Online Gambling Licences

In order to provide betting services like betting shops, on-course betting, betting websites, betting exchanges, pool betting and trading rooms, you need an operating licence issued by a gambling licensing organization.

Due to the fact that getting an online gambling licence in North America or Europe is very difficult and expensive, many online gambling companies choose to acquire an offshore gambling license.

The most popular offshore online gambling regulators are:

Alderney

Info: Established in 2000, The Alderney Control Commission (AGCC) is an independent and non political organization that regulates eGambling. Alderney is the third largest of the British Channel Islands with its own government, legislature and company laws and is considered as one of the world’s leading offshore finance centers.

Fees: A licencee with no previous licensable activity in Alderney, for its first year – 35.000 ₤.

Website: http://www.gamblingcontrol.org

Malta

Info: The Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LGA) is a public single regulatory body that is responsible for the governance of all forms of gaming in Malta. Under the Remote Gaming Regulations, 2004 there are four classes by which an operator may be licenced. In order to provide Internet betting/gaming services in Malta one should apply for a licence of the relevant class:

Class 1: online lotteries, skill games and casino games

Class 2: spread betting, pool betting, fixed odds betting

Class 3: poker network, betting exchange, game portals, P2P

Class 4: managing and hosting remote gaming operators

Fees:

Gaming tax fee:

Tax	€/ /%
Class 1 Licence	4.660 €	for the first 6 months
	7.000 €	Per month for the entire duration of the licence
Class 1 Licence operating on a hosting platform in possession of a Class 4 Remote Gaming Licence (Class 1 on 4)	1.200 €	Per month for the entire duration of the licence
Class 2 Licence	0.5 %	Of the gross amount of bets accepted in remote betting operations
Class 2 Licence operating on a hosting platform in possession of a Class 4 Remote Gaming Licence ( Class 2 on 4)	0.5%	Of real income
Class 3 Licence	5%	Of real income
Class 3 Licence operating on a hosting platform in possession of a Class 4 Remote Gaming Licence (Class 3 on 4).	5%	Of real income
Class 4 licence hosting and managing other remote gaming operators	Nil	For the first 6 months
	2.330 €	For the subsequent 6 months
	4.660 €	Per month thereafter for the entire duration of the licence
Class 4 licence hosting and managing an operator which is not in possession of the relevant Class 1, 2 or 3 licence in terms of the regulations, however hosting an EEA licensed Business to consumer operator	1.165 €	Per month, per operator, paid by the Class 4 licensee.

Application fee: 2.330 EUR (onetime fee)

Certification Fee: 2.500 EUR (onetime fee)

Licence Fee: 8.500 EUR (yearly fee)

Each gambling licence is issued for five years regardless of class with the possibility to be renewed afterwards for the same period.

Website: http://www.lga.org.mt

Gibraltar

Info: Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory that is part of the European Union. In the early 2000s, many bookmakers and online gaming operators relocated to Gibraltar to benefit from operating in a regulated jurisdiction with a favorable corporate tax regime. However, this corporate tax regime for non-resident controlled companies was phased out by January 2011 and replaced by a fixed corporate tax rate of 10%.

Gibraltar Regulatory Authority is the official gambling licensing organization.

Fees:

For fixed-odds and betting exchange operations – 1% of the turnover up to £42,500 of annual turnover with the gaming tax capped at £425,000 per year, with a minimum annual tax payable of £85,000.

For internet casinos – 1% of the gaming yield or gross profit with the same maximum and minimum cap as for fixed-odds betting.

Website: https://www.gibraltar.gov.gi/remotegambling

Isle of Man

Info: Isle of Man is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland. 

The rate of corporation tax is 0% provided the gambling website does not accept bets from Isle of Man residents. The official licensing gambling organization is Isle of Man’s Gambling Supervision Commission.

Fees:

Gaming tax:

1.5% for gross gaming yield not exceeding 20.000.000 ₤ per year.

0.5% for gross gaming yield between 20.000.000 – 40.000.000 ₤ per year.

0.1% for gross gaming yield exceeding 40.000.000 ₤ per year.

Other fees:

Licensing application fee is 1.000 ₤

Licence fees: 35.000 ₤ gambling site and 5.000 ₤ for sub-licenced

Licence is valid for 5 years.

Website: http://www.gov.im/gambling/

Curacao

Info: Caracao is an island off the Venezuelan coast in the southern Caribbean Sea, part of the Dutch Caribbean and a constituent country of the Kingdom of Netherlands.

Prior to 10 October 2010, when the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved, Curaçao was administered as the Island Territory of Curaçao, being one of five island territories of the former Netherlands Antilles.

Licencees are issued by the Governor of Curacao which provides only one type of licence that covers: operators of services, software providers, affiliates, white-label operators.

Licences are offered in two formats: master licence (opens the possibility to sub-licence third parties subject) and sub-licence (the same rights as master licence, but without the possibility of sub-licensing).

Fees:

Gaming tax: 0% tax on gross bets. Guarantee deposit: 60.000 $.

Licence fees: Master licence – 10.000 $/ month for the first 2 years. Afterwards, the licence fee is negotiated; sub-licences are procured from a master licence holder and the fees range between 2.000 $ – 4000 $. A licence is valid for 5 years for a master licence and for an indefinite time period for a sub-licence.

Website: http://www.curacao-egaming.com/

Costa Rica

Info: Costa Rica  is a country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Ecuador to the south of Cocos Island.

Costa Rica is considered one of the most popular jurisdictions that offer online gambling licensing with more than 200+ online casino licensees.

Fees: The cost for an online gambling license in Costa Rica is $15.000 with a quarterly fee of $1.500 to keep it active. To obtain a license, the corporation must have a physical location in Costa Rica. 

Website: http://www.meic.go.cr/