Will New Yorkers Now Have to Pay a Surcharge for Online Betting?

Online betting platforms have considered a plan to take away part of your winnings, just as New Yorkers prepare for football season to kick off.

New York has had a very lucrative beginning to 2024, pulling in more tax revenue from online gambling than any other state. New York sports betting has raised five times more revenue than Pennsylvania, which came in a distant second. This has been attributed to the incredible amount of money wagered as well as New York's 51% tax rate for online betting, the highest in the country.

DraftKings recently unveiled a gutsy plan to add a surcharge to online bets wagered in New York as well as Pennsylvania, Illinois and Vermont. The extra fee would be a way of offsetting the high tax rate charged in several states across the country.

The company indicated that an added charge of up to five dollars could be added to each online bet. It's no surprise the idea immediately received pushback from gamblers who said the surcharge would drive them to other betting apps.

Will You Have to Pay a Surcharge to Place an Online Bet in New York?

After DraftKings announced their plan to add a surcharge to bets places in New York, FanDuel reacted with an announcement of their own, completely rejecting the idea of adding any sort of fee to offset taxes.

According to Axios just two hours after FanDuel's reaction to the plan, DraftKings walked back the idea, saying they would no longer pursue charging customers a surcharge. However, the company indicated that it would be "moderating levels of generosity" by cutting back on promotions and bonuses in New York.