Overview: Antigua and Barbuda were one of the first gambling jurisdictions to begin offering licenses to interactive gaming and wagering companies and they were established in 1994. The Directorate of Offshore Gaming is the regulatory body responsible for the oversight of all online gambling activity in the region.

The Directorate of Offshore Gaming has two types of licenses that they can issue. One is for interactive gaming and the other for interactive wagering. The organisation is also responsible for ensuring their licensees adhere to their strict guidelines of fair practise. The Division of Gaming is committed to ensuring that Antigua and Barbuda is internationally regarded as a Tier 1 jurisdiction of choice, and its regulations and regulatory enforcement remain first-rate.

Complaints: Should any players experience problems with any of the licensees, they can visit the organisation’s website where they will be able to make a complaint. The Divisions of Gaming handle all player disputes. Complaints need to be emailed to the Division via the email address supplied below.

Contact information:

Complaints email: Compla­int­s@a­nti­gua­gam­ing.gov.ag
Telephone number: (268) 48-3300
Fax: (268) 481-3305
Address:
Division of Gaming
Royal Palm Place,
Friar’s Hill Road,
P.O. Box 2674, St. John’s
Antigua & Barbuda
West Indies

Overview: Established in 2007, Costa Rica introduced a bill that would tax sports books and other electronic betting operations. Due to a large number of gambling sites basing themselves in Costa Rica, the government introduced a new law for obtaining an online gaming license. The new license clearly states ‘internet gaming’ as the licensed business activity. It takes 1-2 months to process the license and have it registered. However, there is still a lack of specific online gambling legislation in the region and online gambling operators based in Costa Rica have a lot more freedom in what they can and can’t do.

In 2013, the region started to move towards a more regulated environment and there were plans to establish a gaming control board and the Finance Ministry outlined drafts for regulatory practices. However, at the time of writing these plans have not developed into anything more.

Complaints: Any player disputes can be written to the Costa Rica Commerce, Industry and Economy Ministry. Alternatively, players can send a complaint via email to the address supplied below.

Contact information:

Complaint information: http:/­/ww­w.m­eic.go.cr­/we­b/5­19/­mei­c/j­era­rca­s/d­ire­cto­res­/ap­oyo­-al­-co­nsu­midor
Complaint email: czapata@meic.go.cr
Telephone number: (506) 2549-1400 Complaints Extension number 842
Complaint fax number: (506) 2291-5367
General email: uie@meic.go.cr
General enquires telephone number: (506) 235 2700
Address:
Costa Rica Commerce
Industry and Economy Ministry
Edificio del IFAM
San Jose
Costa Rica 10216-1000
Website: http:/­/ww­w.a­nti­gua­gam­ing.go­v.ag/

Overview: The Curacao eGaming Licensing Authority in the Netherlands Antilles was established in 1996, while online gaming really started to become a central industry in 2002.

The regulatory body responsible for handling the Curacao Gaming Commission is the Curacao Internet Gaming Association also known as the CIGA.

Curacao offers licenses in the following two formats:

• Master licenses
• Sub-licenses

The system they have in place can grant e-gaming licenses to a couple of Master licenses, including Curacao eGaming, Antille Phone N.V., Curacao Interactive licensing. Sub-licenses include Rakki N.V. and e-Commerce N.V. Details of these have been given below.

They offer just one type of license that covers games, software providers and product operators and all CIGA members must operate in accordance with this license. All products that are licensed in Curacao must display the official license seal.

The Curacao eGaming Licensing Authority is also on hand to help with customer service and consumer standards. The jurisdiction single license covers all form of interactive egaming including online casinos, sports betting, exchanges, lottery, games of skill and chance.

Complaints Curacao eGaming: Player disputes can be made by visiting the organisation’s website. On the left of the site you will see ‘Contact us’. Players simply need to fill in the short online form detailing the complaint. Alternatively, complaints can be sent directly through email.

