Gibraltar Gambling License Gaming License
Gambling Act 2025 in force since 1 April 2026. Three licence classes: B2C, B2B, GOSS. Statutory substance test. 0.15% gaming duty, no VAT, 15% CIT. B2C: tier-1 operators only. 4–9 months end-to-end.
Key advantages of Gibraltar Gambling License Gaming License
Tier-1 Global Reputation
Gibraltar licenses bet365, Entain, William Hill, 888/Evoke, and Flutter brands. One of two tier-1 offshore jurisdictions globally with 40+ years of industry concentration.
0.15% Gaming Duty, No VAT
0.15% gaming duty on gross profit. First £100,000 of gross profit exempt per category. No VAT in Gibraltar. 0% withholding on dividends out.
15% Corporation Tax
15% on trading profits — one of the lowest in the EU-adjacent world. No withholding on dividends. No capital gains, inheritance, or wealth tax.
New B2B and GOSS Routes
The Gambling Act 2025 created tiered B2B and GOSS licences, making Gibraltar reachable for credible suppliers and affiliates who were shut out under the old single-license model.
Premium Banking Access
Tier-1 reputation means banks, payment providers and affiliate networks onboard Gibraltar operators more readily than offshore Curaçao or Anjouan ones. Typical processing fees run far below offshore high-risk rates.
Required documents of Gibraltar Gambling License Gaming License
- Ownership and management structure (full corporate tree)
- Business plan with financial resources and projections
- AML and compliance programme documentation
- Suitability evidence for applicant and all controllers ≥25%
- Certified passport copies — all directors and controllers ≥25%
- Proof of address (within 3 months) — all principals
- Source of funds and source of wealth documentation
You provide personal documents for each principal and controller ≥25%. MGL handles: Gibraltar company setup, dossier preparation, AML/compliance programme, substance planning (office and staffing), and all Gambling Division correspondence.
Gibraltar issues gambling licenses to bet365, Entain, William Hill, 888/Evoke and the Flutter brands. That list is the shortest answer to what a Gibraltar gambling license means in practice: tier-1 reputation, 0.15% gaming duty, no VAT, and forty years of industry concentration on a single rock.
The Gambling Act 2025, in force since 1 April 2026, replaced the old single-license model with three operator classes: B2C, B2B, and Gambling Operator Support Services. Every application now clears a statutory substance test: a genuine local office, local staff, and a real tax contribution to Gibraltar.
It is also the hardest license on our desk to obtain. We help operators get licensed here. We also tell you the truth about whether you can. For most operators the realistic route is the B2B or support-services license, not the B2C license everyone asks for.
What Is a Gibraltar Gambling License?
A Gibraltar gambling license is a regulatory permit issued by the Gibraltar Gambling Division under the Gambling Act 2025, authorising remote or non-remote gambling in or from Gibraltar. It is one of two tier-1 offshore jurisdictions globally. Every license is conditional on a statutory "sufficient substantive presence": a genuine local office, local staff, and tax contribution to Gibraltar.
The 2026 Verdict in One Minute
Right license for:
A well-capitalised, clean-provenance operator that needs the tier-1 flag and will open an office and hire a team in Gibraltar. Or a credible B2B supplier using the new tiered regime.
Wrong license for:
Start-up, offshore, or crypto-first B2C operators. The bar is reputation, deep funding, and genuine local presence. If that is not you, a B2C Gibraltar license is not a reachable target this year.
The catch:
Around 72% of activity under Gibraltar licenses is UK and Ireland facing, and the UK's Remote Gaming Duty rose from 21% to 40% on 1 April 2026. Because the UK taxes at the point of consumption, a Gibraltar base gives you no shelter on UK-customer revenue. Gibraltar's own government has warned the combined burden could reach 80–100% of profit for some operators.
What Changed: the Gambling Act 2025
The Gambling Act 2005 has been fully replaced. The Gambling Act 2025 (Act No. 2026-04) was assented on 23 March 2026 and came into force on 1 April 2026.
