Gambling 2018 – Romania Jurisiction

1.1 Which entities regulate what type of gambling activity in your jurisdiction?

The National Gambling Office (hereinafter referred to as “the Office”), an entity under the Romanian Government, is the regulatory authority for the gambling industry.  A supervisory committee (“the Committee”) has been set up within the Office to grant to gambling operators, as well as suppliers in the gambling field, the licences/authorisations required by law.  The Committee has two executive members (the President and the Vice-President of the Office) and seven non-executive members appointed by the Prime Minister and proposed by various players in the central administration.

The following games are currently identified as gambling products under Romanian legislation:

a) lottery games – traditional/remote games (both are placed under the legal monopoly of the National Company “Loteria Romana – S.A.”);

b) betting – traditional or remote games, including those involving:

(i) mutual betting;

(ii) fixed-odds betting; and

(iii) betting exchange;

c) games of chance specific to casinos (including poker) – traditional games;

d) games of chance specific to poker clubs – traditional games;

e) slot-machine-type games – traditional games, including the following:

(i) slot machines;

(ii) electronic devices offering limited-risk winnings (amusement with price – “AWP”); and

(iii) video-lotteries;

f) bingo games played in gaming rooms – traditional games;

g) bingo games organised via television networks – traditional games;

h) casino-type games – remote games, includes all of the games of chance defined in subparagraphs c) and d) above;

i) bingo and keno games – remote games;

j) tombola – defined as the activity of drawing numbers, letters or other symbols, regardless of the characteristics of the equipment used to make the draw (cups, drums, wheels or other similar equipment), whether or not organised with the players physically present, whereby the prizes are fixed in kind, and do not depend on the number or the price of the tickets sold, or of the stubs, tokens and other evidence of participation in the tombola;

k) any other type of games of chance – including new games or combinations of games mentioned above, subject to being licensed and authorised by the Office; and

l) temporary games – the games of chance described in subparagraphs c), e) point (i) and f) taking place in tourist resorts or on cruise ships, for which a gambling organiser has obtained an organiser’s licence and an operator’s authorisation for a period of three months with the possibility of an extension of a maximum of three more months.  This category also includes the Poker Festival – traditional game – a temporary event consisting of a poker tournament which takes place exclusively between participants in rooms (premises) within accommodation establishments.

The main Romanian legislation which impacts upon gambling activity comprises the following acts:

(i) Government Emergency Ordinance no. 77/2009 on the organisation and operation of gambling activities, as further amended and supplemented (“EGO 77/2009”);

(ii) Government Decision no. 111/2016 for the approval of the Methodological Norms for implementation of Government Emergency Ordinance no. 77/2009 on the organisation and operation of games of chance (“Methodological Norms” or “secondary legislation”);

(iii) Government Emergency Ordinance no. 20/2013 on the organisation and functioning of the National Gambling Office and in regard to the modification and supplementation of Government Emergency Ordinance no. 77/2009 on the organisation and operation of gambling activities (“EGO 20/2013”);

(iv) Law no. 227/2015 regarding the Fiscal Code, as further amended and supplemented (“Romanian Fiscal Code”);

(v) Law no. 207/2015 on the Fiscal Procedure Code (“Romanian Fiscal Procedure Code”);

(vi) Law no. 656/2002 on the prevention and sanctioning of money laundering, as well as for setting up some measures for the prevention and combating of terrorism-financing acts, republished;

(vii) Order issued by the President of the National Gambling Office no. 47/2016 for the approval of the content, reports and access to the information transmitted by the remote gambling operators to the National Gambling Office;

(viii) Order issued by the President of the National Gambling Office no. 48/2016 for the approval of the procedure for fulfilling the conditions for connecting the traditional slot machines and betting games of chance;

(ix) Order issued by the President of the National Gambling Office no. 93/2016 for the approval of the mandatory requirements for certification and audit of the remote gambling systems; and

(x) Order issued by the President of the National Gambling Office no. 135/2016 for the approval of the General Norms for filling in and using the mandatory registries and forms specific to gambling, of the Specific Norms for filling in and using the mandatory registries and forms specific to gambling, as well as the models thereof, per type of game of chance.

With regards to skill and social games, the Romanian legislation currently in force does not expressly regulate such games.

