All 54 Curaçaoan standards,
organised by theme

Article 3 of the Statuut voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden reserves to the Kingdom foreign relations, defence, nationality and certain rule-of-law matters. All other matters, including gambling regulation, are autonomous country competences. Curaçao therefore legislates its own kansspelen regime through the Staten van Curaçao and is not bound by Dutch Kansspelautoriteit licensing.

The Staatsregeling van Curaçao vests legislative power for autonomous matters in the Staten van Curaçao acting jointly with the Government. The LOK was adopted under this competence on 17 December 2024 by a 13 to 6 vote of the Staten and entered into force on 24 December 2024 upon publication.

Curaçao is a member of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) and is bound, through the Kingdom of the Netherlands' FATF membership, to implement the FATF Recommendations. This anchors the NORUT and MLTFPO obligations applied to gambling licensees.

The LOK perimeter is built on the principle that Curaçao-licensed B2C operators must not offer games to persons resident in Curaçao itself or to persons resident in the European Netherlands (where the Kansspelautoriteit holds exclusive jurisdiction under the Wet op de kansspelen). The CGA enforces this perimeter through geo-blocking and KYC residency checks.

The Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) holds exclusive licensing jurisdiction over remote gambling offered to consumers in the European Netherlands under the Wet op de kansspelen as amended by the Wet kansspelen op afstand (Wet Koa). Curaçao-licensed operators that target Dutch residents face KSA enforcement under article 33h Wok with administrative fines up to EUR 900,000 or 10 percent of group turnover.

On 17 December 2024 the Staten van Curaçao adopted the Landsverordening op de Kansspelen (LOK) by a 13 to 6 vote, replacing the Nationale Verordening Offshore Hazardspelen (NOOGH) of 1993 as the principal statutory framework for online gambling. The LOK entered into force on 24 December 2024 upon publication in the Publicatieblad.

The LOK regulates kansspelen op afstand — games of chance offered remotely (typically through electronic communications) where the outcome depends wholly or predominantly on chance and a stake is wagered with the prospect of a prize. The definition tracks the Dutch Wet Koa concept and brings online casino, slots, poker, bingo and sports betting within scope.

The Nationale Verordening Offshore Hazardspelen (NOOGH) of 1993 established the four master-licensee model under which Cyberluck Curaçao (Curaçao eGaming, JAZ-1668), Antillephone (JAZ-8048), Curaçao Interactive Licensing (JAZ-5536) and Gaming Curaçao (JAZ-365) were authorised to grant sublicences. NOOGH continues to govern legacy sublicensees during the transitional run-off.

The transitional regime that allowed NOOGH sublicensees to continue operating under master-licence orange-seal certification ended on 15 October 2025. From that date no sublicensee may operate without either a direct CGA licence under the LOK or an in-flight LOK application with an extension granted by the CGA.

On 19 August 2025 oversight of the Curaçao Gaming Authority transferred from the Ministry of Finance to the Ministry of Justice. The transfer aligns gambling supervision with the AML / CFT and law-enforcement portfolio and consolidates the supervisory mandate under a single ministerial line.

The LOK B2C licence authorises the holder to offer kansspelen op afstand directly to players. It carries an annual fee of EUR 47,450, split between EUR 24,490 paid to the National Treasury and EUR 22,960 paid to the CGA as supervisory contribution. The licence covers casino, slots, poker, bingo and sports-betting verticals subject to the operator's approved scope.

The LOK B2B licence authorises the holder to supply platform software, game content, payment-integration services or other critical services to LOK B2C licensees. The annual fee is EUR 24,490 and the licence carries fit-and-proper, technical and AML obligations adapted to the supplier role.

The CGA application process is structured in two sequential phases. Phase 1 examines the corporate structure, beneficial ownership, fit-and-proper of key personnel and integrity of funds, with an indicative duration of approximately eight weeks. Phase 2 examines the operational, technical, RG and AML files and again runs for approximately eight weeks. A provisional licence of up to six months may bridge to full grant.

The CGA charges a one-off application fee of EUR 4,592 per LOK licence application. The fee is invoiced on submission of the Phase 1 dossier and is non-refundable irrespective of the outcome of the review.