What it means in practice:
Licensing is now activity-based. It is an offence to carry on any regulated activity in or from Gibraltar without a license or exemption.
The old single-license model is gone. Three operator license classes replace it: B2C, B2B, and GOSS.
A "sufficient substantive presence" test is now written into statute (s.39–40) as a precondition to every license.
Marketing and advertising of gambling is itself a licensable activity, with an intra-group carve-out.
Existing 2005-Act licensees must file a fresh full application by roughly 1 October 2026.
The Three Licence Classes
Licence class | What it covers | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|
B2C Gambling Operator's Licence | Remote and non-remote B2C gambling (casino, betting), betting exchange and intermediary activity. Includes white-labelling within the licensee's authorised categories. | Established, well-funded tier-1 operators |
B2B Gambling Operator's Licence | Supplying remote gambling facilities to licence holders: software supply, platform provision, content aggregation, managed trading, live content, outsourced fraud, CDD or CRM services. | Credible suppliers. The entry point under the new Act |
Gambling Operator Support Services (GOSS) Licence | Marketing and affiliate services for gambling, a Gibraltar holding entity for gambling carried on elsewhere, and holding or managing customer funds by a non-licensee. | Affiliates, marketing hubs, holding structures |
A single licence can authorise more than one activity, but never both remote and non-remote at once.
B2B is exempt from gaming duty. Duty falls on B2C only.
The Realistic Route for Most Operators: B2B and Support Services
For most operators who come to us for Gibraltar, the B2C licence is out of reach, and the B2B or support-services route is the one that works. The new Act made this path broader. A B2B licence covers supplying remote gambling to licence holders: software supply, platform provision, content aggregation, managed trading, and outsourced fraud, CDD or CRM work. B2B pays no gaming duty.
A note on white-label.
White-labelling counts as a B2C activity. That licensee carries the compliance responsibility, and liability can reach directors and beneficial owners. If you buy a white-label, you buy someone else's compliance exposure. Structure it knowingly.
Gibraltar Gambling Licence Cost and Timeline
A qualifying B2C entrant should plan for roughly £90,000–£200,000 one-time and £250,000–£500,000 per year, before UK Remote Gaming Duty and corporation tax. Confirm the Gazetted figures with the Gambling Division before treating any number as binding.
B2C operator (remote casino plus sportsbook), planning figures
Cost item | One-time | Annual | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Application fee, B2C | £30,000 | – | Non-refundable, 50% at triage and 50% at submission |
Annual licence fee, per vertical | – | £50,000 / £100,000 / £200,000 | By GGY band: under £20m → £50k; £20m–£300m → £100k; over £300m → £200k |
Gaming duty | – | 0.15% of gross profit | First £100,000 exempt per category. B2C only |
Technical certification | £15,000–£40,000+ | £5,000–£15,000 | Accredited test house |
Compliance and MLRO function | – | £60,000–£120,000 | Gibraltar-resident senior compliance manager required |
AML/KYC platform | £10,000–£30,000 | £15,000–£60,000 | Reflects the EDD-on-every-depositor rule |
Local office (substance) | Fit-out varies | £15,000–£25,000+ | ~50m² prime premises required |
Local staff (substance) | – | £30,000–£50,000 per hire | Multiple hires needed |
Legal counsel (application) | £25,000–£75,000 | – | Higher for complex ownership |
Ongoing legal and regulatory | – | £20,000–£60,000 | Market rate |
Timeline: 2–6 months from a quality application to a decision. 4–9 months end-to-end once you add company formation and substance setup.
B2B and GOSS fees, for context
Item | One-time | Annual |
|---|---|---|
B2B application (content aggregator / direct content provider) | £20,000 / £10,000 | – |
B2B annual, software supplier (Tier 1 / Tier 2 / Tier 3) | – | £85,000 / £50,000 / £20,000 |
B2B annual, aggregator / platform / managed trading | – | £85,000 (plus £15,000 per extra vertical) |
GOSS application | £8,000 | – |
GOSS annual, marketing / customer-fund management | – | £50,000 each |
GOSS annual, Gibraltar holding entity | – | £5,000 |
There is no group discount and no instalment option. Annual fees are payable up front and in full.