However, given Romania’s definition of gambling activities, we may say that any game (including skill games or social games) that lacks any of the elements falling within the legal definition of gambling should not be deemed as gambling, and thus should be permitted in our jurisdiction without prior authorisation.

Therefore, any skill or social game that does not involve (i) material winnings, (ii) a participation fee, or (iii) the random selection of the results or the events to which the object of the game relates, regardless of how these results are achieved, shall not be regarded as gambling activity.

In addition, according to the gambling law, the following types of games are not considered games of chance and do not require authorisation:

a) tombola games organised in schools, kindergartens or other such establishments, as well as those organised by non-profit organisations or foundations, that have an entertainment purpose or non-profit nature for the organisers.  A tombola is considered non-profit when the total amount of participation fees is equal to the total value of prizes awarded; the same principle also applies in the case of prizes in the form of goods, etc.;

b) games of an entertainment nature, operated via any kind of machines, apparatus or devices of any kind, that do not involve winning based on random elements, but which are intended to test the participant’s strength, intelligence or dexterity;

c) activities lawfully organised by various businesses in order to stimulate sales and which do not involve any participation fee or any additional expenditure for the participants, or any increase in the price of the product relative to its price before the promotion; and

d) amusement or sporting games whereby players are required to demonstrate knowledge and skills and which are not based predominantly on chance.

2.1 Who can apply for a licence to supply gambling facilities?

According to the current Romanian gambling legislation, an economic operator applying for a licence and authorisation to organise games of chance can be either a Romanian legal person established under the Romanian law or a legal person duly established in a Member State of the European Union, the European Economic Area or in the Swiss Confederation, having “gambling and betting” activities as its main object of activity and the share capital subscribed and paid-in to the amount stipulated by the law.

2.2 Who or what entity must apply for a licence or authorizations and which entities or persons, apart from an operator, need to hold a licence? Are personal and premises licences needed? Do key suppliers need authorization?

Apart from the legal entities which may apply for a Class 1 licence to organize gambling activities, as indicated in our answer provided to question 2.1 above, the following economic operators that perform auxiliary activities in the field of remote games of chance in Romania, (other than the network providers and electronic communications services providers), are also obliged to obtain a licence (i.e., a Class 2 licence) from the Office in order to lawfully carry out their type of activities:

a) operators who hold management and integration platforms specific to remote games of chance, as well as the operators of server storage centres (data centres);

b) economic operators who carry out activities relating to the manufacturing, distribution, repair and maintenance of gaming equipment, as well as import, export, intra-community acquisition and intra-community delivery or other related activities involving gaming equipment or components;

c) payment processors;

d) companies which develop and/or distribute specialised software for games of chance, as well as companies that broadcast images of games of chance characteristic to casinos;

e) affiliates (marketing);

f) certifiers (testing labs);

g) auditors (testing labs); and

h) conformity assessment bodies (testing labs).

Also, certain activities – such as manufacturing, distribution, maintenance, import, export, intra-community trade – related to gaming means, are subject to the respective operators obtaining a Class 2 licence from the Office.

A Class 3 licence is to be granted to the organiser of remote lotto games (still under the monopoly of the Romanian State).  No such licence has yet been granted in Romania at the date of writing this chapter.

2.3 What restrictions are placed upon any licensee?

This is not applicable in our jurisdiction.

2.4 What is the process of applying for any gambling licence or regulatory approval?

The licensing (both for Class 1 and for Class 2 applicants) process, as well as the authorisation application process, is rather straight forward.  The legislation regulates a closed-box procedure, all regulatory approvals being granted based exclusively on documents submitted to the Office, without the applicant or its local representative being present in front of the Committee for the hearing when the application is analysed and voted on.

The list of documents to be submitted in the process is expressly provided by the legislation, such documents being aimed to provide information on the applicant (up to, in some cases, to the ultimate beneficial owner), its good standing (as well as the good standing of its legal representatives) – including the capacity to cover debts towards the State budget or the applicant’s own players at any moment – but also the technical system intended to be used for carrying the respective games of chance activity in Romania (in the case of a Class 1 licence), or the capacity and means to provide the service for which the licence is requested (in the case of a Class 2 licence).

The legislation, however, provides for the obligation of the applicant to provide any data or information as requested by the Office – a provision that appears to have been included in the legislation with the view to ensuring that no unpredictable and/or unpredicted situations appear during the licensing process, which cannot be handled due to lack of regulatory framework.

