Online Casino Licensing: A Detailed Guidance

Experts of the Rosloto studio will talk about the advantages of obtaining permits for your iGaming projects and working legally.

Features of Casino Certification

The constitution of any country indicates that entrepreneurs can do anything that is not prohibited by law. However, all jurisdictions strictly control high-risk activities, requiring businessmen to obtain prior authorisations.

Gambling is one of the areas that are regulated by the state. This is due to the large cash flows in the industry, high margins of operators, the likelihood of developing ludomania, and the negative impact of such entertainment on minors.

Legal bodies support the industry’s functioning by issuing, renewing, and cancelling permits. They also monitor the fulfilment of obligations imposed on licensees, resolve disputes between niche representatives, and control the timely payment of taxes.

A gambling licence is a document that allows entrepreneurs to work in the selected market legally.

It must be obtained by:

• virtual casino owners;
• organisers of lotteries;
• bookmakers;
• software vendors (games manufacturers, betting sites, etc.).

Why It Is Important to Get a Licence

It opens legal access to the entertainment sector and allows businessmen to conduct lawful activities and make good profits. Besides, that is how project developers can protect themselves from legal liability and work honestly in a high-margin niche.

Advantages of online casino certification:

Customer Acquisition

The bets placed by visitors are the main source of income for casinos. Today, it is almost impossible to attract people to such platforms without a permit. Modern customers do not want to take risks and invest their money in unsafe portals.

The availability of a licence is the key factor of trust in a digital resource in 2024.

Details about the document should be placed on the main page of an online casino. By clicking on the link, gamblers are taken to the regulator’s official website where all relevant information can be found: date of issue, validity, number, etc.

Interaction with B2B Partners

They prefer to work only with official operators. Without the necessary permits, it is impossible to install a payment system, use hosting services, or connect content from top providers.

For example, in contracts with Visa, MasterCard, and PayPal, one of the first clauses is the provision of a licence. If this condition is breached, casino owners simply will not be allowed to accept bets from players.

Such actions as the attraction of investments and bank loans, the conclusion of partnership agreements, and organisation of joint advertising campaigns are also impossible without the necessary certificate.

Good Reputation in the Market

The described document is a pass to the international community.

Entrepreneurs can participate in industry exhibitions/conferences, receive funding, and attract professional programmers, web designers, and marketers.

Stages of iGaming Project Licensing

The main nuances of obtaining a permit:

Careful Preparation of Papers

Each regulator has its requirements for the application procedure. However, several common rules can be found in all jurisdictions.

Before receiving a certificate, it is necessary to perform the following actions:

1. Registration of a legal entity. Operators need to open a bank account and register with the tax service. Sometimes, it is important to rent physical offices and place servers in the country.
2. Background checks. Most often, the regulator evaluates the professional suitability of the company's executives. It studies their previous work experience, makes inquiries to relevant authorities about the absence of a criminal record, and confirms the financial status.
3. Preparation of a business plan. The document specifies planned income/expenses, expected profit, and the options for diversifying costs and refinancing the project. GGR, NGR, and ROI are the key metrics that need to be taken into account.
4. Confirmation of the availability of funds. This is a bank guarantee and registered authorised capital. The money is kept in special accounts. It is necessary to confirm not only the availability of funds but also their origin.
5. Software testing. Entrepreneurs provide information about all products, gambling systems, and payment services that will be installed in an online casino.

It can take business owners from 3 to 4 months, and sometimes even more, to prepare the documents. We recommend that you seek help at Rosloto in order not to waste precious time and quickly obtain a licence.

Focus on Responsible Gambling

One of the main tasks of regulators is to ensure the safety of all market participants. Commissions monitor that operators work honestly, not abusing bonuses or accepting bets from minors.

The main ludomania prevention mechanisms:

• restrictions on deposits/withdrawals, cost of a spin, and duration of sessions;
• limit of the total time spent on the website;
• self-exclusion lists and the break function;
• identity verification.

Owners of licensed projects are required to comply with KYC (Know-Your-Customer) standards. They involve a two-stage authentication of users, for example, by entering personal data and providing documents through biometrics or geolocation tools.

The technology helps quickly filter out unreliable clients and interact only with honest customers who treat games as entertainment.

