(Reuters) – New Zealand’s SkyCity Entertainment said on Friday it will pay the South Australia Treasury A$38.1 million ($23.7 million) to settle a dispute on its Adelaide casino over the tax treatment of customer loyalty points.
The case involved the interpretation of certain provisions in the Adelaide Casino Duty Agreement 1999, especially the treatment of loyalty points used in the casino’s gaming machines.
The South Australian Court of Appeal in the past ruled in favour of the Treasury, resulting in SkyCity appealing the decision to the high court.
SkyCity, however, lost that appeal and handed over A$10.3 million in additional casino duty to the state government.
The casino group said on Friday that its Adelaide business will pay a further A$13.1 million in casino duty, A$24.8 million in interest, and A$200,000 towards the Treasurer’s costs.
The payment covers casino duty return periods from January 2014 to January 2024.
Last year, SkyCity was asked to pay a A$67 million civil penalty payment following a federal court finding that its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing programs failed to meet legislative requirements.
($1 = 1.6082 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Kumar Tanishk in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)
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