At a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on January 20, a bill was approved to create a state fund to support the social sphere. Money for the implementation of this initiative will be directed from the annual license fees of Ukrainian gambling market operators.

Within this fund, which will operate on the basis of a special budget fund, the authorities intend to finance the development of medical and educational projects, sports events, and science and culture. Its content will partially fall on the shoulders of gambling operators and organizers of lotteries. The fund will have to start full-fledged work from January 1, 2022.

In particular, the draft law proposes to make significant changes to the Budget Code of Ukraine. Thus, parliamentarians want to send about 50% of the proceeds from the sale of licenses for the organization of gambling entertainment in casinos and a similar amount of income from licenses for the operation of slot machine halls to the budgets of the places where a particular gambling establishment is located.

In addition , the generated funds will also be directed to scientific and technical projects with a clear definition of the intended use. In order to allocate money from the fund for such needs, a specific type of activity in the field of science or technology must have strict certification.

It is important to note that the budget of Ukraine for 2021 assumes receipt of income from the sale of licenses to gambling operators and permits for organizing and implementation of lotteries in the amount of UAH 7.4 billion. This figure exceeds last year by 70% (in 2020 it was only UAH 4.4 billion).

Despite this, last week the Ukrainian gambling regulator rejected all applications of companies that wanted to be the first to enter the local gambling market. The authority was forced to refuse due to operators' failure to comply with the rules for issuing the relevant package of documents.

Recall that about 20 casino operatorsapplied for a Ukrainian license.