The Tax Regime: Light at Home, Heavy at Destination
Tax | Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Corporation tax | 15% | On profits accruing in or derived from Gibraltar. Rose from 12.5% on 1 July 2024 |
Gaming duty | 0.15% of gross profit | B2C only. First £100,000 exempt per category. No cap, no floor |
VAT | None | Gibraltar has no VAT |
Withholding tax on dividends, interest, royalties | 0% | Dividends to a non-resident parent leave Gibraltar tax-free |
Capital gains, inheritance, wealth tax | None | – |
Pillar Two (global minimum tax) | 15% QDMTT / IIR | Applies to €750m+ groups. Since CIT is already 15%, top-up is usually minimal |
The headline is the UK layer. A Gibraltar-licensed operator serving UK customers pays UK Remote Gaming Duty at 40% of UK gaming gross gaming yield since 1 April 2026. Sky Bet and Flutter relocated decision-making to Malta in November 2025. If your book is UK-heavy, run the combined tax math before you fall in love with the flag.
What Is the Substance Test?
Every Gibraltar licence is conditional on maintaining "a sufficient substantive presence in Gibraltar." This is a recurring cost, not a one-time hurdle.
The Authority weighs four things:
The nature, extent and usage of remote gambling equipment located in Gibraltar;
The number and nature of jobs created and maintained locally;
The tax revenue accruing to the Government;
Any other factor it considers relevant.
There is no brass-plate option. Failure to maintain substance is an explicit ground to vary or cancel a licence. Under s.174, activity conducted on a computer server located in Gibraltar is deemed carried on in Gibraltar.
Cost mitigant: HEPSS and Category 2.
The HEPSS regime caps personal tax for specialist executives at the first £160,000 of income, about £39,940 a year. Category 2 status caps a wealthy owner-resident at about £42,380 a year. Employer social insurance is roughly £56 a week per employee.
How Does the Gibraltar Gambling Licence Application Work?
Step 1: Set up the Gibraltar company
A registered office in Gibraltar is mandatory. Prepare the ownership and management structure, plan the local office and staffing for the substance test, and assemble financial evidence. Gibraltar runs an informal pre-licensing engagement stage.
Step 2: Assemble the dossier
Ownership and management structure, business plan, financial resources, the AML and compliance programme, and suitability evidence for the applicant and its controllers.
Step 3: Pass the fit and proper test
The Authority assesses the licence holder, its management, and controllers holding 25% or more of shares or voting power. This is where most non-blue-chip applicants fail.
Step 4: Pay the application fee
Non-refundable, payable 50% at triage and 50% at final submission.
Step 5: Clear technical certification
Equipment integrity, secure location of remote gambling equipment, and software testing. Confirm accepted test labs with the Division.
Step 6: Complete go-live setup
Technical integration, AML and responsible-gambling tooling, banking, and payments. Any operator serving UK customers must separately hold a UKGC licence and integrate GAMSTOP.
Banking and Payments
Banking is a strength of the Gibraltar licence. The tier-1 reputation puts operators in the premium regulatory band, so banks, payment providers and affiliate networks onboard Gibraltar operators more readily than offshore Curaçao or Anjouan ones.
A hard rule: a licensee may not hold a bank account, a card-merchant account, or customer funds outside Gibraltar or a Gibraltar-licensed institution without the Authority's prior approval.
Ongoing Compliance
Enhanced due diligence on every new depositor.
Under Gibraltar's POCA and the gambling sector AML Code, every new depositing remote customer goes through Enhanced Due Diligence at registration or first deposit. Gibraltar requires it across the board — not only on a risk trigger.
CDD and five-year retention.
