In recent years, Jon Kyte has been one of the country’s absolute leading poker players.
In 2023, the lists show that the southerner brought in over ten million Norwegian kroner in prize money, but one thing has made him now choose to take the moving load out of Norway.
The rules in Norway state that poker players, with a residential address in Norway, must tax 30% on the prize money they win.
Now the decision was made to move abroad.
– I’ve been thinking about doing it for several years, but last year I took the game to a new level. It was therefore natural to move now, Kyte tells Nettavisen.
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A long process
He can tell that such a choice has been common in the environment for many years.
– Many have done it in the past, several have moved to London in the past. But it’s been a while since someone actually did it last, he says, who has got an apartment in the Austrian capital Vienna.
And continues:
– I have been thinking about moving for several years, and have looked at apartments elsewhere. But there are many benefits to living in Norway, and you have friends and family there. I also got a Norwegian girlfriend along the way, so it was difficult to move.
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But when it became clear in 2023 that the poker website PokerStars withdrew from Norway, Kyte believes that there was no other option but to travel.
– It is difficult to make a living as a professional poker player in Norway. Last year they removed access to PokerStars, which is the biggest site for all Norwegians. Then the opportunity to play the WC online disappeared.
Austria has, among other things, a tax policy which means that you are left with a larger profit after tournaments in the USA. Every time a player with a residential address in Norway wins money in the USA, 30% of the winnings are “lost”.
– Denmark, Sweden and Finland have zero tax on prize money throughout Europe, so if it hadn’t been for the fact that I like playing the WC in Las Vegas, I would probably have moved to Copenhagen. When the World Cup is no longer so important, it will be easy to move there.
Poker.no mentioned the case first.
This is what the association says
Leader of the Norwegian Poker Association, Tobias Jelsa Leknes, tells Nettavisen that it is a sport that has been “opposed” for several years.
– The debate about gambling is often characterized by emotions and a moral compass that must act before research and knowledge. Internationally, we see that poker is flourishing. Poker is a mental sport that many people find joy in. Nevertheless, we currently have a gambling policy where the gambling monopoly offers casino games, but not poker. We also see that Denmark and Sweden have switched to a license model, while Finland is moving towards such a model. This is something we also want in Norway, he can say.
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– With the current solution, all poker playing takes place unregulated, and with the authorities’ intensified hunt for foreign gambling companies in recent years, we see that gambling is moving away from regulated and safe sites, to unregulated apps and game sites. There you often have very little control over the gameplay.
– What are the future prospects for Norwegian poker?
– We know Norsk-Tipping is investigating the possibility that they will be able to offer poker in the relatively near future, and we are in dialogue about possible changes to the legislation for live poker. Among other things, we would like a set of regulations that make it possible for 20-30 people to meet in a suitable place, be it a clubhouse or village hall, and play for low sums, as long as it is not a professional operation, he concludes.
Returning to Kyte, he is prepared that more people will react to the choice he has now made.
– All poker players understand that I do that, once I have to make a living from playing poker. But then it’s family and friends who think it’s sad, he says honestly, and continues:
– The problem is not that I have to pay tax, but there is no legislation around it and it is not arranged for professional poker in Norway, he concludes.
