iGaming licensing regimes compared: 12 regulators in 2026

An iGaming licence is the authorisation a regulator grants a company to offer online gambling (B2C) or to supply games, platforms and other critical services to operators (B2B). Which licence you need depends first on where your customers are: a market licence such as the UK Gambling Commission’s, Sweden’s or Ontario’s is required to serve players in that market, while hub licences such as Malta, the Isle of Man, Gibraltar or Curaçao authorise the business itself. This reference compares twelve regimes as of October 2026 on regulator, statute, licence types, published fees, operator tax and register checks.

Which iGaming licence does a business actually need?

A business needs a licence from every regulator whose market it targets, plus, if it wants one, a hub licence for its home base. Since 2024 that split has hardened: the CJEU confirmed on 16 April 2026 in case C-440/23 that EU member states may require their own permit for online casino games, so a Malta Gaming Authority licence does not replace a German, Dutch or Swedish one.

In practice operators group regimes into three families. Point-of-consumption markets (Great Britain, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Ontario) license whoever serves their residents, wherever that company sits. Hub or “home” regimes (Malta, Gibraltar, the Isle of Man) license companies established on their territory and let them serve markets where no local licence is required. Offshore regimes (Curaçao, Anjouan, Kahnawake) license businesses mainly for unregulated or grey international markets, and their scope is narrowing as more countries block unlicensed sites. A supplier faces the same logic on the B2B side: Great Britain, Sweden (since 1 July 2023) and Ontario all require game and platform suppliers to hold their own authorisation.

The twelve regimes at a glance

The table below lists who regulates each regime, the governing statute and the licence model. Fee, tax and timeline detail follows in later sections; regulators change their rules often, so every row is dated October 2026.

How much does an iGaming licence cost in 2026?

Published regulator fees range from a few thousand euros to over £1 million a year. As of October 2026 the MGA charges a €5,000 application fee and a €25,000 annual B2C fee, the UKGC charges £8,185 to £165,069 to apply for a remote casino licence depending on gross gambling yield, and Curaçao’s CGA charges €4,592 plus €47,450 a year for a B2C licence.

Only fees the regulator itself publishes are shown; advisers, audits and local staff are extra.

How are online gambling operators taxed in each regime?

Operator gambling tax ranges from 0.15% of gross profit in Gibraltar to 40% of gaming profits in Great Britain. Most European markets tax gross gaming revenue (stakes minus winnings); Germany is the exception, taxing 5.3% of stakes on virtual slots, online poker and sports betting. Rates below are those in force in October 2026.

For a market licence, the market’s tax is the one that matters: a Malta-licensed casino that also holds a Danish licence pays Danish tax on Danish players. Hub tax only applies to revenue the hub claims, which in Malta’s case is limited to players physically present in Malta.

Worked example: regulator costs at a 2 million GGR

To make the fee tables concrete, take a new online casino forecasting 2 million in gross gaming revenue in its first full year, in each regime’s own currency (no exchange rates are applied). The figures cover published regulator charges only.

• Malta, Type 1: €5,000 application, €25,000 annual licence fee and a compliance contribution of 1.25% on the first €3 million, so €25,000 on €2 million (above the €15,000 minimum). Total about €55,000, before the 5% tax on any Malta-resident revenue. MGA guidance says new operators are exempt from the full minimum contribution in their first financial year, and qualifying start-ups get a 12-month moratorium.
• Great Britain, remote casino: £2 million sits in band F3 (£875,000 to under £3 million): £25,628 to apply and £19,569 a year, with the first annual fee reduced by 25% to about £14,677. Remote Gaming Duty at 40% would then be about £800,000 on £2 million of gaming profits, plus the 1.1% statutory levy, which is calculated on the previous year’s yield.
• Curaçao, B2C: €4,592 application plus €47,450 a year (first year pro rata), plus €150 per UBO and €250 for each main domain added.
• Isle of Man, full licence: £5,250 plus £36,750 a year, and gambling duty of 1.5% on £2 million, about £30,000.

How long does it take to get a gambling licence?

Few regulators commit to a deadline. The UK Gambling Commission says a remote application can take up to 16 weeks depending on complexity; the MGA gives applicants 60 days to implement their systems on a technical environment after the document review, before an independent system audit; and Spelinspektionen only starts processing once the 230,000 kr fee is paid.

