Measure
The government will introduce legislation to amend how RGD rules interact with freeplays, prizes and tournaments. The government has stated that freeplays (which it refers to as “restricted plays”) won from the use of another restricted play will be excluded from RGD calculations.
The legislation will also amend RGD rules for tournaments, to redefine where participating is treated as playing a game of chance and to redefine “prize”.
Operators and users of remote games.
The changes will take effect from 1 April 2027.
The treatment of freeplays for RGD purposes has been the subject of recent litigation in Jumpman Gaming Ltd [2026] UKUT 364, most recently with a taxpayer win at the Upper Tribunal. This measure will update the legislation so that it has HMRC’s intended effect.