Senegal taxes sports betting winnings at a flat 20% withholding rate, deducted directly from the full payout amount — not just the profit — before funds reach the player. This rate took effect in November 2025 under Law No. 17/2025, which amended Senegal’s General Tax Code, and applies to every winning bet with no minimum threshold or exemption.
Senegal’s government now takes a cut of every winning bet, and it happens automatically before the money ever reaches the player’s pocket. Since late 2025, a law passed as part of Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko’s economic recovery plan has withheld 20% of all gambling and lottery winnings at the point of payout — no declaration, no year-end filing, just a smaller payout than the posted odds promised. Here’s exactly what the law says, how the deduction works in practice, and why it’s already turned out messier than the government expected. If you’re weighing this against other markets, you can compare how Senegal’s tax regime stacks up against Nigeria and Ghana in our regional comparison.
What is Senegal’s 2026 gambling tax law?
The tax comes from Law No. 17/2025, adopted by the National Assembly on 17 September 2025 and amending Senegal’s General Tax Code (Law No. 31/2012). The law bundles two separate levies on the gambling sector together: a 20% withholding tax on player winnings, and a 20% tax on operators’ gaming income, charged on top of the standard 30% corporate tax operators already pay.
How much tax is withheld on gambling winnings in Senegal?
Exactly 20% of the full amount won on a validated bet, deducted before the payout reaches the player. There’s no threshold or small-win exemption — the withholding applies to the entire winning amount, not just the profit above the stake.
In practice: a player who wins CFA100,000 (about €152) is paid CFA80,000 (about €122), with the remaining CFA20,000 (about €30) sent directly to the Treasury by the operator.
When did the 20% winnings tax actually take effect?
Withholding started on 1 November 2025 for physical betting shops and lottery outlets, including those run through the Loterie Nationale Sénégalaise (LONASE). Digital platforms followed roughly two weeks later, in mid-November 2025, once operators adjusted their payout systems to deduct the tax automatically rather than leaving it to the player.
Do betting and lottery operators pay extra tax too?
Yes, and the burden is stacked rather than combined into one rate. Operators pay a 20% tax on their gaming income in addition to the standard 30% corporate income tax they were already paying. The same legislative package also introduced a separate 0.5% levy on mobile money transfers (capped at CFA2,000 per transaction, with transfers under CFA20,000 exempt) and extended a 1% stamp duty to cash payments — measures aimed at the wider digital economy rather than gambling specifically, but relevant to anyone funding a betting account through mobile money.
Is online betting legal in Senegal, and who is allowed to offer it?
Yes, but only through one channel. Senegal runs a strict state-monopoly model: LONASE holds the exclusive legal right to operate lotteries, sports betting and games of chance, a prerogative granted under Law No. 1987-43 of 23 December 1987. There is no independent licence a private operator can apply for — a foreign brand can only reach Senegalese players through a B2B technical partnership with LONASE itself, and there is currently no domestic framework for licensing online casino games at all.
Which platforms are actually authorised to take bets in Senegal?
In June 2026, LONASE published an official list of 17 authorised online platforms and warned that any site absent from it — along with the payment providers processing its transactions — risks prosecution. Among the brands currently operating under this technical-partner model are Jaap Sénégal (branded LONASE Way), Betting Partner (LONASE Partner) and 22Bet (LONASE 22Bet). Before depositing anywhere, it’s worth taking a moment to verify a bookmaker’s licence rather than assuming a familiar international brand is automatically covered by Senegalese rules.
Why did Senegalese bettors go on a 72-hour strike over this tax?
Because the 20% withholding hit every winning bet at once, with no phase-in period. Senegalese betting associations called for a nationwide 72-hour boycott starting 3 November 2025, urging players to stop wagering entirely, and the protest spread beyond Dakar into other regions, according to local outlet Seneweb. Bettors described the deduction as a rip-off and refused any negotiation, while LONASE defended the measure as a civic contribution to national development.
Did any operator leave the Senegalese market over the new tax?
Yes — betPawa, operated by pawaTech, shut down its Senegalese operations effective 22 September 2025, just ahead of the winnings tax taking effect. The company cited high taxes, a payment-processing monopoly and regulatory fees that put locally licensed operators at a disadvantage compared to offshore sites, while saying it remained open to returning if conditions improved. A different approach to the same 20% figure played out next door in Kenya — see our breakdown of Kenya’s 2026 betting tax rules for how a change of collecting agency reshaped that country’s own withholding regime. Further along the West African coast, Nigeria and Ghana have taken their own distinct routes — see how in our guides to Nigeria’s 2026 betting tax rules and Ghana’s 2026 betting tax rules.
Is the 20% tax raising as much money as the government expected?
Not yet, by the government’s own admission. Senegal’s revised 2026 finance bill cut the gambling tax revenue forecast from 300 billion FCFA down to 120 billion FCFA — less than half the original target — even after Finance Minister Cheikh Diba told an African Lotteries Association seminar in Dakar that CFA40.9 billion had already been collected in the first quarter of 2026. The gap suggests at least some bettors are responding to the tax by betting less, betting offshore, or both.
What should bettors in Senegal do differently now?
Budget for the 20% deduction before placing a bet, not after winning — odds that look profitable at face value can look very different once a fifth of the payout disappears. Stick to platforms on LONASE’s authorised list rather than unlicensed offshore sites promising to dodge the withholding, since those come with no payout guarantee and no legal recourse if something goes wrong. And keep watching the finance bill process: with the revenue forecast already cut once in 2026, the rate or its scope could still move again before the year is out. For more coverage of how betting taxes and licensing rules are evolving across the continent, browse our full betting category archive.
Kwame Mensah is an experienced gambling analyst focused on the African betting industry. He shares insights on sports betting, casino platforms, market trends, and responsible gaming across multiple African countries.