However, players are advised that CIGA does not have the capacity to handle player complaints against members. Nevertheless, all complaints will be passed on to the appropriate member who will then be expected by the CIGA to reply to the player in a timely manner. Players must contact the operator in question before making a complaint via the CIGA website.

Complaint email: compla­int­s@c­ura­cao­-ga­min­g.com

Contact information:

Email: compli­anc­e@c­ura­cao­-eg­ami­ng.com
Address:
Curacao eGaming
Pletterijweg Oost
Ara Hilltop Building
Curacao
Website:
https:­//w­ww.c­ur­aca­o-e­gam­ing.com/

Antille Phone N.V: https:­//w­ww.g­am­ing­lic­ens­ing.com
Address:
CMS Trust N.V
Wilhelminalaan 13
Willamstad
Curacao
Email: info@g­ami­ngl­ice­nse­s.com

Rakki N.V
Address:
Dr. M.J Hugenholtzwed Z/N UTS Gebouw
Curacao

Complaints: Players experiencing problems can file a complaint by clicking the licensing seal found at the casino in question and click ‘File a Complaint’.

e-Commerce N.V: http:/­/ww­w.e­-co­mme­rce­par­k.com
Address:
E-Commerce Park N.V.
E-Zone Vredenberg
Curacao – Caribbean
Tel: +5999 4338808
Fax: +5999 4338809
Email: info@e­-co­mme­rce­par­k.com

Complaints: Players experiencing problems can fill in the contact form and will receive a reply via email.

Overview: The Danish Gambling Authority (DGA) is an independent government agency residing under the Danish Ministry of Taxation. They are responsible for securing a regulated gambling market in the region to ensure that players are protected against illegal gambling and unfair gambling.

The DGA also takes part in international cooperation with other gambling authorities which include Alderney, Gibraltar, Isle of Man, Jersey and Malta. The types of licenses issued in the region include: betting and online casinos, charitable lotteries, gaming machines, land-based casinos and public poker tournaments.

Complaints: The DGA does not directly deal with complaints. However, if a problem does arise with an operator registered with the DGA, players can make the complaint directly to the gambling operator. The gambling operator must process the complaint as soon as possible; if the complaint has not been resolved within 14 days, the gambling provider must inform you when a decision will be made.

Players can contact the Danish Gaming Authority after 14 days. However, they will not decide disagreements between you and the operator in question. Your complaint could, however, cause the DGA to ask the gaming provider to alter their practises or estimate that the incident has consequences for the gambling provider.

Contacts information:

Complaint information: https:­//s­pil­lem­ynd­igh­ede­n.d­k/e­n/g­uid­eli­nes­-co­mpl­ain­ts-­players
https:­//s­pil­lem­ynd­igh­ede­n.d­k/e­n/c­omp­laints
Telephone number: +45 72 38 79 13
Opening hours: Monday to Thursday 09-16; Friday 09-14
Address:
Danish Gambling Authority
Havneholmen 25.7.sal,
1561 Kobehavn V, Denmark
Website: https:­//s­pil­lem­ynd­igh­ede­n.dk/en

Overview: First Cagayan is Asia’s first gambling jurisdiction and is a corporation that is duly organized and existing under and by the virtue of the laws of the Republic of the Philippines. They are the Master Licensor and Regulator for the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority also known as the CEZA and are a subsidiary of Leisure & Resorts World Corporation (LRWC).

The primary purpose of First Cagayan is to regulate and monitor on behalf of the CEZA all activities pertaining to the licensing and operation of interactive games. They manage, supervise and operate activities that include casinos, internet games and sports.

As a Master Licensor, First Cagayan’s responsibilities include:

• Ensuring all software and specific games of chance conform to all regulations that protect players and their identity.
• To monitor game payouts and ensure that they are within acceptable worldwide standards.
• To make certain that a complete record of all transactions are available for inspection.
• Collect license fees.
• Enforce both the rules and regulations enforced by CEZA.

Complaints: The website does not specify a complaint policy.

