Gambling Laws and Regulations Report 2026 United Kingdom
Respondents had differing views on the impact on other gambling products. Contrastingly, respondents from local government, campaign groups and academia were more cautious about any measures which could be seen as increasing the supply of gambling opportunities, due to links between rates of gambling participation and gambling-related harm. We will work with the relevant trade bodies and operators to understand the feasibility of this proposal and the frequency of any reporting to DCMS. This includes ensuring that appropriate safeguards against gambling-related harm are in place. In addition, operating costs have risen significantly over this period, especially as a result of rising energy costs, which have increased by over 225% for some operators.
It’s like this because it’s designed to protect players and maintain integrity across the whole of the gambling sector. Any casino wanting to operate legally in the UK must secure a license from this regulator, and doing this involves so much more than just completing a form. Wiggin extends its reach to the centre of European decision-making, maintaining a Brussels office that advocates for clients on various EU-related issues, including copyright, audio-visual regulations, data protection, competition policy, trade and e-commerce. The firm serves a diverse clientele, ranging from industry leaders in broadcast entertainment, music, sports and publishing to innovative platforms, content retailers, gaming and technology companies, as well as budding entrepreneurs. He is experienced in advising clients on regulatory compliance matters, licensing and product classification, seeking M&A regulatory approvals and cross-border jurisdictional risk. He advises many of the industry’s leading operators and suppliers, as well as start-up companies, investors and other leading law firms.
Obtaining a UK licence requires extensive background checks, financial audits, technical testing, and ongoing compliance monitoring. The UKGC is widely considered one of the world’s most rigorous gambling regulators. The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) is the government body that regulates commercial gambling in Great Britain. The statutory levy, financial vulnerability checks, online stake limits, and enhanced AML requirements introduced between 2024 and 2025 represent the most substantial expansion of operator obligations since the 2014 advertising reforms.
Online casinos licensed by the UK Gambling Commission are required to meet important safety and fairness standards. Operating licences give the operator the permission to offer a specific type of gambling product. Obtaining a gambling license for an offline casino in the UK is impossible without permission to own and operate dedicated gambling premises. The United Kingdom is one of the most developed countries in the gambling industry, where casinos and other forms of gambling are officially permitted. The Gambling Commission does not issue premises licences.
For customers who are aged 18 to 24, the maximum they can stake per game cycle for online slots is £2. For customers who are aged 25 and older, the maximum they can stake per game cycle for online slots is £5. As the SI sets out, all games which meet the definition of an online slots game will be subject to a maximum stake per game cycle. “stake” means to pay or risk an amount in connection with an online slots game.
The majority of licensing authorities advocated for the maximum proposed premises fee increase of 30%. Following analysis, we propose to increase the maximum premises fees chargeable by licensing authorities by 15%. We received detailed evidence through the consultation process outlining the impacts which increased fees would have on both the ability of licensing authorities to undertake their duties, and the commercial pressures placed on operators. These fees are used on a cost recovery basis to enable licensing authorities to undertake their gambling enforcement and administrative duties. To ensure this, we outlined in the white paper our intention to increase the cap on the maximum chargeable premises fees which can be charged by licensing authorities. The government will make inviting, causing, or permitting under-18s to play ‘cash-out’ Category D slot-style machines a criminal offence through a draft affirmative statutory instrument.
For a remote casino operator with GGY above £1 billion, the annual fee is £793,729 plus £125,000 for each complete additional £500 million of GGY above £1 billion. Individuals occupying specified management roles at licensed operators must hold a Personal Management Licence (PML). To hold a host licence, the business must also hold a gambling software operating licence. Operators providing multiple types of gambling under a single entity may hold a combined operating licence.
We help you find UK licensed casinos, including the latest sites launched with UK Gambling Commissions stamp of approval. This stands for Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice and is the UKGC’s framework for online casinos to follow when it comes to the way they operate. If a game developer provides its games to a UK online casino then it must have its own UKGC licence, with software complying to strict standards as well as many required features incorporated into each game.