The regimes in brief

Malta Gaming Authority

Malta is the EU’s main hub licence. The Gaming Act 2018 replaced game-specific licences with one B2C gaming service licence covering four game types and one B2B critical gaming supply licence. Article 56A, added in 2023, directs Maltese courts to refuse enforcement of foreign judgments that rest on the illegality of MGA-licensed gaming abroad; the European Commission opened infringement proceedings over it in 2025. The full breakdown of game types, compliance contribution bands and the application stages is on our Malta Gaming Authority licence guide, and the head-to-head with the Caribbean option is in MGA vs Curaçao compared.

UK Gambling Commission

Great Britain has required a UKGC licence for anyone serving British consumers since the Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act 2014 took effect on 1 November 2014. Since then the regime has added online slot stake limits (£5 from 9 April 2025, £2 for 18 to 24-year-olds from 21 May 2025), a 10x cap on bonus wagering from 19 January 2026 and a statutory levy. Fee bands, personal licences and the register are covered on our UK Gambling Commission licence page.

Gibraltar

Gibraltar’s Gambling Act 2025 came into force on 1 April 2026, except for its regulated-individuals part, replacing the 2005 Act. The new fee regulations tie B2C annual fees to gross yield (£50,000 under £20 million, £100,000 up to £300 million, £200,000 above) and keep duty at 0.15%. The Act adds a substantive-presence test, so a Gibraltar licence now presumes real staff on the Rock.

Isle of Man

The Isle of Man licenses online gambling under the Online Gambling Regulation Act 2001 through the Gambling Supervision Commission. Its sub-licence (£5,250 a year) lets a business operate on a full licensee’s platform, and the network services licence suits B2B platforms that host other brands. How it compares with Gibraltar on substance, duty and reputation is set out in Gibraltar vs Isle of Man.

Curaçao

Curaçao’s LOK came into force on 24 December 2024 and moved licensing from master licence holders to the Curaçao Gaming Authority, which now issues licences directly. The CGA does not mediate individual player disputes: complaints go to the operator first, then to one of seven CGA-certified ADR bodies (list dated 31 August 2026). In September 2026 the CGA confirmed unauthorised access to its portal on 17 and 22 September, and it said existing licences remain valid. More on our Curaçao licensing page.

Anjouan

Anjouan, an autonomous island of the Union of the Comoros, issues internet gaming licences through the Anjouan Offshore Finance Authority. The authority does not handle player complaints itself: a complaint goes through the site seal, the operator has 30 days to respond (14 days for game-outcome disputes), and an operator-paid ADR follows. Licences should be checked by seal ID, because a bare domain lookup returns “invalid”. Its trade-offs against Curaçao are in Anjouan vs Curaçao.

Kahnawake

The Kahnawà:ke Gaming Commission was founded on 10 June 1996 and has licensed online gaming since 8 July 1999 from the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawà:ke in Quebec. Its Client Provider Authorization (US$35,000 to apply, US$20,000 a year) is the permit B2C operators hold; a Key Person Permit is needed for each key individual.

Ontario

Ontario opened its regulated iGaming market on 4 April 2022. Private operators register with the AGCO (CA$100,000 per gaming site a year), meet the Registrar’s Standards for Internet Gaming and sign an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario, which conducts and manages the games for the province. Suppliers of games and platforms need their own AGCO registration.

Sweden

Spelinspektionen licenses online gaming and betting under the Spellag (2018:1138) for up to five years, with a 230,000 kr application fee and 22% gaming tax. Software suppliers have needed a Swedish licence since 1 July 2023. Holding an EU licence does not give a right to target Swedes: Spelinspektionen banned Claymore Malta on 8 January 2026.

Denmark

Spillemyndigheden issues separate or combined online casino and betting licences for up to five years. Denmark is one of the few regulators to publish annual fees by GGR band, from DKK 73,200 under DKK 5 million to DKK 6,447,500 at DKK 500 million or more (2026 figures).

Germany

Under the GlüStV 2021 the GGL in Halle (Saale) licenses virtual slot machines, online poker and sports betting nationwide, and keeps the official whitelist. Stakes on virtual slots are capped at €1 a spin in principle, with a tiered exception up to €5 from 1 July 2026 until 31 December 2027, and deposits are limited across operators to €1,000 a month by default through the LUGAS system. Online roulette, blackjack and live casino remain a matter for each federal state. Germany’s place among other national markets is covered under European gambling markets.