Address:
First Cagayan Leisure and Resort Corporation
26th Floor West Tower
Philippine Stock Exchange Center
Exchange Road
Ortigas Center
Pasig City
Philippines 1605

Tel no: (632) 638-55-56
Fax: (632) 635-09-93
Email: info@f­irs­tca­gay­an.com
Contact Us form: http:/­/ww­w.f­irs­tca­gay­an.c­om­/fc­lrc­/co­nta­ctu­s.php
Website: http:/­/ww­w.f­irs­tca­gay­an.c­om­/fclrc/

Overview: Established in 2005, the Government of Gibraltar introduced the Gambling Ordinance in 2005 to denote the borders of the online gambling legislation in Gibraltar and to contemplate its way of functioning. The Gibraltar Licensing Authority is responsible for issuing licenses within the region.

The Licensing Authority may grant numerous licenses which include:

• a bookmaker’s license
• a betting intermediary’s license
• a gaming operator’s license
• a gaming machine license
• a lottery promoter’s license
• a pools promoter’s license
• a remote gambling license

Complaints: All operators licensed in Gibraltar are required to have an effective system in place to handle complaints. However, if a player is unable to get a satisfactory response from the gambling operator in question, players can then refer a complaint to the Commissioner which can be done in writing using email or they can complete the ‘Complaint Resolution Request Form’ which can be found on the Gambling Commission website.

Contact information:

Complaint information: https:­//w­ww.g­ib­ral­tar.go­v.g­i/n­ew/­gam­bli­ng-­com­mis­sio­ner­s-a­dvi­ce-­com­pla­inants
Complaint email: gccomp­lai­nts­@gi­bra­lta­r.g­ov.gi
Email address: gambli­ngl­ice­nsi­ng@­gib­ral­tar.gov.gi
Telephone number: 00350 20064142
Fax number: 00350 20064150
Address:
Gambling Division H.M Government of Gibraltar
Europort
Suite 603,
GX11 1AA Gibraltar

Overview: The Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission was actually established back in 1962. In 2001 the jurisdiction became one of the first in the world to introduce legislation that was specifically designed to benefit gambling and e-gaming organizations and to fully protect its customers.

The Isle of Man itself is self-governing, fully independent and they are not bound by the laws of the United Kingdom. The licensing and regulatory controls are now much more responsive to the needs of gambling and e-gaming industries as a result of recent changes. Any online gambling operators that want to be licensed in the jurisdiction have to be approved by the Gambling Supervision Commission.

In September of 2012, The Gambling Supervision Commission agreed terms for a cooperation agreement with the Malta Lotteries & Gaming Authority.

Complaints: All license holders must have a complaint procedure in place. However, if a player is dissatisfied with their response and has exhausted all avenues with them, they can contact the Commission via the website. Players will be asked a series of questions before they can submit a complaint. This is essential for all non-UK based players.

Players are advised to fill in a complaint form which can be found on the Commission website. This will speed up the complaint. Players also need to email this to the Commission, along with any further evidence or findings they may have that relate to the complaint.

UK-based players should check their operators Terms and Conditions for details of the organisation handling operator’s alternative dispute resolution service (ADR).

Contact information:

Complaint information: https:­//w­ww.g­ov.im­/ca­teg­ori­es/­bus­ine­ss-­and­-in­dus­tri­es/­gam­bli­ng-­and­-e-­gam­ing­/pl­aye­r-p­rot­ection/
Email: gaming@gov.im (online contact form also available)
Telephone number: +44 (0)1624 694331
Contact form: http:/­/ww­w.g­ov.i­m/­gam­bli­ng/­con­tac­tfo­rm.gov
Address:
Ground Floor
St.George’s Court
Myrtle Street
Douglas
Isle of Man, IM1 1ED
Website: http:/­/ww­w.g­ov.i­m/­gam­bling/

Overview: The organization started back in 2007 regarding a new law which considered online gambling, however the organization was not fully established until a few years later in 2011.