The documentation must be submitted at least nine working days prior to the date the Committee meeting is scheduled for the representatives of the Office to have the time to review the application, and request additional data or information from the applicant, if necessary.  Once the initial review is finalised, the documentation is put forward to the Committee, whose members make the final decision on the actual granting of the approval.

2.5 Please give a summary of applicable time limits and potential for expiry, review revocation and nullification.

The licence to organize games of chance is valid for 10 years, subject to the payment of annual fees.

The Office may decide to revoke the licence to organise games of chance for cases such as: (i) failure to comply with the payment obligations to the general consolidated budget or payment of the respective obligations, in accordance with the legal provisions in force, more than 30 days from the date on which they become due in accordance with the law; (ii) the organiser no longer has the organising of games of chance as its main object of activity; (iii) after the approval issued by the police authorities for the legal representatives of the legal entity has been withdrawn, the latter keeps the respective position for more than 30 days from the date on which the withdrawal of the approval was communicated; (iv) a final judgment of conviction without rehabilitation was issued against the legal entity; (v) the legal representatives of the economic operator are in a situation of incompatibility for more than 30 days, calculated from the date on which the incompatibility occurred; (vi) any of the shareholders or legal representatives of the legal entity keep their position for more than 30 days, when a final judgment of conviction without rehabilitation was issued against the respective entity, in Romania or in a foreign State, for a crime stipulated by the Romanian gambling legislation or for any other crime committed with intent for which a minimum two-year prison sentence was applied; (vii) the organisation of fraudulent games of chance; (viii) the security fund was not created to the amount, format or by the deadline provided by law; (ix) where there are irregularities with regards to the way the winnings awarded have been recorded, withholding the related sums of money and not paying them, or paying them after a delay of more than 30 days, as well as with regards to a failure to comply with any requirements for licensing and authorisation established by gambling legislation in force; and (x) it is found that gambling activities do not comply with the provisions of Law no. 656/2002 for the prevention and sanctioning of money laundering.

After the licence to organise games of chance has been revoked, a new application can be submitted after at least one year from the date on which the revocation decisions became irrevocable in the appeal system.

Moreover, the Office may decide to cancel a licence to organise games of chance or the authorisation to operate games of chance, as the case may be, if the Office finds that, on the date these documents were granted, the applicants provided incorrect or inaccurate information which, if known, would have led to the licence to organise games of chance or the authorisation to operate games of chance, as applicable, not being granted.

In this situation, a new application for authorisation can be submitted after at least five years from the date on which the cancellation decision becomes final in the administrative appeal system or from the date on which the court judgment becomes final and irrevocable.

The Office may also decide to suspend or revoke a licence to organise games of chance, as the case may be, at the request of the National Tax Administration, the Fraud Investigations Directorate within the General Inspectorate of the Romanian Police, the Minister of Administration and Interior, or the National Office for the Prevention and Control of Money Laundering, due to failure to comply with the provisions of the legislation regarding the prevention and control of money laundering and financing of terrorist activities, determined by administrative documents that have remained final in the administrative appeal system, or by court judgments that are final and irrevocable.

2.6 By product, what are the key limits on providing services to customers? Please include in this answer the material promotion and advertising restrictions.

One of the key limits is the prohibition of minors under 18 years old from taking part in gambling activities.

In addition, the current Romanian legislation incriminates as a criminal offence the deed committed by an individual who participates as a player in a remote game of chance, while also being a member of staff or part of the management of a legal entity that is a contractual party with the licensed gambling organizer, on Romanian territory, regarding any activity connected or associated with that game of chance, or being an associate or shareholder of this legal entity.

Romanian legislation also contains certain restrictions related to advertising.  Most important are:

• spamming is forbidden – publicity in the form of unsolicited electronic messages that include information regarding a game of chance, addressed to an unlimited number of recipients, is forbidden;
• sending advertising materials to self-excluded players is prohibited;
• the advertising of gambling services not authorised in Romania is prohibited;
• outdoor advertising may not be placed within or around education institutions, social-cultural or religious institutions;
• promoting bonuses for games of chance to participants is only allowed on the organiser’s own website or in its own locations and/or on affiliates websites (holding a Class 2 licence) and/or through the sending of electronic messages to players holding active accounts, in its own database, provided that the latter have given their prior consent to receive such messages; and
• certain restrictions are applicable for TV advertising, mainly in terms of the timeslots when such advertising is allowed.

