What Counts as Winnings and When Taxable Income Arises
For a player playing on a foreign platform, the tax question begins with two definitions. Article 8 of the Code determines: winnings received from a person engaged in the gambling business is income determined by the positive difference between the amount received and the amount staked by the natural person (the player) in gambling and promotional games on one ticket, token, coin or other means. In other words, a loss on another ticket does not offset a win — the calculation is made on each individual ticket.
The second axis is Article 80: the object of taxation with personal income tax for a resident natural person is taxable income, determined as the difference between the aggregate income received during a calendar year and the deductions provided for by the Code. A player’s winnings enter precisely into that aggregate income, and declaring them is part of the annual cycle.