Since 2010, a new law came into practise which meant that foreign gambling operators were able to launch real online money games. The organization deals with the sector of public gaming in Italy and consistently verifies that licensees and traders in the gaming sector are complying with the rules and fights against illegal gambling. Before a casino can operate and offer their services to Italian citizens, they must first obtain a gambling license. The Italian gaming authority who issues gambling licenses are the Autonomous Administration of State Monopolies. Their licenses include a variety of casino games which include skill games, tournament and solitaire poker games, cash poker games, casino games, fixed odds games, horse pools and bingo.

Complaints: The authorities also deal with any customer complaints which can be found on their website.

Contacts Information:

Complaint Information: http:/­/ww­w.a­gen­zia­dog­ane­mon­opo­li.g­ov.it­/wp­s/w­cm/­con­nec­t/I­nte­rne­t/e­d/M­ono­poli/
Address:
Via Mario Carucci,
71 – 00143 Roma
Website: http:/­/ww­w.a­gen­zia­dog­ane­mon­opo­li.g­ov.it/

Overview: The Commission has been established since June of 1996 pursuant to the provisions of the Kahnawake Gaming Law. However, the Commission has actually been regulating the online gaming industry and issuing licenses since July of 1999. The Commission provides gaming licenses to online casinos, poker rooms, sportsbooks, and other online gambling outfits.

The Kahnawake Gambling Commission is a regulatory body that issues licenses to those organisations wishing to provide players with online gambling opportunities. The Commission currently issues four different types of licenses and they are as follows:

1. Interactive Gaming License (IGC)
2. Client Provider Authorization (CPA)
3. Secondary Client Provider Authorization (Secondary CPA)
4. Key Person License (KPL)

The Commission also works with other regulatory bodies which they have built up over the years. This makes a player’s gambling experience even smoother. In 2005 and 2010 the Commission entered into Memoranda of Understanding with the Financial Services Regulatory Commission (FSRC) of Antigua and Barbuda; in 2006 entered into Memoranda of Understanding with the Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LGA) of Malta; in 2010 entered into Memoranda of Understanding with the Alderney Gambling Control Commission (AGCC); in 2014 the Commission entered into Memoranda of Understanding with the Six Nations Gaming Commission (Ontario, Canada) and the Santa Ysabel Tribal Gaming Commission (California).

Complaints: Players that have any problems that cannot be resolved with the gambling operator first can contact the Commission to submit a complaint. Any complaints regarding a licensed operator of the Commission should be directed in writing to the Commission to their mailing address or fax address which we have supplied below for you. Alternatively, players can use the complaint form which is found on the Commission’s website.

The Commission Regulations provide a number of dispute resolution mechanisms to address player complaints. Staff at the commission includes full-time Dispute Resolution Officers to ensure all complaints are addressed in a timely manner.

Contact information:

Complaint email:compl­ain­ts@­gam­ing­com­mis­sion.ca
Fax: +1 450 635 1139
Telephone number: +1 450 635 1076
General enquiries: info@g­ami­ngc­omm­iss­ion.ca
Licensing information: licens­ee_­inf­o@g­ami­ngc­omm­iss­ion.ca
Address: Kahnawake Gaming Commission
P.O. Box 1799
Old Malone Highway
Kahnawake Mohawk Territory, QC J0L 1B0
Canada
Website: http:/­/ww­w.g­ami­ngc­omm­iss­ion.ca

Overview: The year 2000 saw the very first online betting site being launched in Malta and since then the Malta Gaming Authority has been created in order to regulate all forms of gaming within the region, which includes remote gaming operations. Later, in April of 2004, the Regulations were published and this made Malta the first EU member state to regulate remote gaming.

The MGA are a single, independent, regulatory body responsible for the governance of all gaming activities in Malta both online and land-based.

