#e4mExclusive:  GST demands against Dream11, Gameskraft, Play Games 24x7 cut by ₹52,915 crore

Tax authorities have reduced the original GST demands against three major online gaming companies by approximately ₹52,915 crore, or 75.4%, in adjudication orders that substantially recalculated their liabilities following the Supreme Court’s ruling on online money gaming taxation.

The orders (reviewed by e4m) confirm principal GST liabilities of ₹17,297.62 crore against Sporta Technologies, Gameskraft Technologies and Play Games 24x7, against original demands of approximately ₹70,212.87 crore. The reductions reflect the amounts dropped from the show-cause notice demands, rather than a waiver of the entire tax liability.

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Sporta Technologies, the operator of Dream11, received the largest reduction in absolute terms, with ₹21,603.31 crore dropped from its original proposed demand. Gameskraft Technologies saw its demand reduced by ₹16,102.26 crore, while the demand against Play Games 24x7 was cut by ₹15,209.68 crore.

Gameskraft recorded the steepest percentage reduction at 76.7%, followed by Sporta Technologies at 76.4% and Play Games 24x7 at 72.7%.

The orders are significant because they show how the final tax liabilities have diverged from the large demands originally proposed against gaming operators. The reductions do not mean the companies have been cleared of GST liability: all three face substantial confirmed tax amounts, with interest and penalties also applicable under their respective orders.

Similarly, multiple other companies have seen a reduction in GST demands after the Supreme Court judgement. 

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Dream11 operator gets ₹21,603 crore reduction

The Mumbai East Commissionerate confirmed a gross GST liability of ₹6,690.87 crore against Sporta Technologies for July 2017 to March 2023. The original proposed demand, calculated by adding the confirmed liability and the amount dropped, stood at approximately ₹28,294.18 crore.

The authority dropped ₹21,603.31 crore, equivalent to a 76.4% reduction in the original proposed demand.

The confirmed liability comprises ₹5,671.60 crore in integrated GST and ₹509.64 crore each in central and state GST. The order also directs recovery of applicable interest under Section 50(1) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, after accounting for GST already paid.

The penalty treatment is different from that in the other two cases. Sporta has been penalised under Section 73(9), rather than being subjected to a penalty equivalent to the tax under Section 74(1). The authority also dropped several other proposed penalties under specified provisions of Sections 122 and 125.

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The ₹6,690.87 crore figure is the gross tax liability confirmed by the authority, not necessarily the net balance payable after credit for tax already paid.

Gameskraft demand cut by 76.7%

Gameskraft Technologies saw its proposed differential GST demand of approximately ₹20,989.31 crore reduced to a confirmed liability of ₹4,887.05 crore. The reduction of ₹16,102.26 crore represents 76.7% of the original demand.

The Bengaluru East Commissionerate’s order concerns the company’s RummyCulture and Gamezy platforms for the period covered by the show-cause notice, from August 2017 to June 2022.

The authority determined the taxable value at ₹20,261.97 crore, applying Rule 31B of the CGST Rules in line with the Supreme Court’s judgment dated May 27, 2026. It used verified add-cash or deposit amounts and did not mechanically adopt cumulative buy-in where it represented winnings repeatedly redeployed without withdrawal.

The distinction was central to the recalculation. The original notice had proposed a much higher differential demand using cumulative buy-in as the principal valuation basis.

The final order confirms ₹1,548.60 crore in IGST and ₹1,669.22 crore each in CGST and Karnataka GST. It appropriates ₹20 crore already paid by the company against the corresponding tax liability and directs recovery of applicable interest.

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Gameskraft has also been penalised ₹4,887.05 crore, equivalent to the confirmed tax, under Section 74. However, proposed personal penalties against five individuals were dropped, as were overlapping penalty proposals against the company to the extent that they covered the same acts or omissions.

Play Games 24x7 demand reduced by ₹15,210 crore

Play Games 24x7, the company behind RummyCircle and My11Circle, saw its proposed GST demand reduced by ₹15,209.68 crore, or 72.7%.

The Mumbai East Commissionerate confirmed a principal GST liability of ₹5,719.70 crore for July 2017 through financial year 2022-23. The original proposed demand, based on the confirmed liability plus the amount dropped, was approximately ₹20,929.38 crore.

The confirmed amount comprises ₹4,223.37 crore in IGST and ₹748.17 crore each in CGST and SGST. The authority appropriated ₹1,407.38 crore in GST already paid against the confirmed demand and ordered recovery of applicable interest.

Unlike Sporta, Play Games 24x7 has been penalised an amount equivalent to the confirmed tax liability: ₹5,719.70 crore under Section 74(9), read with Section 122(2)(b).

The order also confirms a separate ₹32.52 crore IGST demand under the reverse-charge mechanism on specified foreign expenditure and remittances involving the company’s US branch. This is an additional component and is not included in the ₹5,719.70 crore principal gaming-tax figure used for the comparison above. Around ₹30.60 crore already paid against the reverse-charge component has been appropriated.

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The authority dropped proposed personal penalties against three executives, citing insufficient evidence of the specific individual acts or involvement necessary to impose such penalties.

Combined reduction exceeds ₹52,900 crore

Across the three orders, the original proposed demands total approximately ₹70,212.87 crore, against confirmed principal tax liabilities of ₹17,297.62 crore. The resulting reduction is ₹52,915.25 crore, or 75.4%.

The comparison is based on the gaming-tax demands and the amounts dropped in the three orders. It excludes interest and penalties from the headline comparison and does not represent the net amount recoverable after all payments and adjustments. The separate ₹32.52 crore reverse-charge demand against Play Games 24x7 is also excluded from this comparison.

The outcomes differ in their penalty provisions and treatment of payments already made. Sporta’s penalty follows the Section 73 framework, while Gameskraft and Play Games 24x7 face penalties equivalent to their confirmed tax liabilities under Section 74.

The orders follow the Supreme Court’s May 2026 ruling on GST treatment and valuation of online gaming transactions. The recalculation, particularly in Gameskraft’s case, highlights the importance of how taxable value is determined when player deposits and winnings are repeatedly used in subsequent games.

While the reductions substantially lower the amounts originally sought by the tax department, the final orders leave the companies with significant tax liabilities.