What actually changed for UK players in 2024–2026
High stakes: gambling reform for the digital age
Online gambling laws in the UK establish clear rules to protect players and ensure fair and responsible gaming. All gambling businesses serving UK customers must hold operating licenses. The Act also brought remote (online) gambling under statutory regulation for the first time, establishing the foundation for today’s digital gambling oversight.
This participation rate includes forms of gambling which are legal for children (such as private bets or playing Category D gaming machines) and those which are not. Reviewing the data collected from operators on a regular basis will form an important part of this work, offering opportunities to identify areas of non-compliance and risk of harm at an earlier stage, in particular for online operators. A particular concern raised in some submissions to our call for evidence was the practice of encouraging existing customers to try new forms of gambling, known as ‘cross-selling’ (for example giving free online slots spins to sports bettors or heavily marketing casino products to bingo players). Promotional offers in the land-based sector have different features to online gambling, and the vast majority of them (outside the high-end casino and betting sectors) are generally non-monetary or of low value.
The legislation covering the gambling sector was written in 2005. It has made gambling easier, quicker and often more fun, but when things go wrong it can see people lose thousands of pounds in a few swipes of the screen. We live in an age where people have a virtual mobile casino in their pockets. These are the most comprehensive reforms to the gambling sector since the Gambling Act was introduced in 2005, and delivers on the 2019 manifesto commitment to review this act. Betting companies are already required to prevent harm, but there have been repeated instances where they have allowed losses which the majority of the population could never afford.
What actually changed for UK players in 2024–2026
Responses from licensing authorities to the call for evidence focused more on powers than on raising the maximum fees which can be charged for premises licences. For example, Westminster City Council recently published a comprehensive policy statement that uses a range of evidence to specify those parts of its licensing area which are particularly vulnerable to gambling-related harm. As outlined above, the Gambling Act does provide licensing authorities with a wide range of powers to assess and set out the risks in their local areas as well as the ability to attach conditions to premises licences to manage these risks.
It is likely that gaming machine GGY, which was £1.8 billion in 2022, will continue to diminish if gaming machines are not able to offer cashless payment methods. We also look at the impact of removing the prohibition of the direct use of debit cards on gaming machines once increased player protections are approved and mandated by the Gambling Commission. However, the industry has stated that their research indicates a strong customer demand for betting facilities in casinos. The few casinos which already offer sports betting have derived 0.2% of their GGY from this source in the past but the latest data shows that it accounts for 0% of their GGY. The estimate is formed using published accounts of operators and Gambling Commission data about existing machine uptake and casino floor space utilisation.
Providing facilities without a licence is a criminal offence under section 33 of the Gambling Act 2005, and advertising unlawful gambling to Great Britain consumers is also a criminal offence. After the Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act 2014, an operator generally needs a UKGC licence if its remote gambling facilities are used in Great Britain and the operator knows or should know that British consumers are likely to use them, even if the operator is located overseas. The UK gambling industry is in the middle of its largest tax and policy recalibration in over a decade. You are responsible for verifying your local laws before participating in online gambling. For players, it may help support the financial viability of land-based bingo venues, although it does not affect gambling rules or consumer protections.
UK Gambling Laws 2026: The Complete Player Guide
We will review the Commission’s licence fees during 2024 to ensure it has the resources to continue improving how it delivers its core responsibilities and the commitments across this white paper. We will ensure it has the powers and resources it needs to pursue the licensing objectives, with the flexibility to meet challenges like the black market or boundary-pushing products. A Code of Conduct for gambling sponsorship will complement the principles already in place for alcohol sponsorship through the Portman Group code, as well as further developing the established culture of self-regulation in the sport sector. The ASA’s ‘strong appeal’ guidance also recognises esports, like Premier League footballers, as high risk content in terms of its inherent appeal to children. The reduced exposure to sponsorship during matches that this measure will achieve in the world’s most popular league will complement the existing whistle-to-whistle ban, which prevents gambling adverts from being broadcast during live sporting events. Up to 40% of the UK population watches live Premier League coverage, meaning that reducing the visibility of gambling sponsors should result in a meaningful reduction in exposure to gambling branding for millions of children and adults alike.