2.7 What are the tax and other compulsory levies?

Gambling activities are generally subject to the following taxes and fees:

• Annual licensing fee and annual authorisation fee
• Both the annual licensing fee and the annual authorisation tax need to be paid before commencing gambling activities in Romania.
• The annual licensing fees range between EUR 6,000 and EUR 120,000.  Fees for temporary games (operating for up to a three-month period) or poker festivals are lower.
• The annual authorisation tax for remote games of chance will be calculated as 16% of the gross gaming revenue, but not less than EUR 100,000, whereas the annual authorisation tax for traditional games of chance varies, both in terms of the method of calculation and in terms of the amount payable, from one type of game to another.
• Corporate income tax
• Where applicable, the general corporate income tax rate is 16%, applied to the taxable profit (i.e., accounting profit adjusted with non-taxable revenues and non-deductible expenses).  The law provides for an exception in what concerns casino activities, where it is stated that this category may be subject to a 5% turnover tax in case the profit tax is less than 5% of their revenues.
• Income tax on players’ gains
• Generally, the tax on players’ revenue is to be withheld by the organiser of the gambling activity; for remote gambling, the tax must be declared and paid directly by players on an annual basis.  Each online gambling organiser will need to communicate each gross revenue obtained by each player to the tax authorities on a yearly basis.  In addition, the organiser will have to annually transmit to the players the information referring to the revenue achieved within the respective fiscal year.
• Special taxes
• The law also regulates other special taxes, such as: (i) 3% applied on the video lottery operators’ revenues; (ii) access fees for casinos (RON 50) and poker clubs (RON 30); (iii) a vice tax for slot machines in amount of EUR 400/authorised post/year (not applicable for AWP); and (iv) administrative taxes for obtaining the licence for remote games, namely (a) a tax of EUR 2,500 for analysing the file, and (b) a tax of EUR 8,500 a year for each licence issued.

2.8 What are the broad social responsibility requirements?

The gambling regulatory framework is focused on protecting minors and preventing their access to gambling, preventing fraud, money laundering and the financing of terrorist actions, as well as ensuring the integrity and transparency of gambling activities, and maintaining a fair game system which is constantly supervised.

For remote gambling the legal framework specifically provides for mechanisms to allow players to set daily, weekly or monthly play limits, and to self-exclude from the game temporarily or permanently.

2.9 How do any AML, financial services regulations or payment restrictions restrict or impact on entities supplying gambling? Does your jurisdiction permit virtual currencies to be used for gambling and are they separately regulated?

Payment instruments used in the financial-banking system and money, including bank cards, are accepted forms of payment that contribute to the operation of games of chance.

In addition, all payments to players should be made only through payment processors, who, in addition to having an authorization for payment services or for the issue of electronic coins, are also licensed by the Office (a Class 2 licence) or by land-based gambling operators who perform deposits to, or withdrawals from players accounts in the name and on behalf of remote gambling operators, based on their prior agreement.

Romanian legislation does not regulate the use of virtual currency for gambling.

3.1 Does the law restrict, permit or prohibit certain online activity and, if so, how?

According to the Romanian gambling legislation, the permitted remote products defined as “remote products” (in Romanian “la distanta”) are as follows:

a) lottery games are under the legal monopoly of, and may only be carried out by, the National Company Loteria Romana;

b) casino-type games defined as gambling activities characteristic to games played in casinos and poker clubs, played entirely without the players being physically present, organised by the same operator, on the same gaming platform, using a single internet domain, and which are organised and transmitted via any communication system (internet, fixed or mobile telephone system or any other transmission system);

c) fixed betting;

d) mutual betting;

e) betting exchange;

f) bingo and keno games;

g) tombola games defined as the activity of drawing numbers, letters or other symbols, regardless of the characteristics of the equipment used to make the draw (cups, drums, wheels or other similar equipment), organised without the players being physically present, whereby the prizes are fixed and do not depend on the number or the price of the tickets sold, or of the stubs, tokens and other evidence of participation in the tombola.  The winners – a predetermined number of participants – will be established by means of a random draw of at least 50% of the total value of the stakes paid to participate in the game in compliance with rules posted in advance and approved by the NOG’s Supervisory Committee.  The prizes may only be issued in kind and must have a minimum value; and

h) any other type of games of chance, such as (i) new games, or (ii) combinations of games regulated by the gambling legislation and for which an organiser obtains a licence and an authorisation from the NOG’s Supervisory Committee.