As of April 2004 when the Regulations were published this meant that gambling operators were able to now apply for four different licenses, which are as follows:

• Class 1 – a remote gaming license which covers casino type games, online lotteries and skill games;
• Class 2 – a remote betting license which covers fixed odds betting, pool betting and spread betting and is for operators responsible for the risk on events based on a matchbook;
• Class 3 – a license to promote and/or abet remote gaming in or from Malta (poker networks, peer- to- peer/ P2P/ gaming and game portals) and is for operators taking a commission from promoting and/or betting games;
• Class 4 – a license to host and manage remote gaming operators, excluding the licensee itself, and is for software vendors.

Complaints: Any player of an MGA-licensed operator can submit complaints directly to the MGA. Players can submit a complaint by visiting the organisation’s website and going to ‘Su­ppo­rt’, which is located in the top right-hand side of the site. We have supplied a link directly to the complaint page below.

Players are advised to first seek assistance about their grievance directly with the operator. If players do not get a satisfactory response, they can escalate the matter to the Malta Gaming Authority. The MGA also has a Player’s Charter which lists the rights and obligations of players. This can also be viewed under ‘Su­ppo­rt’ on the MGA website. Finally, players will need to fill in the complaint form and press submit once all details have been entered. Complaints will not be acknowledged or followed up if they are sent to the general enquires email address listed below.

Contact information:

Complaint information: http:/­/ww­w.m­ga.o­rg.mt­/su­ppo­rt/­onl­ine­-ga­min­g-s­upport/
Contact us form: http:/­/ww­w.m­ga.o­rg.mt­/su­ppo­rt/­con­tac­t-us/
Email (general enquires only, no complaints): info.mga@mga.org.mt
Telephone number: +356 2546 9000
Opening hours: Mon – Fri: 09.00hrs till 17.00hrs (excluding Public Holidays)
Address:
Building SCM 02-03, Level 4
SmartCity Malta
Ricasoli SCM1001
Malta

Website: http:/­/ww­w.l­ga.o­rg.mt/

Overview: The Panama Gaming Control Board was established in 1947 and they control all of the gaming industry within the region. The region started to license and regulate online gaming in 2002.

Panamanian law is based on Spanish Civil Law and the region is an independent and sovereign state. Casinos, horse racing, parimutuel and bingo houses are all legal in the country. Gaming companies in the region have to be registered under the act that was introduced in 2002, the act allows the regulations bets to be placed online.

The Gaming Control Board are the authorities responsible for issuing licenses to online gaming operators. Gaming licenses are offered for all types of wagering activities, which includes casinos, sportsbook, poker rooms and others.

All gaming operators in the jurisdiction of Panama are closely regulated and both the software used and the games must meet standards and regulations.

Complaints: There is no authority or official process to follow in the case of any disputes with the casino operator licensed in Panama. However, players should be advised that most complaints can be resolved by directly contacting the casino involved.

Contact information:

Contact email: jcj@mef.gob.pa
Telephone number: +507 507 7903
Address:
Junta de Control de Juegos
Avenida Peru, Calle North 35 Este
Edificio de Finanzas
Piso 2 y 7
Panama City, Panama
Website: http:/­/ww­w.m­ef.g­ob.pa/

Overview: The Directorate General for the Regulation of Gambling, known as DGOJ is the Ministry of Finance in Spain. They are the general government body that are accountable to the State Secretary of the Treasury which regulates, authorises, supervises, controls and, if necessary, penalises gambling activities in the Spanish State.

There are two different types are licenses that can be issued to gambling operators in the region: a General License and a Special License. Here is what they entail:

• General License enables the holder to run bets, contests and other gambling activities. Any general licenses that are issued are valid for ten years and extendable for another ten years.
• Special License enables the holder to run all the types of regulated games included in a general license. Only operators with the general license may request a corresponding special license. There is a maximum license of five years with a special license.

Complaints: Players can submit a complaint to the DGOJ should they have a problem with any operators that are licensed in the region. Players can fill in a claim form at the electronic office of the Directorate General for the Regulation of Gambling. These links can be found below. After the form is filled in, it can be submitted at the electronic office if the player has an electronic certificate. It can also be printed and submitted at any public registry office, addressed to the Directorate General for the Regulation of Gambling. Before filling in this form, players must first submit their complaint to the gambling operator in question and must provide proof of having previously submitted the complaint along with its response, if any.

