A gambling license is the permission a regulator gives a company to offer gambling in a specific place. Without it, the company has no legal right to take your bets there. With it, the company is under a regulator’s rules and can be inspected, fined or shut down.
That is the whole idea. The details matter, though, because a licence logo in a casino footer tells you very little by itself. What counts is who issued the licence, what the regulator requires of its holders, and whether you can find the licence on the regulator’s own public register.
This guide explains what a licence is, what it does and does not do for you, how the main regulators differ, and what to check before you deposit. It is general information, not legal advice. Rules differ by country, and online gambling is not legal everywhere. Check the law where you live. GiroReal does not accept players from India or Brazil and runs no offers for those markets.
What a gambling licence is
A licence is a legal permission with conditions. A regulator reviews an applicant, issues the licence if it is satisfied, and then supervises the holder. If the holder breaks the conditions, the regulator can act against the licence.
Three parts are worth keeping apart:
- The licensee. The company named on the licence. It is a legal entity, not the brand name you see on the site. LeoVegas is a brand; the licensee on its Malta licence is LeoVegas Gaming plc.
- The licence number. A reference that identifies the licence on the regulator’s register.
- The activities. What the licence covers. A casino activity is not the same as a betting or bingo activity, and a licence for one does not stretch to the others.
The word “licence” also covers more than one thing. Some regulators issue licences to operators that deal with players (often called B2C). Some issue separate licences to suppliers that sell software or services to operators (B2B). If you are a player, the operator licence is the one that matters to you.
Why the licence matters before you deposit
Once you deposit, your money sits with the operator. The licence is the main thing that gives you somewhere to go if something goes wrong.
A licence gives you three practical things:
- A rulebook the operator must follow. The details differ by regulator, but they cover areas such as player funds, advertising, identity checks and safer-gambling tools.
- A body that can act. Regulators can investigate, fine, restrict or revoke a licence. In its 2024 to 2025 reporting year, the UK Gambling Commission issued 516 cease and desist requests to illegal operators (up from 384 the year before) and 352 more to advertisers or affiliates of unlicensed operators (Gambling Commission Annual Report and Accounts 2024-25, Gambling Commission).
- A complaints route. Most regulators tell you to complain to the operator first, then escalate. Some run their own player-complaint channel. We cover the steps in how to complain about an online casino.
A licence does not make gambling safe. It does not change the house edge, it does not make a bonus fair, and it does not guarantee a quick payout. Regulators themselves say so in their own data. The UK Gambling Commission’s survey of Great Britain found that among adults who gambled on casino games online or via an app in the past 12 months, 22.7% scored 8 or more on the Problem Gambling Severity Index, 5.66 times the rate for all gamblers (4.0%) (Gambling Survey for Great Britain, Annual Report 2025 data tables, Gambling Commission). That is a measure of risk in the group of online casino players in Great Britain, not a statement about any one casino. Treat gambling as paid entertainment and use the limits and self-exclusion tools offered by licensed operators.
What a licence does not tell you
Be careful with these assumptions:
- “Licensed” is not “good”. A licensed casino can still have strict bonus terms, slow withdrawals or poor support. A licence is a floor, not a score. That is why GiroReal reviews terms and payouts separately (see how we rate casinos).
- Licensed in one place is not licensed everywhere. A licence usually covers players in the regulator’s own market or the markets the regulator allows. A UK licence does not apply to a site that serves players outside Great Britain under a different licence. LeoVegas shows this: the UK Gambling Commission register lists LeoVegas Gaming PLC for Great Britain, while the main international site states a Malta licence, MGA/CRP/237/2013.
- Every regulator is different. Some set tight requirements and publish enforcement actions. Others publish less. Swedish authorities, for example, judge that licences from some third countries come with very low supervision and consumer-protection requirements; in 2024 about 45% of traffic from Sweden to unlicensed gambling sites went to sites claiming such a licence, with Curaçao alone at 38% and Anjouan at 5% (Spelinspektionens lägesbild, Spelinspektionen). That is one regulator’s view of one market, and it is why we keep a separate page on each licence regime. Curaçao has also changed its system since then, which we cover on the Curaçao Gaming Authority page.
- A claim is not a licence. A licence number printed on a casino site proves nothing by itself. The only check that counts is finding the licence on the regulator’s own register and matching the company and the website address.
The main regulators you will meet
You will see a handful of names again and again. Here is what each is, in plain terms. Each has its own page on GiroReal.
UK Gambling Commission (UKGC)
The regulator for gambling in Great Britain. A casino that wants British players needs a UKGC remote licence. The register is public and searchable, and it also lists the licensed company’s domain names. Read the full guide: UK Gambling Commission.
Malta Gaming Authority (MGA)
The regulator for Malta-based gaming companies. Many operators that serve players in the EU and elsewhere hold an MGA licence. It runs a licensee register, an enforcement register and a player-complaint form. Read the guide: Malta Gaming Authority.
Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA)
The regulator for online gambling licences issued from Curaçao. It reformed its system in 2023 and 2024, and its register now carries several statuses beyond “licensed”. Read the guide: Curaçao Gaming Authority.
Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission (GSC)
The regulator for gambling companies licensed from the Isle of Man, covering online casino, network and software supply companies. Read the guide: Isle of Man GSC.
Other regulators exist, including national ones in Europe and Canada. We cover the ones that matter to the brands we review.
How to check a licence yourself
You do not need a tool or an account. The method is the same for any regulator.
- Find the licence claim. Look at the casino’s footer or terms page. Note the company name, the licence number and the regulator.
- Open the regulator’s own register. Go to the regulator’s official website, not a link from the casino. Search by company name, licence number or website address.
- Match three things. The company name matches the one in the casino’s terms. The licence number matches. The register lists the website you are on.
- Check the status. An active licence is what you want. Registers use other words such as expired, revoked or suspended, and each regulator defines them differently.
- Check the activity. Make sure the licence covers casino games, not only a different product.
- Look for enforcement. Some registers show sanctions or settlements against the licensee. A fine does not always mean the licence is bad, but you should read it.
The steps in more detail are in how to check a gambling licence. For the UK specifically, there is a walkthrough with worked examples at the UKGC public register guide.
How big each licence estate is
The size of a register shows how differently regulators work. These counts come from the regulators’ own files, read in October 2026.
| Regulator | What the register shows | Date |
|---|---|---|
| UK Gambling Commission | 137 active remote casino operating licences | Counted 28 Oct 2026 from the Commission’s licence CSV |
| Malta Gaming Authority | 302 licensed companies holding 311 gaming licences, online and land-based (MGA Annual Report 2025, Malta Gaming Authority) | End of December 2025 |
| Curaçao Gaming Authority | 666 online licences listed, 571 B2C and 95 B2B | Register of 20 Oct 2026, counted 28 Oct 2026 |
| Isle of Man GSC | 104 online casino, network and software supply companies supervised (GSC Annual Report 2024, Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission) | 2024 reporting period |
Do not compare these as “bigger means better”. The counts measure different things: one counts licences of a single type and status, one counts companies and licences of all kinds, one counts register rows including licences that are not in force. The point is that you need to read each register on its own terms. On Curaçao’s register, for example, only 180 of the 571 B2C rows show the status “Indefinite”; the rest are in other states. We explain that on the Curaçao Gaming Authority page.
Three examples of licence details
These are examples of what a licence record looks like. They come from our own checks of the operators’ sites and the regulators’ registers, read between 26 and 28 October 2026. They are not a ranking.
| Brand | Regulator | Licence number or reference |
|---|---|---|
| LeoVegas | UK Gambling Commission (GB) | 039198-R-319450-029 (account 39198) |
| LeoVegas | Malta Gaming Authority | MGA/CRP/237/2013 |
| Videoslots | UK Gambling Commission (GB) | 039380-R-319311-036 (account 39380) |
| Videoslots | Malta Gaming Authority | MGA/CRP/258/2014 |
| BitStarz | Curaçao Gaming Authority | OGL/2024/165/0185 |
Two points follow from the table. First, one brand can hold licences from more than one regulator, each for a different market. Second, the same brand name can sit behind different legal entities in different markets, so always match the company name too.
You can read our reviews of LeoVegas, Videoslots and BitStarz.
Red flags
Be cautious if you see any of these:
- No licence number, or a number you cannot find on the regulator’s register.
- A licence from a regulator whose website you cannot open or whose register does not list the casino.
- A company name on the licence that differs from the one in the terms, with no explanation.
- A casino that says it is licensed but does not tell you where the licence is held.
- A regulator that has published a warning about the site. We explain these lists in regulator warning lists.
Also remember that a licence is not an endorsement. If a bonus or term looks unfair, a licence does not fix it. Read the wagering rules, and use our wagering calculator to see what a bonus really asks of you.
Self-exclusion and limits
Regulated markets usually require operators to offer tools such as deposit limits and self-exclusion, but the exact rules differ by regulator. Self-exclusion usually applies only to the operators covered by the scheme you join, so it does not stop you using other sites. If gambling stops being fun, set limits, take a break and seek support. See our responsible gaming page for tools and help lines.
Quick summary
- A gambling licence is a regulator’s permission with conditions. It gives you a rulebook, a body that can act and a complaints route.
- It does not make gambling safe, and it does not make a bonus good.
- Check any licence on the regulator’s own register: company, number, website, status and activity.
- Different regulators ask different things of their licence holders. Read the page for the regulator that issued the licence you are relying on.
- Content is for adults aged 18 or over. Please gamble responsibly.
Sources read: UK Gambling Commission public register (read 2026-10-28); Gambling Commission, Malta Gaming Authority and Curaçao Gaming Authority documents linked above.