The decision to dismiss the adviser behind a clerical error set to cost Estonia €4m was ‘unavoidable and necessary’, according to Chancellery Director Antero Habicht.
A mistake in Estonia’s Gambling Tax Act initially exempted online casinos from tax in 2026 before being discovered in January. However, the state is still set to lose valuable tax revenue because of the blunder.
Earlier this week, Estonian broadcasting network Eesti Rahvusringhääling (ERR) reported that the adviser behind the mistake was dismissed following disciplinary proceedings. Further reporting has now revealed that Piia Schults, who had not previously been named, is planning to contest the decision in court.
In a written response to the planned appeal, Habicht said: “Taking all the circumstances into account, this was unavoidable and necessary; it was no longer possible to continue with a relationship based on trust.
“Based on current information, the official will turn to the courts to defend her rights, and therefore, we do not consider it possible to comment further publicly.”
Habict previously told ERR that the decision to dismiss Schults was a penalty for a ‘serious breach of official duties’ and the termination ‘was not caused solely by the fact of the error, but also by other circumstances related to the case that emerged during the disciplinary proceedings’.
Estonia is currently undertaking a staged decrease of its gambling tax from 6% to 4% by 2029 in an attempt to boost investment in the country’s gambling sector and position itself as a competitor to the likes of Malta and the Isle of Man as an iGaming hub in Europe.
According to ERR, a five-page directive from the Riigikogu Chancellery revealed that the official was aware of the error on 5 January, however, leadership were not informed of the mistake until 12 January, when the news broke via ERR.
Speaking to the publication, Schults admitted the mistake was ‘indeed terrible’ and that she was ‘very shaken by it’. But she also pointed to her 32-year tenure as an adviser to the Economic Affairs Committee and the fact that this was the first such incident in her career.
Schults also refuted the claims made by Habicht and described the case as a ‘matter of values’.
She said: “I have to challenge this. Perhaps it will also encourage colleagues. You simply cannot treat a person this way. I will challenge this on behalf of all of them, thinking of my colleagues and Estonian society. I believe people have the right to know what is happening in the public sector. These are not separate containers – we all live here in small Estonia, in plain view of one another.”
Shults added that she is in touch with a lawyer and is more likely to challenge the dismissal in court rather than through a labour dispute committee.