Random Number Generator Check

Businessmen must ensure transparent and unbiased gameplay with fair results of the rounds.

When applying for a licence, entrepreneurs provide the Commission with all the information about their platforms and content. The main attention is paid to the RNG. It determines the sequence of the appearance of successful and failed combinations on the panel.

It is possible to check the tool and obtain a certificate of conformity in independent laboratories:

• QUINEL;
• BMM TestLabs;
• iTechLab;
• Gaming Laboratory International (GLI), etc.

Top software vendors undergo testing and provide the relevant documents for their solutions. The operators’ task is to confirm the quality of the games. It is also necessary to convince the regulator that external factors do not affect the combinations.

Maintaining a Safe Business Environment

It is important to ensure the complete protection of confidential data of both clients and B2B partners. To do this, casino owners use additional software to protect themselves from fraud, system failures, and technical problems.

In the last few years, there has been a trend toward tightening requirements for the use and storage of information, as well as payment processing.

Following KYC, many regulators are adding new verification protocols:

• AML (Anti-Money Laundering Regulations);
• FATF (Fundamental Action Against Terrorism Financing).

For example, Croatian operators must conduct AML scanning for transfers over €6,000. In the UK, all transactions are subject to verification.

Jurisdiction Restrictions

Entrepreneurs can only accept bets from residents of the country that has issued the relevant permit. Customers are identified by geolocation. Interaction with users from other regions is strictly prohibited.

Gambling supervision commissions can send requests to other (both domestic and international) authorities to obtain information about the applicants and check their solvency and reputation.

Requirements for licensees vary depending on the state. For example, casino entertainment in Africa is only just gaining momentum. Many local operators face such issues as ludomania and data protection for the first time, so regulators should help them solve these problems.

The European market is clearly moving towards the tightening of the rules:

• The British UKGC has banned credit card betting. It has also restricted advertising and set a maximum allowable speed of the reels in slots in one round.
• The Spelinspektionen Swedish authority has limited customer encouragement. Online casino owners can only offer welcome bonuses. Besides, they are required to set limits on the size of deposits (daily and monthly ones).
• In France and Spain, the advertising of games for money is prohibited during the daytime.

Popular Regulatory Bodies

Let us consider the jurisdictions where entrepreneurs most often obtain permits:

1. Malta. The country is famous for its well-developed community, powerful IT base, and strong labour market. Gambling brings about 15% of the island's GDP, so the government pays great attention to this sector. The state has stable legislation and low taxes. The emphasis is also placed on the protection of users.
2. Curacao. This offshore zone attracts businessmen with simple company registration, minimal tax burden, and quick licensing. The regulator is tolerant towards iGaming innovations: it was here that the first permit for a blockchain casino was issued. Last year, the government announced large-scale changes to the legal framework.
3. The United Kingdom. The country strictly maintains entertainment standards but this does not reduce the attractiveness of the area to investors. Operators must undergo AML and KYC checks. In addition to the main certificate, it is required to obtain a Personal Management Licence. The document is intended for managers of digital projects.
4. Romania. It is considered the heart of European gambling in the Balkans. The state provides comfortable conditions for doing business and pays great attention to the protection of players. It also has a well-developed IT infrastructure (data centres/scientific hubs), and many highly skilled specialists work here.

The Main Things about Online Casino Licensing

The obtaining of a permit is a mandatory condition for legal work in the industry.

Key aspects that entrepreneurs need to take into account:

• Documents are issued by authorised bodies. Regulators monitor the fulfilment of the operators’ obligations to protect data, identification of customers, etc.
• A valid certificate is an important step for attracting clients and effectively interacting with B2B partners. It is considered a guarantee of a positive reputation in the market.
• The licensing process consists of several stages. These are the preparation of papers, validation of personal data, confirmation of the availability of funds, and software verification.
• Regulators always check the random number generator and send requests to other jurisdictions to assess the applicant’s solvency.

Specialists of the Rosloto company will gladly help you obtain an online casino permit.

From us, it is also possible to order the following useful services:

• connection of payment systems;
• preparation of a business plan;
• development of unique HTML5 slots;
• promotion of already launched iGaming projects, and much more.