Open licensing, split by function
Alderney
A Channel Island jurisdiction whose licence separates the customer relationship from the platform operation.
Licensed online casino
Portugal
A licensed market whose split tax base, stakes for betting and revenue for casino, shapes its product mix.
| Product | Position | What that means |
|---|---|---|
| Online casino | Licensed | Commercial operators can be licensed to offer this product to local customers. |
| Sports betting | Licensed | Commercial operators can be licensed to offer this product to local customers. |
| Online poker | Licensed | Commercial operators can be licensed to offer this product to local customers. |
| Lottery | State monopoly | Reserved to a state or state-controlled operator; no commercial licence is available. |
How the market works
Portugal licensed online gambling in 2015 through a service that sits within the national tourism authority, reflecting the historical link between casino concessions and tourism. Licences are granted per vertical for three-year renewable terms, each requiring certification of the games and systems involved.
The tax structure is the detail that matters commercially. Sports betting is taxed on the amount staked, while casino games are taxed on gross revenue. A stake tax weighs most heavily on high-turnover, low-margin betting, and Portuguese operators have consistently argued that it suppresses the odds they can offer and therefore the share of play the licensed market captures.
The regulator publishes quarterly figures on stakes, revenue and registered accounts, which makes Portugal one of the better sources for anyone sizing a licensed market from official data rather than estimates.
Who regulates it
Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos (SRIJ), based in Lisbon and operating under Legal Regime for Online Gambling and Betting (RJO). The Portuguese regulator, part of the national tourism authority, licensing online gambling since 2015.
Licence types issued
- Fixed-odds sports betting
- Horse race betting
- Games of chance (casino, poker, bingo)
Questions about Portugal
Other markets in Europe
Online licence tied to a land-based licence
Belgium
Online licences exist only as supplements to land-based licences, and advertising is prohibited.
Tied to land-based online casino
Open licensing per game type
Czechia
A licensed market with a mandatory central exclusion register that covers more than self-exclusion.
Licensed online casino
Open licensing
Denmark
An early licensing regime whose certification programme and exclusion register were widely copied.
Licensed online casino
Monopoly, with licensing legislated for 2027
Finland
One of Europe's last gambling monopolies, legislated to open to licensed competition from 2027.
State monopoly online casino
Open licensing, three verticals only
France
The largest European economy with no legal online casino: only betting, horse racing and poker can be licensed.
Prohibited online casino
Background reading
Legal and compliance
What a gaming licence actually covers
A licence is not a badge of quality and it is not valid everywhere. What it authorises, who it binds, and why one company often holds a dozen.
Legal and compliance
How gambling is taxed, and why the base matters
A tax on stakes and a tax on gross gaming revenue can carry the same headline number and produce completely different businesses.
Legal and compliance
How a company enters a new market
The sequence from legal assessment to launch, and the parts that routinely take longer than anyone plans for.
Legal and compliance
What grey and black markets actually mean
The industry uses three words for the legal status of a market and rarely defines them. Here is what each one means in practice.