Players can also submit a complaint in writing.

Contact information:

Complaint information: http:/­/ww­w.o­rde­nac­ion­jue­go.e­s/­en/­rec­lam­aciones
Complaint form: https:­//s­ede.or­den­aci­onj­ueg­o.g­ob.e­s/­tra­mit­e/l­ogi­n/i­nic­io.j­js­p?i­dCo­nvo­cat­oria=38
Telephone number: 91 571 40 80
Address:
Directorate General for Gambling Regulation
Calle Atocha,
3 Madrid 28012,
Spain
Website: https:­//s­ede.or­den­aci­onj­ueg­o.g­ob.es/

Overview: Under the Gambling Act of 2005, the Gambling Commission in the United Kingdom was set up. The Commission was set up in order to regulate commercial gambling in Great Britain. In 2013 the UKGC also took over the responsibilities of the National Lottery Commission in order to regulate the National Lottery.

The licensing and Advertising Act of November 2014 bought some big changes to the UK gambling scene. The new regulatory changes that were brought about as a result of this Act ensures that all remote gambling operators that are offering their services to British consumers will now be subject to consistent regulation. These particular regulatory changes that have been introduced will apply to all those who are providing online gambling facilities in Great Britain. Before the implementation there was less than 15% licensed by the Commission, so this Act has enforced considerable changes in the industry. This consistency makes it easier for consumers to understand their rights and ensure operators report suspicious activity directly to the Commission, all of which provides greater transparency to consumers and protection against match fixing. The changes also make it easier for advertisers to understand whether an operator is permitted to advertise in Great Britain.

The Gambling Commission license operators and individuals in the UK that provide any of the following: arcades, betting, bingo, casinos, gambling software, gaming machines, lottery and remote gambling.

Complaints: The Commission requires all of their operators to implement effective complaint and dispute procedures. You should contact the casino in question first and follow their complaint procedure detailing all the information about your complaint and including supporting evidence.

If, after the casino has investigated, you are still not happy with the outcome and have exhausted all options with the operator, you have the right to take that complaint to an independent third party. This is called an Alternative Dispute Resolution body (ADR). You can only use the ADR that is named in the complaint procedure or ask the operator to give you their details. The service is also free of charge.

ADR is simply the process for a resolution of a dispute out of court and direct ADR is the simplest form of negotiation which often leads to a solution. There are two forms of ADR as follows:

• Some types of ADR allow the parties involved to dispute and decide their own outcome with the help of a neutral third party. This is typical for cases of direct negotiation, mediation and conciliation.
• Other types of ADR are when the outcome of the dispute is decided by someone who is not a party of the dispute. This is what happens in adjudication, arbitration and ombudsman schemes.

The Commission does not investigate individual complaints. However, they will take account of the information in considering the suitability of the operator on whether to take compliance action. If you have a complaint about possible illegal activity or about an operator’s failure to comply with disputes procedures, you can fill in the form on the Commission website.

Contact information:

Complaint information: http:/­/ww­w.g­amb­lin­gco­mmi­ssi­on.g­ov.uk­/fo­r-t­he-­pub­lic­/Yo­ur-­rig­hts­/Co­mpl­ain­-to­-a-­gam­bli­ng-­bus­ine­ss.aspx
Email: info@g­amb­lin­gco­mmi­ssi­on.g­ov.uk
Telephone number: 0121 230 6666 (inside the UK)
International callers: +44 121 230 666
Opening hours: 9am – 5pm Monday to Friday
Address:
Gambling Commission
Victoria Square House
Victoria Square
Birmingham
B2 4BP

The commission aims to respond to written enquiries within 20 working days.

Website: http:/­/ww­w.g­amb­lin­gco­mmi­ssi­on.g­ov.uk