Identity verified by reliable independent means. Records kept for five years after the relationship ends. Active-account data refreshed at intervals no longer than two years.
Source of funds and wealth.
Ongoing checks trigger on the value and velocity of play. You must stay confident that a customer's losses are consistent with their apparent financial standing.
Politically exposed persons.
Domestic and foreign PEPs need senior-manager approval and enhanced monitoring. Risk persists for at least 12 months after a person leaves office.
Reporting.
Knowledge or suspicion of money laundering must be reported to the Gambling Commissioner within 24 hours. Audited financials annually, gaming-revenue returns quarterly.
Responsible gambling.
Self-exclusion facilities mandatory, minimum gambling age 18. No Gibraltar-wide GAMSTOP equivalent — exclusion is per operator. UK-facing operators remain bound by GAMSTOP through their UK licence.
Gibraltar vs the Alternatives
Factor | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Reputation | Tier-1 | Tier-1, EU-recognised | Emerging offshore |
Realistic for start-ups | No, for B2C | Possible | Yes |
EU market access | None (post-Brexit) | Yes | None |
Local gaming tax | 0.15% of gross profit | 5% on revenue from Maltese players | 0% gaming tax |
Substance required | Heavy, statutory test | Moderate | Light |
Speed to licence | 4–9 months end-to-end | Several months | Weeks |
Best when | You need the tier-1 flag and will build real presence | You need EU access | You need speed and low cost to launch |
Post-Brexit, a Gibraltar licence does not passport into the EU or EEA. If your target is EU players, Malta is the answer, not Gibraltar.
A Note on Crypto
The gambling licence does not authorise crypto handling. If your operation custodies or transmits player crypto, that triggers separate GFSC DLT authorisation, full source-of-funds checks, and the travel rule. Gibraltar licences crypto-adjacent gambling as a vetted exception — it licensed Predict Street, a blockchain prediction market, as a betting intermediary in March 2026.
Who Should Apply for a Gibraltar Gambling Licence?
Gibraltar is the right call when three things are true at once: you have clean provenance and a track record in gambling elsewhere, you are well-capitalised, and you will commit to an office and team on the Rock. For a B2B supplier, the new tiered regime is a more reachable entry point.
It is the wrong call when you are a start-up, offshore, or crypto-first B2C operator. We have obtained 100+ licences with zero rejections by not filing applications that were never going to clear.
FAQ
any questions you have
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In practice, no. The register sits at around 56 holders, and the B2C names are overwhelmingly established tier-1 operators. The Authority's published stance is that it has traditionally only licensed blue-chip companies with a proven track record. The new substance test raises that bar further. A credible B2B or support-services license is the route for a newer business.
Plan for a £30,000 B2C application fee plus an annual license fee of £50,000, £100,000, or £200,000 per vertical depending on your gross gaming yield. Add costs for substance, compliance, and technical certification. A qualifying B2C entrant should budget roughly £90,000–£200,000 one-time and £250,000–£500,000 per year, before UK duty and corporation tax. Confirm the Gazetted fee figures with the Gambling Division before treating these as binding.
About 2–6 months from a quality application to a decision, and 4–9 months end-to-end once you add company formation and building local substance. There is no fixed statutory clock. Application quality drives the timeline.
No. Gibraltar lost EU market access after Brexit, and the license does not passport into the EU or EEA. For EU players, Malta is the route.
The UK's Remote Gaming Duty rose to 40% on 1 April 2026, and around 72% of activity under Gibraltar licenses is UK and Ireland facing. Because the UK taxes at the point of consumption, the Gibraltar base no longer shelters that revenue. Sky Bet and Flutter moved decision-making to Malta in November 2025.
A statutory requirement (s.39–40) that you maintain a genuine local presence: premises, local jobs, and tax contribution to Gibraltar. The Authority can vary or cancel a license if substance lapses. There is no brass-plate option.
Navigating the gaming license process can be complex. Here's a streamlined guide to each step