Gambling Licenses in 2025: All You Need to Know

Gambling is a vast and sprawling industry that governments around the world approach differently.

Some parts of the world choose to outlaw it completely, seeing the harm it can cause and deeming the benefits as not enough of a makeweight to balance out the potential damage. Another approach is to tax and regulate the industry, which means a government can limit the negative effects and exert greater influence.

This is where licenses enter the equation. While there is no one-size-fits-all approach, the goal is the same – to control who operates gambling businesses and instill various checks and balances to protect customers and the integrity and fairness of games.

Here, we’ll reveal regional differences and explain the issues licensing authorities are tackling, as well as the challenges they present to operators.

Table of Contents Table of Contents

1. Key Takeaways
2. What Are Gambling Licenses?
3. Global Differences
4. What Are the Licensing Issues Operators Face?
5. How Is Fair Play Enforced?
6. The Bottom Line
7. FAQs
8. References

Show Full Guide

Table of Contents

1. Key Takeaways
2. What Are Gambling Licenses?
3. Global Differences
Show Full Guide
4. What Are the Licensing Issues Operators Face?
5. How Is Fair Play Enforced?
6. The Bottom Line
7. FAQs
8. References

What Are Gambling Licenses?

Gambling licenses permit businesses to operate within a given jurisdiction or country. They are necessary to ensure games are operated fairly, and customers are not exploited.

Gambling has also historically been an industry that has attracted criminality, which places a higher burden on operators to ensure they are guarding against crimes, including money laundering and match-fixing.

Global Differences

Take two countries – the UK and the US as examples of how authorities handle licensing.

Gambling Licensing in the UK

In the UK, there is a central body that governs the entire gambling market—the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC). This is the authority to which provisional operators would obtain licenses for casinos, betting shops, online gambling, lotteries, gaming software providers, etc. All require licenses, and businesses must submit applications to the UKGC.

The process includes:

• Business structure and integrity check
• Proof of sufficient funds and business plan
• Evidence of responsible gaming measures

Game fairness and compliance are also checked to ensure fair Return-to-Player (RTP) percentages, and random number generators (RNG) must be independently tested.

License Cost

The cost of a license depends on the type of gambling operation and turnover. The one-time application fee can be as low as ￡200 for an arcade gaming machine and up to ￡90,000 for a large-scale online operator.

There are also annual fees and taxes, which depend on revenue and the type of gambling operation.

The UK is one of the more established gambling markets in the world and, therefore, has more detailed player safety guidelines, including self-exclusion and affordability checks.

Gambling Licensing in the US

As a point of comparison to the UK’s single-entity approach, the US licensing landscape is considerably more complicated due to state-by-state differences in legislation.

For example, gambling has full legal status in New Jersey and is governed by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (NJDGE), whereas in Nevada, sports betting is legal, but online casinos are not. Regulation here falls under the jurisdiction of the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB).

Consequently, the license application process significantly differs from that in the UK.

License Cost

Operators must apply for a license in each state, and licensing fees can be much higher and vary even more widely than those in the UK.

New Jersey is the country’s leading state for gambling revenue, and the license fee is $100,000 (for a casino). However, for iGaming operators in Pennsylvania, the initial license fee can be as much as $10 million.

Due diligence involves investigating business owners. Operators must use approved software providers and conduct fair play testing. They must also implement anti-money laundering (AML) protocols.

Another factor in the US is that some states have Native American casinos. They exist outside the commercial framework and are governed by tribal gaming compacts, meaning they are exempt from these licensing regulations.

What Are the Licensing Issues Operators Face?

The different approaches to licensing result in a myriad of issues for operators. In the US, new entrants into the market face challenges as the application process can be lengthy, depending on the state. Many states also limit the number of licenses they grant.

In Pennsylvania, legislation (House Bill 271) was passed in 2017 to expand gaming in the state. Even so, the gaming board can only issue seven Category 1 licenses (racetrack/casinos), five Category 2 licenses (standalone casinos), and two Category 3 licenses (resort casinos) and can auction up to 10 Category 4 licenses (ancillary casinos).

Illinois has 10 riverboat casinos, and the Illinois Gambling Act permits the state to approve six new casinos.

Massachusetts has allowed only three resort casinos and one slot parlor under its 2011 Expanded Gaming Act. This Act, in its current form, does not allow for any new casinos to be licensed.

An additional consideration in the US is sports betting and online gambling operators generally need to be partnered with licensed casino operators, which can limit competition and new entrants into the market.

The other issue is how long the license process can take, depending on the state in which you apply. Some of the fastest, including New Jersey, can take only 1-3 months, whereas it can take up to two years in Massachusetts due to the multi-phase vetting process of the state’s gaming commission.

The challenges prospective operators face in the UK differ and stem from greater government oversight and stricter regulations.

The UKGC is also cracking down on compliance failures, issuing more fines and license revocations in an attempt to protect consumers and stamp out criminality.

More comprehensive affordability checks are also being introduced, which can feel invasive for customers as they may need to provide proof of income and bank statements. This is less of an issue for operators as it is outside their control but contributes to the rigorous regulatory climate within the industry.

Additionally, online operators must be licensed in the UK, even if they are based abroad.

How Is Fair Play Enforced?

Ensuring games are fair is a core responsibility of gambling regulators. They enforce anti-money laundering (AML) and know your customer (KYC) protocols to prevent fraud.

Operators are also under obligation to report suspicious betting patterns and irregularities to maintain the integrity of casino games or sporting events.

In addition to the games, operators must also protect consumers by implementing responsible gaming measures, allowing players to self-exclude and set deposit limits.

All of the above is monitored by the various authorities that govern each jurisdiction, and audits and surprise inspections are conducted to keep tabs on operators and ensure compliance.

Online gambling platforms may also need to provide real-time data to regulators, which includes geofencing systems.

If operators fail to comply with any of these measures, penalties include heavy fines up to license revocation and even legal action in some cases.

The Bottom Line

There are no perfect licensing systems. Every region has its own specific approach, which offers advantages and disadvantages.

Some offer quicker turnaround times on applications but may not have as rigorous consumer protections in place. Meanwhile, other jurisdictions may stymie competition and economic growth due to a more hostile approach to the industry or a greater fear of its negative consequences.

Certain authorities focus more on shaping the market, which can be very relaxed or tightly controlled, depending on the region’s historical outlook on gambling. Others, mainly the UK, where the legal status is more clear-cut, have switched their focus to mitigating the issues the industry may cause and ensuring consumer safety is protected.

FAQs