Greece unveils draft legislation for online casino and sports betting licensing
Greek government launches consultation on new licence terms
The Greek government has released draft legislation which would allow for the licensing and regulation of online casino and sports betting.
Under the proposed regime, two kinds of licence would be available: a type-one licence for online sports betting which costs €3m (£2.5m) and a type-two licence for online gambling which comes with a €2m (£1.7m) price tag.
Operators can apply for one or both licences, with each valid for a period of seven years. Prospective operators will be required to pay an application fee of €10,000. The licence renewal fee is also set at €10,000.
To qualify for an application, operators must have a registered office or permanent establishment in Greece or another State of the European Union or the European Economic Area together with paid-up capital of at least €200,000.
Operators must also submit a business plan outlining how they plan to operate their activities once licences are granted.
Type-one sports betting activities permitted include sporting events “conducted in accordance with the rules of the Olympic Committee or the relevant national or international federation concerned”.
Virtual sports betting is also permitted, although betting on underage sporting events or any sport in which betting has previously been banned by the relevant sporting federation are both prohibited.
Under a type-two online gambling licence, live casino is permitted alongside casino games using a Random Number Generator (RNG).
However, the regulations include a €2 stake cap on any RNG-powered game and a maximum prize pay-out of €5,000. Online poker cash games and tournaments are also permitted under the type-two licence.
Online advertising of RNG games is allowed but only on the website of the licence holder. All other advertising is prohibited.
However, the licensee may advertise on social media accounts, providing the social media provider includes age-related blocking to underage individuals.
The minimum age to participate in online gambling and sports betting is set at 21 under the proposed legislation. Meanwhile, operators will be required to cease any promotional communications with self-excluded players within 24 hours of self-exclusion taking place.
The consultation on the legislation runs until 1 April, at which time the licensing process is expected to be opened.