UKGC Licence Changes: What Players Need to Know
Fees vary based on your casino’s Gross Gambling Yield (GGY). Each license ensures casino compliance with UKGC standards. The UKGC offers several licenses depending on your casino’s scope. The LCCP is not static, we make amendments or additions to take account of developments in the industry or emerging evidence on the most effective means of promoting socially responsible gambling.
We publish registers of licensed businesses, individuals, regulatory actions and premises. With our help, you can find new casinos, bonuses and offers, and learn about games, slots, and payment methods. Our experts test and review casino, betting, and bingo sites so you don’t play in a bodged-up joint that’s all mouth and no trousers. Bojoko is your home for all online gambling in the United Kingdom. You can tell if a casino has a UK licence by checking the bottom of the casino website. You can get bonuses on UK licensed casino sites with varying promotions.
Are you happy for government to attribute responses to your organisation in a published response to this consultation? (Gambling industry professional, gambling researcher/academic, gambling treatment provider, personally harmed by gambling, affected negatively by another person’s gambling, recreational gambler, government/regulatory professional, other, prefer not to say) Please upload any further evidence or any other information that should be considered in this consultation relating to licensing authority fees. Please provide any additional views or evidence on the potential impacts of raising licence fees here. What do you think are the potential impacts of raising licence fees on the local area? (Mandatory response)10% / 20% / 30% / A different amount / I do not think fees should be increased / I don’t know
Players often find offshore numbers return as expired, belonging to another company, or not licensed. Look for a licence seal that links to the issuing regulator’s own validation tool, then run the number through it. A genuine UK-licensed site states in its footer that the named business is licensed and regulated in Great Britain by the Gambling Commission under an account number. If the brand does not appear, it is not licensed in Great Britain. You can look up a casino by business name, trading name, website domain or account number.
This question elicited the most detailed responses in this chapter from a wide variety of respondents. This proposal will help build a picture of the customer’s play and is already standard in betting shops. The Behavioural Insights Team highlighted some research they had undertaken on individuals’ experiences of gambling management tools.
Valentino Castillo is a well-respected name in the online casino world, known for his expertise as a new online casino analyst and reviewer. The UKGC was formed under the Gambling Act of 2005 and in collaboration with other licensing authorities, regulates all commercial gambling in Great Britain. The UK Gambling Commission will not directly get involved with complaints, but they can review cases made against a casino to check if the operator fulfilled its licensing obligations. You may also search the UK Gambling Commission’s website for more information about a casino’s licence status.
Subsections (3) to (5) of section 172 of the Act make provision as to the number of gaming machines which may be made available for use in a casino by the holders of a licence issued under the 2005 Act. The UKGC gambling licence is seen as one of the most credible and strictest licences within the industry, with the proactive organisation responsible for providing licences to online casinos that only operate responsibly. The second stage of the process only applies where the number of applications which the licensing authority would provisionally grant under the stage one process exceeds the number of available casino premises licences. As a first step in licensing a casino, the licensing authority will have to invite applications for any casino premises licences that it may issue. Licence holders should consider whether, as a result of the changes and gambling facilities offered, an operating licence (OL) variation is required with regard to fee category and/or the licensed activities being offered (such as betting). The maximum number of gaming machines that may be made available for use on the premises remains unchanged at 80.
Casinos originally licensed under the 1968 Act are limited to a maximum of 20 gaming machines of Category B, C and D if at least one machine is Category B, or an unlimited number of Category C and D machines. The sectors which pay these fees are casinos, bingo halls and bingo-licensed arcades, adult gaming centres, family entertainment centres and betting shops. Unlike most commercial gambling, Category D gaming machines, which include coin pushers and crane grabs, are not restricted by age.
Online operators must meet strict security standards, including encryption, data protection compliance, and fair game certification. You must implement safer gambling tools like deposit limits, affordability checks, and self-exclusion mechanisms. The application process begins online. This rule was introduced following the UK government’s gambling white paper and is aimed at reducing gambling-related harm. These changes focus on player protection, corporate accountability, and industry funding for gambling harm initiatives.
- All gambling hosted by electronic means and available to persons in Great Britain must be licensed by the Gambling Commission.
