UK Gambling Licensing and Laws: How it Works

In the UK it is a criminal offence to commercially take bets or offer a betting exchange service if you do not hold a UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) license.

In this article we list bookmakers’ license numbers from our own recommended bookies, we explain why gambling licences are required in the first place, what they mean for operators, how bookmakers get hold of these licences, and what happened if they contravene the conditions of the commission.

We also discuss gambling law, including the latest Gambling Act 2014 and the 2023 review, and what these laws mean for both the betting industry and the punter.

Gambling law in the United Kingdom provides some of the most stringent legislation and protections in the world.

Gambling licences are in place to protect not only punters from unlicensed operators, but also to protect bookmakers and betting operators.

Gambling License Details For Major UK Bookmakers

Is Gambling Online Legal in the UK?

The simple answer is yes but only under licence.

It may surprise you to learn that up until 2005, the online gambling industry was unregulated, and until 2014 operators based outside the UK didn’t have to secure a UK licence. If you gamble with an agent that does not possess a licence these days, they are operating illegally, and you risk losing your funds.

Clicking on the licence numbers in the table above will take you to that operator’s specific gambling commission issued licence.  You can also search for licences of operators not in the table on the UKGC website.

Never gamble with a betting website that doesn’t have a UK licence, as if you do, your funds will have no protection under the law.

What is a Gambling Licence?

This is a licence that all gambling providers who are based in or operate in the UK are required to have.

This law came into force under the Gambling Act of 2005. It stipulates that anyone wishing to advertise to or transact with customers in this country for the purposes of commercial gambling must carry a licence issued by the UK Gambling Commission.

The Gambling Commission was set up to issue and administer licences, and to make sure license holders continue to adhere to regulations once a license is acquired.

To apply for a licence, companies are required to demonstrate they have several protections in place for the prevention of crime and protection of customers.

You can check if an operator has a licence by visiting the commission’s website, but operators must also display their licence details properly on their own website or premises, so this is another way to check.

You will either see a reference for the licence or the full licence number, but it should link to the license itself, which will look like the image above.

Often licences are held by holding companies that then operate several branded gambling entities under the same license, so don’t be surprised if several link through to the same place, this isn’t a sign of anything untoward. Just make sure the license is ‘active’.

It is amazing to think that internet gambling went unregulated until 2005, and in many countries it still is a bit of a free for all. This is why the UK betting and gaming industry is now one of the safest in the world, because it is one of the most stringently regulated.

Who Are The UK Gambling Commission?

The Gambling Commission was originally set up in 2005 under the previous gambling Act. It is an independent non-departmental public body that receives funding and support from the UK government’s department for culture, media and sport.

The commission acts as regulator for all commercial gambling operators including bingo, bookmakers, casinos, gaming arcades, etc. The commission is also responsible for regulating lotteries in the UK, including the National Lottery since taking over the responsibilities of the National Lottery Commission in 2013.

The commission employs over 250 people, is based in Birmingham, and is largely funded by licence fees paid by bookmakers and other operators.

It’s worth noting that the gambling commission do not cover spread betting and other forms of index betting, this falls under the jurisdiction of the financial conduct authority (FCA).

For more about the UK Gambling Commission read our dedicated guide.

What Do the Gambling Commission Do?

The UKGC do all sorts, but they have a few principal objectives:

• Crime Prevention – This is both in terms of preventing illegal bookmaking (protecting the punter), and preventing betting fraud (protecting the bookie).
• Promote an Open Industry – This includes promoting honesty about betting operations and gambling including responsible gambling. For example, offers, terms, and bonuses need to be clear and transparent without conflicting, confusing, or false language.
• Protect Vulnerable People – Possibly the most important aim of the commission is to ensure those under the age of 18 and vulnerable adults are prevented from gambling. This includes age and identity checking and monitoring.  See responsible gambling.

What Don’t the Gambling Commission Do?

The commission is there to ensure a safe and responsible industry, but they will not:

• Mediate Customer Complaints – Operators must have their own systems in place to properly handle complaints. If you want to escalate a complaint you can use the Independent Betting Adjudication Service (IBAS) service. Read our complaints article for more.
• Legal Advice – They will not give advice but they will give general information pertaining to the Gambling Act or any relevant legislation.
• Check Every Gambling Website – Whilst it is the law that operators need to possess a licence to operate in the UK, it is up to you to check there is a licence in place with the site you are thinking of gambling with.

How Do The Gambling Commission Regulate?

The commission is limited in its scope and resources, so they will always attempt to mediate disputes and will only take legal action in cases that present the greatest risks to the licensing objectives.

If operators fail to comply with the Licence conditions and codes of practice (LCCP) then the commission will step in. If you feel you know of an operator who is not meeting the LCCP you can report them anonymously to the commission.

In rare events where illegal activity is serious enough, the UKGC has the power to revoke licences and issue legal action against operators. All major legal action is published on their enforcement news page.

In general the UKGC are seen as a body that are trying to work with bookmakers and other gambling agents to ensure a safe industry rather than being an enforcement agency, but they are certainly not shy of issuing eye watering fines to companies that step out of line. Just ask William Hill who got a £19.2 million slap on the wrist in 2023 – although no-one with any sense would bet with them anyway.

