2023.
A GH₵100 stake at odds of 3.00 returned GH₵300. Of that, GH₵200 was winnings, so GH₵20 was withheld and GH₵280 landed in the account. Many punters read the smaller figure as a cashier fee or a MoMo charge; it was the tax.
What changed on 2 April 2025
The repeal removed the duty on operators to withhold 10% from betting, gaming and lottery winnings. From 2 April 2025 a licensed bookmaker pays out the full approved sum. In its 8 April 2025 directive, reported by Rainbow Radio, the GRA said that anyone charged on or after that date is entitled to a refund from the operator. It asked players to keep their receipts. The date matters if you are checking old payouts.
The bill also scrapped the 1.5% withholding tax on unprocessed gold from small-scale miners, which is why the two measures are often reported together. For a punter only the first part matters.
What did not change
Two things survived the repeal. First, the question of income tax did not go away. A Citi Newsroom analysis in April 2025 argued that the repeal removed withholding at payout and left open whether winnings remain taxable income. For the ordinary punter nothing is deducted, but a large winner who files a return should get advice. Second, the taxes paid by the betting companies themselves, including the levy on their gross gaming revenue, were not the subject of this bill.
Nothing in the law requires a bookmaker to charge you a fee for paying out, either. Any amount missing from a payout today has another explanation: an unfinished bonus, a withdrawal fee the operator prints in its cashier, or a currency conversion at a crypto site. A MoMo network charge is another, such as the agent cash-out fee on the MTN MoMo betting sites page.
How to check your own payout
- Open the bet slip and note the return the bookmaker shows for the winning bet.
- Open the withdrawal record in the cashier and compare the approved amount with the slip.
- If the gap is exactly 10% of the winnings and the payout is dated 2 April 2025 or later, ask the operator for the refund in writing. Quote the slip number.
- If the operator does not respond and it is on the Gaming Commission register, the Commission lists a toll-free line, 00800 454 545, on its contact page.
A bookmaker that is not on the Gaming Commission register sits outside this process. The payout it makes is governed by its own terms and its offshore licence, which is one more reason to check the register before you deposit. The ranking of betting sites in Ghana shows which brands hold a Gaming Commission licence, and the mobile money betting sites page sets out how a payout reaches your wallet.
What the betting companies pay instead
What the betting companies pay did not change in April 2025. Act 1094 also set a 20% tax on gross gaming revenue, which is stakes minus the winnings paid out. EY’s tax alert of August 2025 confirms that only winnings can be deducted from that base. The same alert notes that betting and gaming are exempt from VAT. The monthly GGR return goes to the GRA by the 15th of the following month. None of that touches your slip.
| Tax | Who pays | Rate | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Withholding tax on winnings | Punters, withheld by the operator | 10% of winnings | Repealed with effect from 2 April 2025 |
| Gross gaming revenue tax | Betting and gaming operators | 20% of GGR | In force under Act 1094 |
| VAT on stakes | Betting and gaming operators | Exempt | No VAT on betting since the 2023 change |
Swipe sideways to see every column.
The repealing law is the Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2025, dated 2 April 2025 on Parliament’s repository. EY and TaxLawGH cite different Act numbers for it, so none is given here. The GRA’s directive of 8 April 2025 is the operative instruction to operators.
Sources
- Ghana News Agency, 26 March 2025: Parliament abolishes 10% withholding tax on bet winnings
- Citi Newsroom, 15 August 2023: GRA to implement 10% withholding tax on betting, lottery winnings
- Citi Newsroom, April 2025: Betting tax in Ghana, properly abolished or a drafting error?
- Gaming Commission of Ghana: licensed operators register
- Rainbow Radio, 8 April 2025: Stop deducting 10% withholding tax on winnings, it has been abolished – GRA
- Parliament of Ghana repository: Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2025, dated 2 April 2025
- EY tax alert, 22 August 2025: taxation of the gaming and betting industry in Ghana
- TaxLawGH: Ghana gaming tax, reviewed 7 September 2026
- Ghana News Agency, December 2023: Ten per cent lottery tax takes effect January 1
Questions and answers
Is there still a betting tax in Ghana in 2026?
Not on your winnings. The 10% withholding tax was abolished with effect from 2 April 2025, so a licensed bookmaker pays the full approved amount. Taxes charged to the betting companies themselves are a separate matter.
Was the betting tax charged on the stake or the winnings?
On the winnings only. A GH₵50 stake that returned GH₵150 had GH₵10 withheld, which is 10% of the GH₵100 profit, never 10% of the GH₵150.
A bookmaker deducted 10% from me after April 2025. What can I do?
The GRA said deductions made on or after 2 April 2025 should be refunded by the operator. Write to the bookmaker with the slip number and the payout record. If it is on the Gaming Commission register and does not respond, the Commission lists a toll-free line, 00800 454 545, on its contact page.
Do I have to declare betting winnings on my tax return?
The repeal removed withholding at payout; a Citi Newsroom analysis in April 2025 argued it left open whether winnings remain taxable income. Nothing is withheld at payout, but if you file a return and win a large amount, get advice from a tax professional.
Next steps
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