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Gibraltar is a small peninsula located south of the Iberian Peninsula. It is bordered by Spain to the North, and to the South by the Mediterranean Sea. The narrow channel between Gibraltar and the African continent is known as the Strait of Gibraltar, which separates the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Mediterranean Sea on the other.
Gibraltar is still a British territory and part of the European Union. Its strategic position – as a connecting channel between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean and between the European and African continents – has played an essential role in understanding Gibraltar's importance on the world stage and particularly on the online gambling scene.
Since 2005, with the “The Gambling Act " passed by the United Kingdom, which legalized and regularized the online gambling games out of all the British territories, the tiny peninsula of Gibraltar has emerged as one of the most attractive jurisdictions for online gaming companies.
The Gibraltar Licensing Authority defines online gambling as remote gambling, and it is subject to different regulations when compared to land-based casinos and betting establishments. In this guide, we talk more about the history and gambling legislation conducted by the Gibraltar Licensing Authority and show you which online casinos reviewed by our team follows their regulations.
History of the Gibraltar Licensing Authority
The Gibraltar Licensing Authority replaced the Gibraltar Regulatory Authority in issuing online gambling licences. At the time of the GRA, Gibraltar was known as the virtual Las Vegas. That is, companies from all corners of the world could open gambling businesses there, attracted by low taxes and other tax incentives. In recent years, it has been estimated that around 10% of Gibraltar's population is employed in the gaming industry.
Since 2005, or Gambling Commission of the United Kingdom it acts as a regulator of websites and casinos licensed by the Gibraltar Licensing Authority. Since then, licenses have become more difficult to obtain. Only companies with a track record in gambling, a stable financial framework and a realistic business plan can be licensed by the agency.
Already in 2014, the UK introduced some modifications to the taxes due by gaming companies. From then on, they should be taxed according to the locality of their players, not where the company and its servers are located. The Gibraltar Betting and Gaming Association, a business association made up of gaming companies operating out of Gibraltar, were strongly against the changes. However, for the moment they are still standing.
Licensing process
The jurisdiction of Gibraltar is considered one of the strictest when it comes to licensing online casinos. The Gibraltar Licensing Authority only considers issuing licences to “blue chip” companies, which are large companies with a good reputation and track record of national and international profitability. The Gibraltar Licensing Authority does not issue licences to any company.
Furthermore, all licensed casinos in the jurisdiction of Gibraltar must keep a net sum of funds always present to pay their users. The required sum is based on the information on the activity reports that the institution receives periodically. Equally, the Gibraltar Licensing Authority must be sure that players will have their profits paid out within a certain period of time.
Once the company is approved and licensed by the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner, they must regularly submit their annual reporting statements to an annual audit conducted by an audit firm approved by the body. Currently, there are 11 companies that can conduct such audits. One of them is eCogra, which we talked more about in our main guide on online casinos in New Zealand . The audit must prove fair and random play and must be presented on the casino's website in a public form.
More generally, the license terms establish the jurisdiction of Gibraltar as the entity responsible for the casino operator. That way, users can rest assured that they will be playing at honest and respected companies.
Types of license
The Gibraltar Licensing Authority issues several types of licenses, including differing forms of online gambling from forms of physical gambling (land-based casinos). Their list of offered licenses are as follows:
- Bookmaker license;
- License for casinos;
- License for Game providers;
- Lottery promoter license;
- License for remote games (online casinos).
Player protection and responsible gaming
The Gibraltar Licensing Authority has standards player protection, promoting features not only to protect players, but also to prevent minors from accessing these sites.
Additionally, as we mentioned above, companies licensed by Gibraltar must meet necessary transparency requirements, including the annual audit.
Conflict resolution
If the player has a problem with a company licensed by the Gibraltar Licensing Authority, the body recommends that it be resolved between the user and the company.
If it cannot be resolved in this way, and if your complaint is still pending, you can fill out a form on the Government of Gibraltar website in the section for gambling licences, bet and sports betting , and send it to the Gibraltar Licensing Authority. The protocol of the body says that the complaint should be answered within a few days.
Licensed casinos in Gibraltar
The New ZealandCasinos team tests, evaluates and rates the betting sites and online casinos that accept New Zealand players. With this, our aim is to provide players with quality information in Portuguese that can be useful specifically to those who bet from New Zealand. In addition to gaming manuals, betting manuals and reviews from Game providers and casino operators, we also provide information on more sensitive issues that need to be addressed: responsible gambling and gaming legislation and inspection they are the main ones.
On the site Map, which you can find in the footer of the New ZealandCasinos , you can check out all the informative pages we have published to date. We are constantly publishing new content related to online casinos and betting.
Over the past two decades, many gaming companies and websites have been licensed in Gibraltar. As of 2017, however, only 30 gaming companies remain with active licenses from the body. You can access the full list on the Gibraltar Licensing Authority website.
Below you can see the licensed casinos in Gibraltar that our team has already reviewed and rated. In the links below you can access and read our reviews of each of them. In addition, Game providers must also be licensed in jurisdictions that allow online gaming. In this case, you will also find some of the game providers that we have written about and that are also licensed by the Gibraltar Licensing Authority.
(New Zealand lawyer, 36 years experience)
Read and approved: July 23
Updated: July 23
Joseph Kelly is the legal advisor of the creativegiants.co.nz the content of the website has been reviewed and is in accordance with current New Zealand legislation.
The informative and educational content of this portal complies with New Zealand legislation.
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