Gambling Laws in Croatia

Gambling in Croatia is considered to be legal in all of its variety. Among the Croatian gambling laws, the Law on Games of Chance (Zakon o igrama na sreću), in force from 1 January 2015, is considered to be the main regulatory act of all gambling activities in the country. In article 4 this law defines all legal games of chance in the country which includes casino games, lotto games, card games, video slots, and betting. Under the current Croatian gambling legislation, all forms of online gambling are also considered to be legal. The regulatory body of land-based and online activities in the country is the Ministry of Finance. In this respect, all Croatian casinos, sportsbooks, or other types of gambling providers, brick and mortar as well as online gambling sites, are licensed and regulated by the Ministry of Finance. And according to the Croatian gambling laws minors, under 18 years of age are prohibited to participate in gambling activities.    

Is Online Gambling Legal in Croatia? Yes, all forms of online gambling are legal in Croatia, according to the Law on Games of Chance.

Online Casinos in Croatia

According to the Croatian casino laws, operators can only run online casino sites if they have a land-based establishement in the country. This has discouraged companies to apply for a license and contributed for a duopoly of the state-run Hrvatska Lutrija, and Hattrick’s local subsidiary Prva Sportska Kladionica. Nevertheless, the law is also liberal when it comes to international platforms, which is why gamblers can still have access to those. 

Online Poker in Croatia

Although there are no specific Croatian online poker laws, the general regulations from the Law on Games of Chance obtain and online poker is considered to be legal in the country. And the game is an extremely popular pastime, though the offer is limited as live poker can only be found in casinos. Yet, players can freely play in international online poker sites in Croatia. 

Online Lottery in Croatia

Hrvatska Lutrija is the state-licensed provider for all sorts of lotto games in the country including the online lottery in Croatia. Similarly to many other lotteries in the region, the Hrvatska Lutrija was founded in 1951 as part of the Yugoslav lottery. Two decades later, it became an independent organization of the Socialist Republic of Croatia and is, until today, the only organization allowed to offer lotto games in the country, which includes online lottery in Croatia. 

Online Bingo in Croatia

Although there are no specific Croatian online bingo laws, the regulations derived from Law on Games of Chance, serve as a basic legal framework within which the Croatian Lottery (Hrvatska Lutrija) offers its bingo products. Thus, the only licensed online bingo sites in Croatia, as of July 2019 can be found on the site of the national lottery. But as it happens with other forms of gambling, players are also able to access offshore platforms. 

Online Sports Betting in Croatia

The sports betting market was liberalized in Croatia during the 1990s, when private bookmakers were able to start operations. However, the law saw many amendments throughout the years and due to a rise in taxes, nowadays the market is composed of large companies mainly, as smaller ones saw it unaffordable to continue running sportsbooks. As a result, the most popular online sportsbook sites in Croatia are run by larger land-based betting shops, though bettors can also access offshore platforms. 

Online DFS in Croatia

Online DFS sites in Croatia are not legally regulated. There is an ongoing debate on the status of this type of game, but considering the legality of online sports betting in the country it is very probable that Daily Fantasy Sports would soon become legal in Croatia.