Navigating Finland's new gambling licence regime: a quick guide

Finland is ending its decades-long gambling monopoly and opening betting and online casino games (including online slot machines and online money bingo) to licensed competition from 1 July 2027. Under the new system, a state-owned company (in practice Veikkaus Oy or its subsidiaries) will still hold exclusive licences for lottery-type games, scratchcards and all land-based slot and casino games. In contrast, gambling licences will cover fixed-odds sports betting, pool betting, virtual betting, online casino games (for example, roulette, card games), electronic money bingo and online slot machines. This article presents a practical overview of the licences available, the application timetable, and the main operational requirements.

The new hybrid model mirrors recent reforms in other Nordic countries and beyond. The stated aim of the change is to improve the channelling of gambling into the regulated market and reduce gambling-related harms.

Eligibility and licensing requirements

A gambling licence (in Finnish: rahapelitoimilupa; often called a B2C licence) authorises the holder to operate gambling games directly with players, whilst a gambling software licence (in Finnish: peliohjelmistotoimilupa; often called a B2B licence) authorises the holder to supply the technical game software and systems to gambling licence holders.

Gambling licences and gambling software licences may be granted to natural or legal persons, including non-profit organisations. All applicants, as well as their owners and managers, must meet strict fitness and propriety criteria. For example, anyone recently convicted of relevant crimes, declared bankrupt or with significant unresolved debts or tax defaults will be deemed unfit. Likewise, applicants are disqualified if they have had a gambling licence revoked in the past three years or incurred penalties for unlicensed gambling operations. Both licences are granted for up to five years at a time and can be renewed.

Applicants must provide extensive documentation. Essential information includes the applicant's identity and contact details, legal form, ownership and management structure and financial status (for example, balance sheet). The application should also include the corporate charter (articles of association), a description of the business and planned gambling operations, the requested licence duration and criminal/fine record extracts for key persons.

For B2C licences, additional details are required: the types of games and gaming software to be offered, the software providers, a marketing plan, any agents or representatives (especially for non-EEA operators), dispute-resolution procedures and measures for anti-money laundering compliance.

Application process and timeline

The licensing regime will be implemented in phases:

• 1 March 2026: The National Police Board begins accepting gambling licence applications.
• 1 July 2027: Licensed gambling operations may commence; the Finnish Supervisory Agency assumes licensing and supervisory authority.
• 1 July 2027 onwards: Gambling software licence applications may be submitted to the Finnish Supervisory Agency.
• 1 July 2028: Licence holders must use only licensed gambling software.

Until 30 June 2027, Veikkaus Oy retains its monopoly, and the operation and marketing of gambling games by other operators remains prohibited. Prospective applicants should use this period to prepare comprehensive applications and ensure full compliance with the regulatory framework.

Compliance obligations

Licensed operators face strict rules on player protection, advertising, integrity and reporting. These rules are explained below.

1. Player protection measures

The legal gambling age remains 18, and every player must register with strong identity authentication before gambling. Licence holders must enable players to set gambling bans through a centralised system covering all licensed operators, as well as game-specific or game-group-specific bans, with bans set indefinitely remaining in force for at least one year and requiring three months' notice for removal.

Operators must monitor player behaviour continuously using automated processing of personal data to assess gambling harm risks and take necessary preventative measures, though decisions to restrict or prohibit player gambling cannot be based solely on automated processing.

2. Marketing and sponsorship

Marketing is permitted through television, radio, newspapers, operators' own websites and social media accounts (provided it is not interactive with consumers), sports and public events, printed media and electronic publications, gaming premises (for games available there), and search engines (when search terms relate directly to the operator or its games), provided marketing is moderate in volume, scope, visibility and repetition. Influencer marketing and telephone-based direct marketing are prohibited.

Whilst outdoor marketing of high-risk games such as online casinos and betting is prohibited, brand marketing remains permitted. Gambling licence holders must, however, ensure that their outdoor marketing is not located near schools, pharmacies, healthcare facilities, or substance abuse units.

Marketing must not portray gambling as desirable, encourage excessive gambling, normalise gambling as part of daily life, present gambling as a solution to financial problems, exploit ignorance or inexperience, offer misleading information about winning probabilities, offer free or discounted games (except modest bonus gaming money) or link gambling to credit marketing.

Marketing must not target minors or vulnerable persons, minors may not appear in marketing and marketing is prohibited in channels aimed at minors and at events intended for under-18s. All marketing must include information on the 18-year age limit, tools for managing gambling problems, the licence details and supervisory authority (except radio marketing).

Sponsorship agreements may not be concluded with persons under 18 or for under-18s events, and operators must ensure that gambling games themselves are not mentioned in sponsorships, only brand names or logos.

3. Anti-money laundering and integrity

Gambling activities are subject to anti-money laundering legislation requirements. Operators must have procedures for detecting and preventing breaches of gambling regulations, contract terms and game instructions, as well as competition manipulation, and must enable players to report such matters immediately, with betting operators required to suspend betting and notify the supervisory authority if irregular or suspicious betting is detected.

Third-party accredited inspection bodies must verify that gambling systems, lottery-drawing equipment and methods are reliable and that outcomes are random before operations commence.

Reporting and supervision

Licence holders must submit annual reports to the supervisory authority including the following year's operational plan and budget, the previous year's financial statements, marketing report, gambling operations development report, self-supervision plan and player harm prevention measures and details of irregular betting and competition manipulation cases.

All licence holders will pay an annual supervision fee, ranging from EUR 4,000 to EUR 434,000 based on gaming revenue.

Revocation of licences and penalty payments

Licences must be revoked if the holder requests it, no longer meets licensing requirements or fails to pay required compensation or supervision fees, and may be revoked for repeated or serious breaches of the law, providing false information or continuing violations after penalties. Revocation for continuing violations can only occur if the licence holder continues the conduct intentionally after a penalty payment or prohibition decision has been imposed.

The law establishes two tiers of sanctions: fixed fines (EUR 1,000–100,000) for procedural breaches (like failing to file reports or keep records), and penalty payments for substantive offences. Penalty payments for companies can reach up to 4% of the previous year's turnover (capped at EUR 5 million), but not less than EUR 10,000. For individuals (or sole proprietors), penalties go up to 4% of income (capped at EUR 40,000), with a minimum of EUR 3,000. Penalty payments target breaches such as unlicensed gambling operations, violating self-exclusion, exceeding deposit limits or serious AML lapses. In all cases, penalties will be proportional to the size of the operator to ensure effective deterrence.

From framework to execution

While the framework sets out clear licence categories and compliance duties, the real challenge will lie in execution. Operators that start early – aligning technical architecture, supplier contracts and player protection frameworks with the Finnish model – will be best placed to secure licences and operate sustainably in the long term.

Additional information

Please contact our Technology, Data & IP practice, if you have any questions regarding this article or would like to discuss the new gaming licence changes further.