- Anecdotal industry evidence suggests that payment methods are a factor in this decline in machine usage, as pub goers now pay for food and drink by card but might have previously played a machine using spare change.
- Most operators offer cashbacks on a weekly basis, so you get back a portion of your lost wagers during the week.
- For example, some options may place further emphasis on achieving commercial flexibility than achieving customer choice of higher and lower staking machines, and vice versa.
- The same 12.5% rule that applies in 2005 Act casinos is also proposed to apply for 1968 Act casinos that seek to move onto the new regime.
Read the casinos section of the VOA’s rating manual on GOV.UK (opens in new tab). The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) has more information about 1968 Act casinos, including the legal framework. New casinos under the Gambling Act 2005 (opens in new tab) are restricted to the following areas.
Verify a UK casino licence FAQs
You can also learn about what is RTP in slots and check our guide to the best PayPal casino UK sites for your verified casino shortlist. Understanding both the licence verification process and the affordability check rules gives you full visibility of your rights as a UK player. A Remote Betting Licence or Remote Bingo Licence does not authorise casino games like slots, roulette, or blackjack.
As some of the differences between 1968 Act and Small 2005 Act casinos are brought in line, operating and premises licence fees and mandatory licence conditions should be harmonised accordingly. We would like to make the process for taking up the entitlement of additional machines as simple as possible for both operators and licensing authorities. Anecdotal evidence shows that only three of the 2005 Act casinos offer betting, representing about 0.2% of the total GGY for each of those casino premises. There has been no evidence that permitting betting in 2005 Act casinos resulted in increased harm, and the Gambling Commission’s view is that permitting sports betting in 1968 Act casinos is unlikely to have any particular impact on the Act’s licensing objectives. There are likely to be indirect costs in the form of displacement from online sports betting as those in casinos who would otherwise have bet on sports using mobile devices may be more inclined to do so using casino services. 1968 Act casinos to be subject to a limit on the number of self-service betting terminals depending on their total gambling space.
The Commission found that Camelot had poor fraud prevention controls in place and that it had breached the terms of its licence. In situations where additional investigation is required, the licence can be revoked.citation needed The range of actions that may need to be taken varies from issuing a warning to inflicting a fine on those who violate licence conditions. The proposals were opposed by the gambling industry, including the Gibraltar Betting and Gaming Association.They also regulate crypto gambling websites and mitigate the risk of money laundering through such sites.
It comes with legally binding conditions on fairness, security, player-fund protection and responsible gambling. Mismatched names, 'suspended’ status, or no UKGC reference at all — combined with tell-tale features like credit card deposits or bonus buys — mean you’re on an unlicensed site with none of the protections this guide describes. Scroll to the casino’s footer and find the UK Gambling Commission logo with an account number. If the name on the register doesn’t match, the licence status isn’t current, or you can’t find an entry at all, treat that as a serious warning sign and don’t deposit.
It is important to differentiate between unlicensed offshore casinos and international casino sites which have multiple licences. No, only those online casinos and betting sites that hold the UKGC licence can promote their business in the UK. Non-remote operating licences authorise land-based gambling activities and must be accompanied by a premises licence issued by the relevant local authority.
Indeed, we reviewed data that showed some operators, particularly in the bingo casino not on gamstop sector where tablets are in widespread use for playing bingo games, have significantly greater numbers of Category B cabinets than Category C and D cabinets. Bacta have argued, however, that the benefits to operators would not be as substantial as those outlined in Option 1. Data provided by industry indicates that this option would achieve to a limited extent the objective of ensuring commercial flexibility. Option 2 would likely remove any incentive for operators to not abide by ‘available for use’ guidance. This proposal outlined in Option 2 would require any such premises to have one Category C or D cabinet for each Category B cabinet it sites. As outlined, the Gambling Commission has expressed concern regarding the adherence of operators to ‘available for use’ guidance.
The consultation asked the following questions on licence fees. We would expect operators to inform the Commission that they are intending to move onto the expanded regime as these changes will have a material impact on an operator’s business. Operators moving onto the new regime would almost certainly result in a material change to the layout of the premises.