Netherlands

The Netherlands opened its online market on 1 October 2021 under the Koa, which came into force on 1 April 2021. Licences run for five years, so the first cohort reached the end of its term in October 2026. Licensees must check every player against the CRUKS exclusion register and pay 37.8% gambling tax in 2026.

How do you verify a gambling licence on a regulator’s register?

A licence claim is only as good as the register entry behind it. Check the exact legal entity, the licence number and status, and, where the regulator lists them, the approved domains; a logo or seal on a website proves nothing until it resolves to the regulator’s own server.

1. Find the operating company’s legal name in the site’s terms and conditions, not the brand name.
2. Open the regulator’s own register (table above) by typing the address, not by clicking a link on the operator’s site.
3. Match the company name, licence number and licence type (B2C or B2B), and confirm the status is active rather than surrendered, suspended or “assessment in progress”.
4. Where domains are listed (Curaçao certificates, Denmark, the Isle of Man), confirm the exact domain you are looking at appears on the record.
5. For seal-based regimes (MGA, CGA, Anjouan, Kahnawake), check that the seal URL begins with the regulator’s own domain, such as https://authorisation.mga.org.mt or cert.cga.cw.
6. Check the regulator’s enforcement or sanctions pages too: a valid licence can coexist with a recent fine or a ban in another market, as our enforcement tracker shows.

What changed in iGaming licensing between 2024 and 2026?

Four shifts reshaped the map. Curaçao’s LOK (24 December 2024) ended the sub-licence system and brought direct CGA licensing with published fees. Great Britain nearly doubled Remote Gaming Duty to 40% from 1 April 2026, effective for accounting periods starting on or after that date. Gibraltar’s Gambling Act 2025 started on 1 April 2026 with revenue-based fees and a substantive-presence rule. And the CJEU’s C-440/23 judgment of 16 April 2026 confirmed that a licence from one member state does not entitle an operator to serve another member state that requires its own permit.

Anti-money laundering rules moved in parallel. EU-licensed casinos apply customer due diligence once a player’s stakes or winnings reach €2,000, including linked transactions (Directive (EU) 2015/849, art. 11(d)), and crypto flows now fall under MiCA (fully applicable from 30 December 2024) and the travel rule regulation (EU) 2023/1113. Our AML and KYC guide covers the operator obligations, and the player-protection tools each regulator requires are compared under responsible gambling compliance.

Frequently asked questions

Is one iGaming licence enough to operate worldwide?

No. A hub licence such as Malta or the Isle of Man authorises the company, but regulated markets including Great Britain, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Ontario require their own licence to serve their residents. The CJEU confirmed on 16 April 2026 (C-440/23) that EU states may insist on their own permit.

Which gambling licence has the lowest published fees?

Among the regimes compared here, the Isle of Man sub-licence (£5,250 application and £5,250 a year) and the Kahnawake Interactive Gaming Licence (US$30,000 including the first year) have the lowest published fees, but cheap fees rarely mean market access. Curaçao’s B2C licence costs €4,592 to apply and €47,450 a year under the LOK.

Which regulators publish their fees by revenue band?

The UK Gambling Commission, Spillemyndigheden in Denmark, Gibraltar under its 2026 fee regulations and the MGA (through its compliance contribution and B2B annual fees) all scale charges with gross gaming revenue or yield. Curaçao, the Isle of Man and Kahnawake charge flat fees.

Does a B2B supplier need a licence?

Often yes. Malta issues a B2B critical gaming supply licence, Great Britain requires a gambling software licence, Sweden has required a software licence since 1 July 2023, Ontario registers gaming-related suppliers for CA$3,000 a year, and Curaçao and Gibraltar both issue B2B licences.

How can I tell if a casino’s licence is genuine?

Look up the operating company on the regulator’s own register, typed into the browser rather than reached through the casino’s link. Confirm the licence number, B2C status, active status and, where listed, the exact domain. For Anjouan, check by the seal ID, because a bare domain lookup always returns invalid.

What is the highest online gambling tax among these regimes?

Great Britain’s Remote Gaming Duty of 40% of gaming profits from 1 April 2026 is the highest, followed by the Netherlands at 37.8% from 1 January 2026 and Denmark at 28%. Germany taxes stakes instead, at 5.3%.