The November 2025 CGA fee policy fixes a 14-day payment window from invoice issuance. Non-payment triggers a sequence of reminders culminating in licence revocation after a maximum of 71 days from original invoice date. The cycle applies to both B2C and B2B annual fees.

Where the CGA is substantially satisfied at the conclusion of Phase 2 but residual conditions remain (typically technical certification, final UBO clearance or banking arrangements), it may grant a provisional licence of up to six months. The provisional licence carries the same operational obligations as a full licence and is converted to full status on satisfaction of conditions.

Applicants must disclose every ultimate beneficial owner holding 10 percent or more of the applicant entity or exercising effective control, mapped through the full corporate chain. The CGA verifies UBO identity against NOIS-standard documentation and runs adverse-media and sanctions screening.

Key personnel including directors, senior managers, the compliance officer, the AML officer and the responsible-gambling officer must satisfy a fit-and-proper test covering integrity (no relevant convictions or regulatory sanctions), competence (sector experience) and financial soundness. The CGA may require additional information and reserves the right to refuse on integrity grounds alone.

The LOK requires every B2C licensee to maintain a registered office on Curaçao and to employ qualified personnel resident on the island, including at least one director, the compliance officer and the AML officer. The substance test prevents brass-plate operations and anchors the supervisory relationship with the CGA.

Appointment of the compliance officer, the AML officer (MOT-meldfunctionaris) and the responsible-gambling officer requires CGA approval. Replacements must be notified in advance and approved before the new appointee takes responsibility for the regulated function.

The Landsverordening Identificatie bij Dienstverlening (NOIS) requires service providers, including LOK B2C licensees, to identify clients before rendering a service. Identification is satisfied by inspection of a valid identity document and recording of the identifying particulars; identification must precede account funding.

The Curaçaoan CDD threshold for gambling-related transactions is NAf 4,000. Linked transactions that together exceed the threshold must be aggregated and trigger full CDD. Transactions below the threshold still attract baseline NOIS identification but reduced documentation may be permitted under a risk-based approach.

Each natural person may hold only one player account with a given B2C licensee. Licensees must implement duplicate-detection controls combining name, date of birth, address and identity-document particulars and must close any duplicate detected post-registration, returning balances to the verified primary account.

Licensees must complete identity verification before processing the first withdrawal. Source-of-funds evidence is required where deposits or withdrawals exceed the EDD trigger, and where adverse-media or sanctions screening returns a hit.

No B2C licensee may register or service a player under the age of 18. Age must be verified as part of NOIS identification, and any minor account identified post-registration must be closed with stake refunds and winnings forfeited.

Every B2C licensee must offer daily, weekly and monthly deposit limits at registration and must enforce them at the payments layer. Reductions take immediate effect; increases take effect after a cooling-off period of at least 24 hours.

Licensees must offer net-loss limits and session-time limits in addition to deposit limits. Session-time alerts must surface in the gameplay UI and must allow the player to terminate the session or escalate to self-exclusion.

Licensees must display a reality-check prompt at intervals not exceeding 60 minutes of active play. The prompt must surface elapsed time and net result and must allow the player to continue, pause or self-exclude.

Every B2C licensee must operate a self-exclusion mechanism allowing a player to exclude themselves for a minimum of six months. Self-exclusion takes immediate effect, applies across all products operated by the licensee and survives account closure attempts.

The LOK prohibits gambling by minors, by self-excluded persons and by employees and key personnel of the licensee itself. Licensees must implement controls to detect and block prohibited bettors.

Every B2C licensee must appoint a responsible-gambling officer approved by the CGA. The officer leads the RG programme, supervises problem-gambling-indicator monitoring and is the operational counterpart to the CGA on RG matters.

Licensees must monitor behavioural risk markers including sharp deposit-frequency increases, time-of-day patterns associated with problem gambling, chasing-loss patterns and rapid limit-increase requests. Detection must trigger intervention ranging from soft messaging to mandatory limit imposition and referral to support services.

Every game of chance offered under a LOK B2C licence must use a random number generator certified by an accredited testing laboratory. Certification covers statistical randomness, unpredictability and resistance to manipulation; the certificate must be filed in the CGA portal.

The B2C platform — covering player-account management, wallet, RG controls and game-server integration — must be certified by an accredited testing laboratory. Certification scope must explicitly cover RG controls, KYC integration and reporting outputs.

