What a Gambling Commission Licence Means

A Gambling Commission licence means the business must comply with the licence conditions, codes of practice and technical standards that apply to its activities in Great Britain.

It does not mean the Commission approves every product, advert, account decision or gambling outcome.

Who needs a licence?

A business providing remote gambling facilities to consumers in Great Britain generally needs the relevant Gambling Commission operating licence. Overseas location does not remove that requirement.

Check the legal operator and exact domain if you want to confirm whether a site is covered.

What licensed operators have to comply with

The current Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice cover areas including:

• customer identity verification
• protection of children and vulnerable people
• customer interaction where there are indicators of harm
• complaints and disputes
• marketing
• protection and disclosure of customer funds
• technical standards for remote gambling and software

Financial vulnerability checks

For remote licences within scope, the current financial vulnerability check threshold is where deposits minus withdrawals exceed £150 in a rolling 30-day period. The check uses public-record information for specified indicators such as bankruptcy, CCJs, IVAs and certain other debt events.

An operator must consider the result alongside other information it is allowed to use and take proportionate action where risk is identified. The existence of the check does not mean every customer above the threshold is judged unable to afford gambling.

Self-exclusion and gambling controls

Licensed operators must follow the self-exclusion requirements that apply to them. Remote gambling businesses also have technical requirements around customer-led financial limits, with additional deposit-limit rules taking effect on 30 September 2026.

Games and technical standards

Remote gambling software and games within scope are subject to technical standards and testing requirements. Those rules cover areas such as randomness, game behaviour and the information shown to customers.

A licence is not a promise that an individual customer will win or that every dispute will be decided in the customer's favour.

Customer funds

Remote operators that hold customer funds must disclose how those funds are protected in the event of insolvency. The Gambling Commission uses protection categories, and the level disclosed by the operator matters.

Segregation does not automatically mean funds are guaranteed if the business fails.

Complaints and ADR

Licensed operators must have a complaints process. If an eligible dispute is not resolved within the operator's process, the operator must have arrangements for referral to an ADR entity.

The Gambling Commission regulates the business. It does not decide individual transaction disputes for customers.

What happens when a licensee breaches the rules?

The Commission can investigate and take regulatory action. Depending on the issue, that can include conditions, financial penalties, suspension or revocation of a licence.

Regulatory action against a business is separate from resolving an individual customer's complaint or recovering money for that customer.

If a site is not licensed

A business outside the Gambling Commission licensing system is not bound by these British licence requirements. It may be regulated elsewhere, so any protection depends on its actual jurisdiction and licence.

Official sources

• Gambling Commission: current Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice
• Gambling Commission: financial vulnerability check
• Gambling Commission: complaints and disputes