Kansspelautoriteit

What this authority does

The Kansspelautoriteit was established in 2012, but for most of the following decade it had no online licences to grant. Its work consisted of enforcing against operators that targeted Dutch customers, and its enforcement criteria, such as Dutch-language sites and payment methods aimed at the Netherlands, became a reference for what "targeting" means in a market with no licensing route.

The Remote Gambling Act, usually called Koa, came into force in April 2021 and the market opened on 1 October 2021. Operators that had previously served Dutch customers faced a cooling-off period before they could be licensed, a mechanism intended to ensure that past behaviour carried a cost.

The Dutch regime is notable for two things. Cruks is the central exclusion register, which can be triggered by the customer, by a relative or by the regulator itself. Advertising rules have been tightened repeatedly since the market opened: untargeted advertising for online gambling has been prohibited, and sponsorship arrangements have been phased out, making the Netherlands one of the most restricted advertising environments among licensed European markets.

Licences it issues

• Remote gambling licence (casino, betting, poker)
• Land-based casino
• Lottery

What supervision concentrates on

• Licensing
• The Cruks self-exclusion register
• Addiction prevention policy and duty of care
• Advertising restrictions

Markets on file under this authority