3.2 What other restrictions have an impact on online supplies?

In order to protect consumers from unlicensed operators, the Office has the responsibility and obligation to identify the websites that enable access to remote games of chance which do not hold a licence to organise/an authorisation to operate games of chance in accordance with Romanian legislation.

Moreover, the Office should identify the websites used for carrying out marketing, advertising and publicity activities, or any other promotional activities relating to the remote games of chance or activities and services related to these, which are not authorised in accordance with Romanian legislation.

In such cases, the Office communicates all information regarding any unauthorised activities identified to the internet providers, so that access to these websites can be blocked, and in addition shall also communicate the information about these unauthorised websites to payment institutions and services so that any payments to and from these unauthorised websites can be blocked.

The operators carrying out unauthorised remote gambling activities will be literally blacklisted, along with their unlawful websites.  Such blacklist is available on the website of the Office, at http://onjn.gov.ro/lista-neagra/.

3.3 What terminal/machine-based gaming is permitted and where?

The Romanian gambling legislation in force covers terminal/machine-based gaming as follows:

• Slot-machine-type games can be grouped into three categories:

i) slot-machine-type games with unlimited stakes and winnings;

ii) slot-machine-type games played via electronic devices offering limited-risk winnings (also known as AWP – Amusement with Price); and

iii) video lottery or VLT gaming activity, carried out via specialised terminals, which attributes winnings randomly, the result of the participation to the game being displayed to the player via the video lottery terminal, the dexterity or the ability of the player not having any influence/relevance in obtaining the winnings.  The video lottery game is performed via an unitary network of terminals with closed circuit that functions only when connected to the central national level system via the internet.

For slot-machine-type games, the minimum number of pieces of gaming equipment that may be operated by the same gambling operator will be 75 slot machines (electronic devices with unlimited stakes and winnings and/or electronic devices offering limited-risk winnings, including gaming stations or terminals constituted as a single entity), which may be operated in the same or different premises.

According to the provisions of the primary law in force, the number of slot machines for each location is as follows:

(i) a minimum of 20 slot machines for gambling halls located in Bucharest, or a minimum of 12 slot machines for those in locations other than Bucharest;

(ii) a maximum of three electronic devices offering limited-risk winnings for spaces in which other business activities take place, with only a single organiser placing, organising and operating the gaming equipment in question at the premises;

(iii) a maximum of five slot machines for premises authorised for betting activities;

(iv) a minimum of 50 pieces of gaming equipment interconnected within the jackpot gaming system where the gaming equipment is operated in at least two premises;

(v) a minimum of two gaming terminals (stations) for slot-machine-type games that are built as a single entity and operated from multiple gaming terminals (stations); and

(vi) a minimum of two slot machines for premises authorised for temporary games.

• Betting activities

For betting activity, the minimum number of locations in which the activity can be carried out by the same economic operator is 15, whereas the minimum number of specialised terminals that an economic operator may have is 30.

Depending on their operating method, betting terminals can be grouped in two categories: (i) dependent terminals, which are operated by the organiser’s personnel working within the betting agency; and (ii) autonomous terminals, which are operated directly by the game participants.

A betting agency is a specialized location used for betting activities – traditional games – such as mutual betting, fixed-odds betting or betting exchange, in which at least one dependent betting terminal is operated.

These games of chance will be operated directly within the agency via dependent or autonomous betting terminals, or at premises specialized in gambling activities via autonomous terminals, providing that the activity is centralized and the results are reported through the respective work point or through a work point or betting agency belonging to the organizer, designated for collection operations, if the results omologation and winnings validation operations cannot be performed directly by the player by operating the terminal.

4.1 Who is liable for breaches of the relevant gambling legislation?

Carrying out any activity in the gambling sector without a licence or authorisation is considered a criminal offence and is punished with a prison sentence of between one month and one year or a criminal fine.  According to the provisions of the Romanian Criminal Code, the sanction applied to a legal entity for committing such a crime is a fine of between approximately EUR 2,250 to EUR 22,500, as well as the additional sanction of dissolving the legal entity.  Additional measures, such as the confiscation of the revenues arising from the illicit activity, may be imposed.

