Coljuegos announces relief for operators affected by the earthquake
The regulator adopted transitional measures for licensees and operators who demonstrate direct impact from the earthquake on August 10.
Online Gaming Licenses by Country 2026
Complete guide to online gaming and betting licenses by country. Requirements, regulatory bodies and legal advisors to operate in Latin America and Europe.
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Online gaming licenses: complete guide to regulation, jurisdictions and compliance
A gaming license is the legal authorization that allows an operator or supplier to offer betting and gambling within a territory. Far from being a formality, it defines the business model, applicable taxes, permitted products, available payment methods, responsible gambling obligations and relationships with banks, processors, ad networks and technology platforms. Operating without a license, or under the wrong jurisdiction, usually means payment blocks, market exclusion, loss of tier-one supplier deals and sanctions that can shut the operation down.
On iGaming.bet we gather the main licenses worldwide organized by country and jurisdiction, with focus on Latin America, Europe, North America, the Caribbean and the main offshore hubs. The goal is to help operators, suppliers, investors and specialized lawyers compare regulatory frameworks, identify requirements and understand which license best fits each strategy: local launch, regional expansion or global coverage.
Why the license defines both operator and supplier
The license is the first trust layer of the ecosystem. It determines whether a company can integrate with regulated payment providers, certified technology platforms, serious affiliate networks and media that accept gambling advertising. Without a valid license, the operator is locked out of the formal circuit: banks close accounts, processors block transactions and tier-one game suppliers refuse to integrate content due to reputational risk.
For B2B suppliers, regulatory backing acts as a technical seal. A platform, a game studio, a PSP or a KYC service must be certified in every jurisdiction where its clients operate, because each license requires RNG audits, game integrity tests, fund segregation, business continuity plans and real-time reporting to the regulator.
A brief history of online gaming licenses
Online gaming was born regulated in small jurisdictions with a financial vocation. In 1994, Antigua and Barbuda passed the Free Trade & Processing Act, considered the first modern law enabling internet casinos. Gibraltar, Malta, Alderney, Isle of Man and Kahnawake soon built specific frameworks combining competitive taxes, technical supervision and international reputation. These offshore licenses dominated the industry for more than a decade, offering global scale to operators that had no local regulated market to turn to.
From 2010 onwards, Europe led the transition towards nationally regulated markets. The UK, Spain, Italy, France, Denmark, Sweden and Portugal implemented their own licenses with higher taxes, strict advertising controls and reinforced responsible gambling obligations. The result was a two-speed industry: offshore jurisdictions for broad coverage and national licenses for mature demand markets.
Between 2020 and 2026, Latin America accelerated the same path. Colombia led the way with Coljuegos, followed by Argentina with provincial regulation, Peru with Law 31557 in force since 2024, and Brazil with the historic federal regulation of the betting market live since 2025. This new wave coexists with renewed offshore jurisdictions, such as Anjouan and the reform of Curaçao itself, which in 2024 replaced the old master license system with a direct scheme under the new Curaçao Gaming Authority.
Offshore licenses: what they are for and where they fall short
Offshore licenses are useful when an operator needs to launch fast, validate product across several markets at once, or serve geographies where no local regulation exists yet. Curaçao, Anjouan, Kahnawake, Costa Rica and, to a lesser extent, Comoros are the most used jurisdictions in 2026. They offer short approval times, accessible costs and flexibility to combine casino, sportsbook, poker, crash games and virtual sports under a single structure.
Their limit is clear: they do not enable operation in markets that require a local license. An operator with a Curaçao license cannot legally accept players from Spain, the UK, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Colombia, Peru or Brazil without also obtaining the corresponding national license. They also do not solve the relationship with tier-one banks or with ad networks like Google Ads or Meta, which increasingly require a local license in the target country to approve gambling campaigns.
The new wave of regulated markets in Latin America
Brazil consolidated in 2025 the largest regulated market in the region, with federal licenses for sports betting and online casino issued by the Secretaria de Prêmios e Apostas. Peru applied Law 31557 since 2024, managed by MINCETUR, with a specific tax on remote gaming. Colombia keeps Coljuegos as the regional reference since 2016. Argentina operates under a provincial scheme, with jurisdictions such as Buenos Aires, CABA, Córdoba and Mendoza issuing their own licenses. Chile, Ecuador and Paraguay are advancing draft bills, while Mexico maintains its regime based on the Federal Gaming and Sweepstakes Law with special SEGOB permits.