Customer interaction
Licensing authorities have wide ranging powers to make decisions on licensing gambling premises in their areas. The 59 licensed racecourses in Great Britain require a Track Betting Premises Licence from their licensing authority, with the four racecourses which offer their own betting operation also requiring an operating licence. Some licensed betting offices use a cross-channel digital wallet that can be topped up at cash desks as well as on the operator’s website and used on machines. Commercial clubs which hold a club machine permit can also site three machines, although sub-category B3A machines are not permitted for commercial clubs.
We will jointly organise a series of workshops later this year with researchers, third sector partners and the Gambling Commission to stimulate interest in the gambling research field. We will consult non gamestop casino on how the levy will be constructed, including the rate at which it will be set and the total amount to be raised. We will review the Commission’s licence fees to ensure it has the resources to continue its transformation and deliver on the commitments across this white paper. The Commission has been taking steps to ensure it can effectively respond to novel products which blur the line between gambling and other areas and will continue work in this area.
This applies universally across all UKGC-licensed online casinos. These changes make every bonus offered at a UKGC-licensed casino today genuinely fairer than at any point in the history of UK online gambling. The new rules also require casinos to carry out enhanced due diligence on players showing signs of problem gambling.
1968 Act casinos will move to the new regime once they elect to increase their enhanced entitlement to gaming machines, becoming subject to the mandatory premises licence conditions and fee scales of a 2005 Act casino. Depending on the type of casino licence an operator holds, they are able to site a different number of gaming machines, and may be bound by other restrictions including a maximum machine-to-table ratio and limitations on their size and non-gambling area. Subsections (3) to (5) of section 172 of the Act make provision as to the number of gaming machines which may be made available for use in a casino by the holders of different types of casino premises licences issued under the Act.
Each should have its own casino premises licence and its own principal entrance from a street, and it must not be possible to enter one of them from other gambling premises. Currently, a number of 1968 Act casinos operate more than one premises licence at the same physical location. Allowing 1968 casinos to increase their machine offering above their current allowance of 20 could result in greater customer willingness to take breaks, which will likely increase reflection and reduce risk. The rules have also incentivised holders of multiple 1968 Act casino licences to operate them as separate entities in the same premises for the purpose of increasing machine numbers.
However, there are still too many instances of insufficient age verification in some venues, particularly those such as pubs, which can offer adult-only gaming machines but are not adult-only venues like many gambling premises. We have seen evidence showing that customers who have claimed online bonus offers are more likely to engage in high-risk gambling behaviour, especially those already at a higher risk of harm who are also likely to be targeted with more offers. The moves come in response to concern over what are known as online slot games – that is, games designed to mimic slot machines in real-life betting shops and casinos. Its remit covers arcades, betting, bingo, casinos, slot machines and lotteries, as well as remote gambling, but not spread betting which is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
A response from an advocacy organisation opposed the introduction of direct debit card payments on the basis that there is evidence that cashless payments result in increased and unplanned spending when compared to cash. One betting shop operator was concerned that allowing direct debit card payments would minimise the interactions a customer has with betting shop staff as their current customer journey requires a certain level of interaction with a staff member. They stated that it would be an unnecessary and disproportionate burden for a low stake and low prize machine.
Having worked closely with the Gambling Commission, we consider it necessary to put new obligations on operators to conduct checks to understand if a customer’s gambling is likely to be unaffordable and harmful. Operators are already required to identify customers at risk of harm and take action, but there have been too many cases of interventions coming too late, or in some cases not at all. We will also develop independent messaging that raises awareness of the risks of gambling harm while helping to remove the fear of stigma that stops people coming forward for help. At the heart of the new regime are tougher affordability checks, a mandatory 1 per cent levy on operators to bankroll harm research and treatment, and sharper design limits for online slot games. In January 2020, the Gambling Commission approved several organisations for these compulsory funding contributions, ensuring that operators direct their financial support to recognised entities working to mitigate gambling harms. The UK Gambling Commission requires operators to contribute financially to organisations focused on research, prevention, and treatment of gambling-related harm.
