Remote Gaming Duty: taxpayer wins on ‘free spins’ in the Upper Tribunal

The Upper Tribunal (UT) has released its decision in Jumpman Gaming Ltd v HMRC [2026] UKUT 00364 (TCC) concerning the application of remote gaming duty (RGD) to promotional games.

The UT overturned the decision of the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) and held that businesses providing online gaming are not subject to duty on ‘free spins’ which are won from promotional games.

Parliament introduced new rules in the Finance Act (No. 2) Act 2017 so as to apply RGD to certain remote gaming ‘freeplays’. At the same time, Parliament introduced a statutory exclusion to prevent rewagering of freeplays from being subject to RGD.

First, the UT upheld the FTT’s conclusion that free spins on the Mega Reel were not subject to RGD. That conclusion gave rise to a second question about whether further free spins won from playing the Mega Reel game fell within the statutory exclusion.

The UT held that these free spins were also not subject to RGD. On a straightforward reading of the statutory exclusion from RGD in s.159A(4)(b) of the Finance Act 2014, the words “the gaming” simply meant “remote gaming”, and not “participation in remote gaming pursuant to an offer waiving all or part of a gaming payment” as HMRC contended.

Jonathan Peacock KC and Michael Ripley represented Jumpman Gaming Ltd in the Upper Tribunal.