Testing laboratories used for LOK certification must hold ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation and must be recognised by the CGA. The recognised list typically includes GLI, eCOGRA, BMM Testlabs, iTechLabs and SIQ; new entrants may apply for recognition.

Material changes to the certified platform, certified games or RNG implementation must be notified to the CGA in advance. Material changes typically require re-certification before deployment to production.

The National Ordinance Reporting Unusual Transactions (NORUT) obliges service providers, including gambling licensees, to report unusual transactions to the Meldpunt Ongebruikelijke Transacties (MOT, operating as FIU Curaçao). Reports must be filed without delay through the goAML platform.

FIU Curaçao maintains a sector-specific indicator list. For gambling, the principal objective indicator triggers a NORUT report on any cash-equivalent transaction at or above NAf 5,000, with linked-transactions aggregation. Subjective indicators (suspicion of money laundering or terrorism financing) trigger irrespective of value.

All NORUT reports must be filed through the goAML platform operated by FIU Curaçao. Licensees must register an institutional account, maintain authorised users (typically the AML officer and a deputy) and renew credentials annually.

The Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Prevention Ordinance (MLTFPO) imposes customer due diligence on service providers including gambling licensees. CDD covers identification, verification, beneficial-ownership identification for legal persons, purpose-of-relationship understanding and ongoing monitoring.

Every licensee must designate an AML compliance officer (MOT-meldfunctionaris) responsible for the AML / CFT programme, NORUT reporting, training and liaison with FIU Curaçao. The appointment requires CGA approval and FIU Curaçao registration for goAML access.

Licensees must conduct and document an institutional money-laundering and terrorism-financing risk assessment covering customer, product, geography and delivery-channel risk. The assessment must be reviewed at least annually and on material change.

Identification documents, CDD records and transaction records must be retained for at least five years after the end of the customer relationship. Records must be retrievable promptly on supervisory or law-enforcement request.

The LOK restricts gambling advertising to channels and formats consistent with player protection. Advertising must not be misleading, must not minimise the risks of gambling and must not target persons under 18 or other vulnerable groups.

Advertising must not target Curaçao residents (consistent with the geographic perimeter exclusion) and must not target residents of the European Netherlands (where KSA jurisdiction is exclusive). Affiliate marketing arrangements must be policed against the same perimeter.

Bonus and promotion terms must be presented in plain language and must surface wagering requirements, eligible games, expiry and any restriction on withdrawal of bonus funds and winnings. Terms must be available before the player opts in.

Licensees must operate a written complaints procedure with a documented acknowledgement timeline (typically 48 hours) and a substantive-response timeline (typically 30 calendar days). The procedure must be available in the player UI and must surface escalation paths.

Where a complaint cannot be resolved through the internal procedure, the player must be offered access to alternative dispute resolution by an independent body recognised by the CGA. The ADR decision is binding on the licensee unless judicial review is sought.

The CGA holds supervisory powers under the LOK to demand information, inspect premises and records, audit operations and require external assurance. Licensees must cooperate fully and may not invoke commercial confidentiality against the CGA.

The CGA may impose sanctions ranging from warnings through administrative fines and licence conditions to suspension and revocation. The choice of sanction must be proportionate to the breach and may be cumulative where appropriate.

The CGA may revoke a licence on grounds including loss of fit-and-proper status of key personnel, persistent breach of LOK obligations, failure to pay annual fees within the 71-day cycle, conviction for serious offences and operation outside the licensed scope.

The CGA coordinates with the Dutch Kansspelautoriteit on cross-border enforcement, particularly where Curaçao-licensed operators are alleged to target Dutch residents. Information exchange is conducted through inter-supervisor channels consistent with data-protection law.

Curaçao's gambling regime is evaluated through the CFATF mutual-evaluation cycle. Findings shape supervisory priorities and may trigger LOK amendments. Operators should track CFATF follow-up reports and prepare for sector-specific scrutiny in any mutual evaluation cycle.

The extraterritorial perimeter (excluding Curaçao residents and European Netherlands residents) is enforced through a combination of IP geo-blocking, KYC residency verification and payment-method controls. Failure to enforce the perimeter is treated as a serious LOK breach.