We will also permit a smaller increase in machines for venues that do not meet the size requirements, proportionate to their overall size and non-gambling area. The land-based gambling sector, unlike the online gambling sector, has faced significant challenges in recent years as a result of business inactivity during periods of COVID-19 restrictions. However, we recognise that a minority of customers do experience gambling-related harm and that it is necessary to have safeguards in place to protect customers.
Through developing their policy statements, licensing authorities are able to set out their ambitions for gambling in their area, and this in turn informs how they assess and decide applications for new gambling premises. As set out in detail in section 6.1, licensing authorities have a wide range of existing powers in regards to both gambling premises licensing and planning applications. Applicants must consider what measures the gambling operator can put in place within a GVZ to ensure that specific risks within the zone will not be exacerbated by the operation of the gambling premises.
The Gambling Commission raised concerns that arcade and bingo venues have sought to maximise their number of Category B machines under the current rules by providing Category C and D gaming on tablets and in-fill machines. As outlined in the white paper, we strongly encourage operators to continue to improve player safety controls on Category B3 machines. In addition, we noted that some player safety improvements have been made to modern Category B3 machines which cannot easily be replicated on older machines, and that customers can and do play at lower stakes than the maximum on Category B3 machines. As above, 1968 Act casinos will retain the option of continuing to operate under the existing regime should they not wish to increase their machine allocations. Premises licence fees are collected by licensing authorities for applications and annual renewals to cover the cost of administration of their gambling duties and gambling enforcement. Currently, annual fees for 1968 Act casinos are between 65% and 90% of the annual fees that 2005 Act casinos in the equivalent fee category are required to pay.
- Responses to our call for evidence from the on-course betting industry emphasised that since 2019 it has taken a number of steps to raise standards, including improved training and staff processes, increased test numbers at venues, and focusing on events where children were more likely to attend.
- Any remote gambling operators that kept all their equipment, facilities, etc. offshore were exempt from applying for a licence.
- We intend on keeping the same requirements for calculating non-gambling areas for both 2005 Act and 1968 Act casinos.
- However, excessive commercial caution risks driving customers to the black market where they can be exposed to a variety of risks.
The majority of responses were in favour of mandatory limits being a required feature on machines accepting direct debit card payments. We think that the requirements of account verification, transaction limit, and deposit limits, alongside a minimum transaction time will provide appropriate safeguards for these lower stake machines. The pub sector argued that it would be disproportionate, cost-prohibitive and unlikely to be achievable on these types of machines. We are also proposing that this minimum transaction time applies to all machines. Category D machines do not have a committed payment limit.
For instance, many discussed the significant changes to their harm detection systems since the Commission updated its customer interaction requirements and guidance in July 2019, and others mentioned measures like the ban on credit cards in April 2020. Operator responses largely put this in the context of the recent changes which have been introduced through voluntary industry codes or Gambling Commission mandated action. Key evidence as it relates to our policy proposals is discussed in more detail below, but a number of overarching themes emerged across the submissions.
We will also consult on slot-specific measures to give greater protections for 18 to 24-year-olds who the evidence suggests may be a particularly vulnerable cohort. The Review launched with a call for evidence which ran from December 2020 to March 2021 and received 16,000 submissions. The package of measures outlined in this white paper will significantly increase protections with the aim of preventing harm.
As outlined, the Gambling Commission has expressed concern regarding the adherence of operators to ‘available for use’ guidance. The increased flexibility will provide operators with more scope to make commercial decisions relating to energy consumption and customer demand. Under the scenario outlined in Option 1, it is expected that there will be a significant increase in commercial flexibility for operators across both bingo halls and AGCs. Similarly to bingo halls, this would likely result in both energy savings and increased GGY for operators. The removal of energy intensive legacy Category C cabinets will likely reduce the overall energy consumption of these operators.