Betting (Amendment) Act 2015

Prohibitions

4. The Principal Act is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 2:

“2. (1) (a) A person (other than a licensed bookmaker) who, other than by remote means, carries on business, or acts, as a bookmaker shall be guilty of an offence.

(b) Subject to subsection (6) of section 7 (inserted by section 13 of the Betting (Amendment) Act 2015), a person (other than a licensed remote bookmaker) who carries on business, or acts, as a remote bookmaker from a place in the State shall be guilty of an offence.

(c) A person (other than a licensed remote betting intermediary) who carries on business, or acts, as a remote betting intermediary from a place in the State shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) A person (other than a licensed remote bookmaker) who carries on the business of, or acts as, a remote bookmaker from a place outside the State shall not communicate or attempt to communicate with a person in the State by remote means for the purpose of the making of a bet or bets with the first-mentioned person.

(3) A person (other than a licensed remote betting intermediary) who carries on the business of, or acts as, a remote betting intermediary from a place outside the State shall not communicate or attempt to communicate with a person in the State by remote means for the purpose of the making of a bet or bets by the second-mentioned person with any person (other than the first-mentioned person).

(4) If a person contravenes subsection (2) or (3), the Revenue Commissioners shall cause to be served on him a notice specifying the contravention concerned and requiring him to take such measures as are specified in the notice within such period as may be so specified for the purpose of securing that he ceases to contravene that subsection.

(5) A person who contravenes a requirement in a notice under subsection (4) shall be guilty of an offence.

(6) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a class A fine, or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding €150,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or both.

(7) Where a person, after having been convicted of an offence under this section, commits a further offence under this section, paragraph (b) of subsection (6) shall apply subject to the modification that the words ‘a fine not exceeding €300,000’ shall be substituted for the words ‘a fine not exceeding €150,000’.

(8) Summary proceedings for an offence under this section may be brought and prosecuted by the Revenue Commissioners.

(9) For the purposes of this section, a person communicates with another person if—

(a) the communication is directed to the other person personally,

(b) the communication is directed to persons belonging to a class of persons of which the other person is one, and is capable of being received and responded to by the person in the State, or

(c) the communication is directed to persons generally (whether in the State or both in the State and outside the State) and is capable of being received and responded to by a person in the State.”.