The trend is consistent: 15% to 25% taxes on GGR, requirements of servers and data inside the country, integration with regulator monitoring systems, strict advertising rules and mandatory contributions to responsible gambling programs. Each regulated market forces a review of the operator’s technical structure and commercial agreements with suppliers.
Why a license is required
The license performs functions the market alone cannot solve. It protects the player against fraud, ensuring games are audited, payments are segregated and a formal complaint channel exists. It protects the State, guaranteeing tax collection and anti-money laundering traceability. And it protects the operator itself, offering a stable legal framework to invest, hire talent, integrate serious suppliers and build a long-term brand.
Behind every license stands a regulatory body with real powers: the UK Gambling Commission, the Malta MGA, Spain’s DGOJ, Italy’s ADM, France’s ANJ, Sweden’s Spelinspektionen, the Dutch KSA, Coljuegos, MINCETUR, Brazil’s SPA, Ontario’s AGCO or the Curaçao Gaming Authority are active references supervising operation, advertising, payments and compliance day to day.
Why licenses matter to suppliers
For a B2B supplier, the corresponding license or certification is the passport to sell in each market. A slots studio must certify its games with accredited labs (GLI, BMM, eCOGRA, iTech Labs) and obtain authorization in every jurisdiction where its client operators are licensed. A platform must be technically homologated, expose APIs to the regulator and prove operational continuity. A PSP needs specific approvals to process gaming payments, often different from its general financial licenses.
Without this regulatory coverage, no serious operator can integrate a supplier in regulated markets, no matter how competitive the product is. That is why the license is also a commercial asset: it defines which markets can be sold to and which operators can be worked with.
Why licenses matter to players
For the player, the license is the minimum guarantee of fair play, secured payments and defense mechanisms when something goes wrong. A licensed operator is required to segregate player money from operational capital, publish clear terms and conditions, apply responsible gambling tools (self-exclusion, deposit limits, breaks), verify identity and age, and submit to a regulator that can sanction it for non-compliance.
In regulated markets, players also access national self-exclusion registries, gambling addiction support lines and the ability to file complaints with the regulator in their own language. On unlicensed sites, none of these safeguards exist and disputes remain in a grey zone with no competent authority.
How to choose the right license
There is no universally best license: there is the right license for a strategy. Key questions are: which markets to serve, which products to offer, which payment methods are needed, what fiscal budget the model supports, what advertising will be run and which technology suppliers will be integrated. An operation focused on Brazil needs the federal SPA license. A brand combining Europe and Latam often integrates Malta or the UK for the European block, plus local licenses in each Latin American country. A startup looking to validate product can start with Anjouan or Curaçao and migrate to local licenses as it scales.
The decision is almost always made with specialized iGaming legal counsel. In this category we link the most relevant jurisdictions and, within each country, the actors that help operators and suppliers obtain, maintain and renew their license.
Frequently asked questions about online gaming licenses
- What is an online gaming license?
- It is the official authorization granted by a regulator allowing an operator or supplier to offer betting and gambling in a territory, under specific conditions of taxation, technical controls, advertising and responsible gambling.
- What is the difference between an offshore and a local license?
- An offshore license (Curaçao, Anjouan, Kahnawake, Isle of Man, Gibraltar) enables global operation from the issuing jurisdiction but does not authorize serving players in countries with their own regulated market. A local license (Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Spain, UK) allows legal operation inside that country and typically requires specific taxes, servers and compliance.
- Which offshore licenses are most used in 2026?
- The most demanded ones are Curaçao (renewed under the Curaçao Gaming Authority), Anjouan, Kahnawake, Costa Rica and Isle of Man, depending on the operator’s product type, budget and target market.
- Does Brazil require a federal license for casino and betting?
- Yes. Since 2025 Brazil runs a federal regulated market for fixed-odds betting and online casino, managed by the Secretaria de Prêmios e Apostas. Without this license it is not legal to accept Brazilian players or advertise to the market.
- Why do B2B suppliers also need regulatory certification?
- Because every regulated market requires platforms, games and payment systems to be homologated by accredited labs and registered with the regulator. Without that certification, a licensed operator cannot legally integrate the supplier in that market.
- What risks does a player face on unlicensed sites?
- No guarantee of payments, no fund segregation, no verifiable responsible gambling and no official complaint channel. Any dispute remains in a zone with no competent authority.
- How long does it take to obtain an online gaming license?
- It depends on the jurisdiction. Offshore licenses can be issued in 6 to 16 weeks, while national licenses in Europe or Latam can take 6 to 18 months due to technical, corporate and capital requirements.
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