Where Online Casinos Get Their Licenses

Gaining trust from players is critical for online gambling sites worldwide. This is, of course, true for all casinos: customers need to be sure that someone is taking care of them and not letting them be fooled. However, when it comes to online gambling, it is even more difficult for players to be confident in the integrity of the games they play since they cannot see the results of every spin or every hand played. Therefore, regulation and licensing of sites offering online gambling services are so important. In this article, we will look at where online casinos get their licenses. 

What do you need to know about an online gambling license?

Online casinos are entertaining, but also quite a serious business, in which it is very important to comply with all the rules and requirements established at the legislative level, to correctly implement the legal component of this business. The first step towards opening an online casino, online poker room or sportsbooks is registering it. And for registration, you will need to obtain a license. It is permission to conduct this type of activity. Besides, you can learn The Difference Between Licensed And Fake Gambling Software to know better where to play.

In numerous jurisdictions around the world, government agencies take responsibility for ensuring that their licensed operators provide players with fair, random, and safe games. They also take on other responsibilities, such as helping to develop rules to help keep players’ funds safe at all times. However, few websites today attempt to offer online gambling services without obtaining a license in at least one of these jurisdictions. Even if some sites may work without a license, we will never recommend such sites to you. Why? Because trustworthy online gambling sites in the UK offer a great game with much more protection for the players.

But where online casinos get their licenses? Today, there are more than 80 countries in the world that allow you to obtain a license for online gambling. Besides, each country has its peculiarities of registration, its advantages, and disadvantages. Among them, there are both classic offshore companies and the most common countries that offer favorable conditions but do not get rid of certain taxes. Indeed, our goal is to make sure that you choose only licensed online gambling platforms.

Why can’t you do without a gambling license?

Without having a casino gambling license on hand, it is impossible to open a trustworthy online business on the Internet. All software companies that develop software for online games must require a license from the operator, issued in any of the jurisdictions. The process of obtaining a tote and poker license in some countries is more like a formality, while in others it is approached with all responsibility and rigor (up to a full audit of the company). The highest requirements are imposed on companies in Europe. However, it is much easier to obtain the necessary documents in Asia or Latin America.

Indeed, an online casino with a license like Bet365 Casino has many advantages. Among them are business security, high reputation, and work following the letter of the law. All this is important not only for players but also for business partners. Now let’s look at where online casinos get their licenses.

Where online casinos get their licenses

When choosing a suitable jurisdiction for starting an online gambling business, there are several rules to follow. First, you need to estimate from which countries the maximum number of players will come to you. Besides, they must be familiar with your chosen jurisdiction. Second, you have to estimate what tax burden will fall on you after choosing one or another jurisdiction. Indeed, this is what all online gambling sites in the UK do. And finally, it is necessary to find out the licenses of which jurisdictions enjoy the greatest authority in the world community. Here are popular jurisdictions for starting an online gambling business:

Malta

• Issues Class 1-4 licenses, cost – from EUR 50,000.
• Advantages: prestigious jurisdiction, included in the EU, good tax advantages, the ability to connect to a direct merchant account.
• Disadvantages: the need to pay taxes and prepare financial statements.

Gibraltar

• The cost of the license is 30,000 euros, the annual renewal is 2,000 euros.
• Advantages: reliability.
• Disadvantages: Requirements for the justification for issuing a license, software reliability, and confirmation of the ability to pay winnings to players.

Antigua and Barbuda

• Licenses for interactive games and bets (online casinos and sweepstakes) are issued. License cost – $ 25,000, annual fee – $ 50,000 and $ 70,000 (casinos and sweepstakes, respectively), license renewal – $ 5,000, director’s fees.
• Advantages: no requirements for the authorized capital, zero tax rate (subject to acceptance rates from non-residents).
• Disadvantages: very strict requirements for companies, user accounts, strict age restrictions (> 18 years old), requirements for site sections (a few warnings on the home page are mandatory).

The Netherlands

• Possibility of obtaining a sub-license and a basic license. Cost – $ 35,000, monthly payment for the first two years – 10,000 guilders.
• Advantages: minimum license cost, the ability to use one license by several partner companies.
• Disadvantages: owners of online casinos and sweepstakes pay 2% of profits, investigation of the company, large collateral, at first only a temporary license for a casino in Europe is issued.

Costa Rica: Where online casinos get their licenses

• The license cost is $ 15,000, the cost of renewal for three months is $ 1,500.
• Advantages: no taxes (subject to acceptance rates from non-residents of Costa Rica).
• Disadvantages: requirements for renting an office and hiring employees, the presence of a resident representative, the need to obtain a gambling license from the local municipality, exchange of information with the United States (based on an agreement signed between the countries).

Isle Of Man

• The license application fee is £ 1,000, with an annual renewal of £ 20,000.
• Advantages: EU membership, favorable conditions for non-British companies.
• Disadvantages: Tax of 1.5%.

Belize

• Licenses for any gambling are issued. License cost – $ 18,000, annual renewal cost – $ 10,000.
• Advantages: only one tax – on the franchise.
• Disadvantages: the submission of fingerprints of all individuals interested in profit, their copies of citizenship documents, the need to make a deposit, financial reports for the last three years.

Panama: Where online casinos get their licenses

• License cost – $ 40,000, annual renewal cost – $ 20,000.
• Advantages: no taxes (subject to acceptance rates from non-residents of Panama).
• Advantages: prestigious jurisdiction, convenient conditions for working with European banks, direct processing of bank cards, no down payment.
• Disadvantages: taxes (income and gambling), licenses are issued only to companies with high performance, the need for a full audit.

What does a gambling license give you?

Now, you understand where online casinos get their licenses. The legal operation of an online casino like Bet365 has several advantages for businesses and players:

1. Gambling entrepreneurs assume more responsibility, but they can freely improve and develop their business, saving on taxes (in popular jurisdictions, there are fixed payments for a license and standard tax rates on the income of an institution). Besides, after the obligatory payments, the gambling business has the opportunity to improve the institution at the expense of the earned funds, attract specialists to popularize the casino, and finance various projects within the framework of the activity.
2. Indeed, players have more confidence in licensed establishments. Any problems in relations with a legal casino can be resolved through arbitration since it is possible to prove the correctness of one of the parties to the conflict based on available financial and other documents. But, given the interest in increased traffic, a legal casino will try to avoid conflicts with players to preserve a good reputation.

Based on the above, we can conclude that a casino license is beneficial to the gambling business and players. Besides, it speaks of the stable reputation of the institution, which you can trust with your deposit. The activities of legal gambling houses are under the control of the regulator and independent auditors, as well as by the operators themselves. In our article How Money Laundering Works In Online Gambling, you will see which casinos are not trustworthy. Players have great confidence in legal casinos. Therefore, obtaining a license becomes a prerequisite for running a successful business.

You can discover more about Bet365 Casino here.