Gambling Law and Legislation in the UK

There are specific laws on all aspects of commercial gambling, from prizes and games run in public houses, to gaming machines, remote operators, and fees and duty charges.

For a full list of all gambling legislation see the commission’s own gambling related legislation page.

Gambling Act 2005

The act of 2005 was brought in to give the UK government greater means of regulating a diverse and rapidly expanding gambling industry.

This was the first major piece of legislation since the Betting and Gaming Act 1960, so it was well overdue. In fact, it legislated the creation of the Gambling Commission itself as an independent body to enforce and regulate the contents of the Act.

The country had reached a point where gaming needed updated legislation with the new millennium seeing a glut of fresh innovative ways to gamble, from fixed odds terminals in shops, new lottery games, and more advanced gaming arcades. The act was also brought in to regulate online betting, which was a very young industry at the time.

Basically, the 2005 gambling act was designed to enforce the principal objectives of the gambling commission described above, with specific legislation such as fee limits, payout limits etc., for individual aspects (such as how much a fruit machine in a pub can pay out).

Gambling Bill 2014

The 2014 Gambling (Licencing and Advertising) Bill was effectively an add-on to the 2005 legislation.

This was more all encompassing, with a heavier focus on online and remote betting to ensure all gambling companies that operated in the UK fell under the law and the UKGC, wherever they were based.

This made it easier to define what gambling is and whether a company and its advertisers were permitted to operate in Great Britain.

One important aspect of the 2014 act was to ensure that off shore operators were also required to have a UK gambling licence to advertise in the UK. As most online bookmakers were based in the likes of Gibraltar or Malta, this was a critical piece of legislation.

It also entitled the government to a 15% tax on gross profits earned in the UK, regardless of where a company was based.

Gambling Act Review 2023

After continual delays, the long awaited white paper on gambling was released in April of 2023, outlining new measures to make gambling safer and keep companies honest.

It was announced that a new gambling ombudsman would be created, specifically to handle customer complaints regarding operators and their business practices, giving punters clear direction if they ever run into issues.

On top of this, for the first time, specific loss levels were set for source of funds checks, laid out in two tiers; the first designed to be frictionless (for net losses of £125+ in a month or £500+ in a year), and the second requiring further documentation from bettors (for net losses of £1,000+ in a day, or £2,000+ in 90 days).

The aim here was to trigger intervention earlier if someone were to display problem gambling behaviour, and hopefully stop problem gamblers getting into horrendous debt.

There were also measures brought in focussing more heavily on those under the age of 25, as this demographic is statistically more likely to end up gambling irresponsibly.

One of these was the introduction of a £2 per spin cap on slot machines for anyone under the age of 25, whereas the cap was £15 per spin for those over the age threshold.

The review went down fairly well on both sides of the fence, although much more consultation was said to be needed going forward.

History of UK Gambling Law

Gambling and betting through history has courted much attention. It has been banned or restricted several times by various monarchs and the republican Oliver Cromwell, who banned most sports and betting with his puritan ways. In 1541 the Unlawful Games Act was enacted by the parliament of England and was designed to restrict several new games. The idea at the time was new games and sports were causing the death of archery as young adolescents became distracted by newer ventures.

The 1541 act didn’t necessarily restrict gambling directly but did so by proxy in banning the sports and games occurring in the first place. It took until 1845, however, for the British establishment to issue binding legislation on gambling in the Gaming Act of 1845.

The gaming act was actually designed to discourage betting. It made a bet un-enforceable as a contract under law and therefore an illegal action. Basically meaning if you bet it is illegal under law and you do so at your own risk meaning someone could walk off with your cash. This wasn’t actually rescinded until 2001, and needless to say it didn’t really stop people gambling.

The 1892 Gaming Act created an exception for the Totalisator (tote) board. This allowed on track betting at race courses in Great Britain, but betting and gambling off course was still illegal up until 1960 (with the exception of the football pools). The 1960 Act saw the final repeal of the 1845 gaming act.

However, before 1960 it was legal to place bets by post or over the telephone. Many bookmakers got around this by employing ‘runners’ that would take bets from a public phone to the bookmaker. Mr William Hill is a famous early bookie who did what he could to circumvent these laws.

The Betting and Gaming Act of 1960 famously removed the restriction on offsite betting and led to the opening of the first betting shops in 1961. Many cite this as the beginning of the end for greyhound racing and some smaller horse racing meetings in particular.

This worked well enough until the end of the 20th Century, however, new forms of betting such as gaming machines and the internet meant that new legislation was needed.

Customer Complaints & Protection

The objectives of the the UK Government, the Gambling Commission, and bookmakers is generally to protect customers by creating a safe, fair, and open environment in which to gamble.

That said, the gambling commission will not mediate individual customer complaints over disputed funds, that’s not their role.

You can report gambling operators (either online or physical) to the gambling ombudsman if you think they are contravening the gambling code and putting people at risk.

However, if you think you have been mislead by advertising you are better off contacting the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA).

For information on IBAS, the body that mediates disputes between bookmakers and customers, read our IBAS page or for more general dispute advice read our how to make a complaint to a bookmaker article.

Responsible Gambling

A core objective of the UKGC is to ensure all operators actively promote responsible gambling. See our article for all features and information relating to responsible gambling.