French Regulatory Board Weighs Demands of Casinos and Gamers

France is trying hard to balance "laissez-faire" and "savoir faire" to create an online gaming environment that is both attractive to the players and profitable for the industry.

Since the introduction of online poker regulation in March 2025, some companies have departed to friendlier climes as the French regulatory environment was seen as less conducive to competition than that of other countries. With the advent of more liberal regulatory regimes in other countries, France has begun to change its regulations in order to retain existing gamers and internet gambling companies, and to attract new ones.
The Regulatory Authority of Online Games (ARJEL) is the French body that supervises online gaming. ARJEL has put forth more than sixty suggestions for modifications in the regulation of online poker. One of the most important ideas is a Gross Gaming Revenue tax (GGR).

ARJEL is putting forth a set of varying tax rates: 55% for horse betting, other sports betting at 55%, and a relatively modest rate of 25% for poker. The French parliament must approve any changes, and not all members of parliament are in favor of ARJEL's proposal. A competing proposal calls for a uniform rate of 20% for all internet gambling.
One of the key issues is the relative competitiveness of French-based internet gaming companies. Tweaking the return rate of online gaming is seen as one way to address this issue. The current return rate is 85 percent. ARJEL is suggesting an increase all the way to 95 percent as a way to boost the French gaming market.

One benefit of the increased international competition is that industry and the consumer are more important: lawmakers are giving gamers and gaming companies a high priority when forming the new regulations.