Based on the provisions of the Romanian Criminal Code, when the elements of a criminal offence are met, criminal liability arises.  In order for a criminal offence to exist, the deed provided for by the criminal law must be committed with guilt, unjustifiable (e.g., not in self-defence) and imputable to the person who committed it (e.g., not under exterior constraints).  The criminal infringement, provided for in Romanian gambling legislation, is presumed to have been committed with intentional guilt, as there can be no actions committed by fault under EGO 77/2009.  Furthermore, the persons having committed the criminal offences may be either authors or co-authors, or even instigators and accomplices, provided that all elements of the criminal offence are fulfilled for each one of them.

In addition, carrying out any of the activities related to remote gambling activities in Romania (namely the activities of the operators which offer management and hosting facilities on their gambling platform, payment processors, manufacturers and distributors of software, affiliates, certifiers and auditors to the gambling sector) without a Class 2 licence is considered a minor offence and is sanctioned with a fine of between RON 50,000 to RON 100,000 and confiscation of the amounts derived from the illicit activity.  However, in a rather conservative interpretation of the legal provisions, criminal liability cannot be excluded due to the fact that the operation of any kind of activities related to the gambling field in the absence of a licence constitutes a criminal offence (and the primary legislation does not make a distinction in this sense between FirstClass licensees and Second Class service providers).

In what concerns the players, participation in remote gambling activities not authorised by the Office by natural persons, in Romanian territory, represents a minor offence.  The sanction for this offence is a fine of between RON 5,000 and RON 10,000.

4.2 What is the approach of authorities to unregulated supplies?

In recent years, less than 30 civil and criminal cases pertaining to gambling activities have been finalised (in some of the cases, with a court’s decision for conviction leading to imprisonment) or are currently pending before the Romanian courts.

The regulator has already blacklisted certain operators (the full list is available at: http://www.onjn.gov.ro/home/lista-neagra) and has instructed all internet service providers to block access to their websites, and redirect all traffic to an IP address that is publicly known to belong to the Special Telecommunications Service (the central specialised structure which organises and coordinates the activities in the special telecommunications field for the Romanian public authorities, having military structure and being part of the national defence system).

The most visible cases remain the cancellation by the Office of the interim right to operate granted to HILLSIDE GAMING LP and HILLSIDE SPORTS LP (bet365.com) as well as EUROPE ENTERTAINMENT LIMITED (stargames.com and skill7.com) – against which the Office has also filed criminal complaints, but also the revocation of the interim right to operate granted to RG FAIRPLAY SRL (dollarobet.ro).  In the court actions filed against the Office, the Bucharest Court of Appeal has recently decided that the interim rights granted to EUROPE ENTERTAINMENT LIMITED as well as HILLSIDE GAMING LP and HILLSIDE SPORTS LP have been erroneously cancelled by the regulator and ruled that the cancellation decisions issued by the Office must be in their turn cancelled.  The two court decisions are subject to appeal in front of the High Court of Cassation and Justice.

Gambling has also been on the agenda of the National Audiovisual Council since the beginning of 2017.  The audiovisual regulator has recently summoned several TV stations to enter into legality due to the fact that they broadcasted commercials for online gambling services (licensed in Romania) during timeframes considered by the Council as available to the general public, thereby breaching the principle of minors protection.  This action does not clarify the permitted timeslots for airing gambling advertisements on television, since there is a discrepancy between the intervals mentioned in the Council’s sanctionatory decision and the subsequent official press release on this topic.

4.3 Do other non-national laws impact upon liability and enforcement?

Under Directive 98/34/EC, when laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulations, Member States (thus, including the Romanian State) must notify the European Commission and other Member States of the draft regulations regarding products and Information Society services (such as remote gaming and betting) before adopting them.

4.4 Are gambling debts enforceable in your jurisdiction?

Only debts arising from authorized games of chance are enforceable.

5.1 What (if any) intended changes to the gambling legislation/regulations are being discussed currently?

While discussions about a new taxation system for remote games of chance have been carried out with the local authorities, no draft legislation on this matter has been made public by the date of the writing of this chapter.

Another important legislative proposal which may impact the gambling industry refers to the draft bill restricting gambling advertising in the audiovisual medium.  More specifically, there is a proposal to amend the audiovisual legislation in the sense of introducing a total ban of gambling advertising in the audiovisual environment.  However, such legislative proposal has sat with the Romanian Parliament for more than a year now.