How to check if an online casino is licensed and legit (register by register, 2026)

Checked 6 Nov 20268 registers read todaySources linked

The short answer

An online casino is licensed when three things line up: a licence number in its footer, a public register run by the regulator that issued it, and your casino’s domain (or its operating company) on that register entry with a status that is still in force. A seal, a logo or the words “fully licensed” prove nothing on their own. If you cannot find the record yourself, treat the licence as a claim, not a fact.

What this means if you play from Canada, Ireland or Norway

Canada. In Ontario a site is regulated only when its operator holds an AGCO registration and an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario; the iGO directory is the register to check [15]. Alberta’s regulated market opened on 13 July 2026: the Alberta iGaming Corporation oversees it, AGLC regulates it and publishes the registrant list [36][19]. Elsewhere in Canada there is no private licence to check: the casino is offshore-licensed and the registers below apply.

Ireland. The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland issued its first licences on 1 July 2026, for remote betting; gaming licence applications open “throughout 2027 and 2028”, and gaming licences stay with the Revenue Commissioners until then [37][38]. No Irish online casino licence exists yet, so a casino taking Irish players is licensed abroad and verified on that regulator’s register, not GRAI’s.

Norway. Only Norsk Tipping may legally offer online casino games in Norway [39]. Pengespilloven’s prohibitions and penalties fall on those who offer, market or process payments for unlicensed gambling, not on the player [40]. Every private casino open to Norwegians is therefore foreign-licensed, Lottstift says it cannot help if a win goes unpaid [41], and a single win over 10,000 kr is taxable as general income at 22% under skatteloven § 5-50, whichever licence the casino holds [42][43].

Why “licensed” on its own is not enough

Licences differ in what the regulator makes the operator do for you, especially around your money and your complaints.

At the top sit the national regulators of regulated markets. The clearest written benchmark is Great Britain’s Gambling Commission (UKGC), which requires remote operators to tell you how your deposits are protected if the company goes bust, graded from “Not protected” through “Medium protection” to “High protection”, where funds sit in a formal trust account checked by an independent trustee or auditor [5]. It also requires that an unresolved complaint can go to a free alternative dispute resolution (ADR) body after eight weeks [6]. They bind GB licensees only, not the offshore casinos serving Canada, Ireland and Norway, but they are the benchmark below. The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) requires every B2C licensee to run a written disputes procedure and to offer ADR free of charge, with the ADR entity based in the EU or EEA and its arbitration decisions binding on the operator [11]. Sweden’s Spelinspektionen lists every licensed operator with the web addresses it may run [13]. Ontario’s AGCO registers operators, iGaming Ontario contracts them, and the AGCO issues appealable monetary penalties [15][17]. Alberta copied that structure in 2025 with the iGaming Alberta Act: AGLC regulates and the Alberta iGaming Corporation signs the commercial agreements [18].

Below that are the offshore regimes. Curaçao replaced its old master-licence system with direct licences under the LOK (National Ordinance on Games of Chance), issued by the Curaçao Gaming Authority, and now publishes a licence registry and an enforcement register as PDFs [20][21]. Kahnawake publishes a permit holder list [24]. Anjouan Gaming and the Tobique Gaming Commission publish licence holder lists, but neither sets out player-fund protection or an ADR route on the pages we checked. Our licence regime comparison sets these side by side.

A register check tells you the casino is who it says it is. The regime tells you what happens when something goes wrong.

Register by register

Every register below was opened on 6 November 2026. Where a field is missing, we say so.

UK Gambling Commission (Great Britain)

Few casinos open to Canada, Ireland or Norway hold this licence; it leads the list as the benchmark.

Register: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-register/businesses [1]. You can search by business name, trading name, domain name or account number. It held 2,630 records and can be downloaded.

What the number looks like: The Commission uses an account number, and its own example footer reads “(Business name) is licensed and regulated in Great Britain by the Gambling Commission under account number (123456)” [3]. Licence condition 8.1.1 requires remote operators to show that statement, the account number and a link to their current licensed status on every screen where you can gamble [2].

How to search: By domain. The Commission’s advice is to “check if the details of the licence (including activities and website domain names) match the public register” [4]. Each domain carries its own status: Active, Inactive or White label [1].

Status words: Active, Expired, Forfeited, Lapsed, Pending, Revoked, Revoked (Non payment of fee), Surrendered, Suspended [1].

Gaps: None material. Sanctions sit in a separate regulatory actions register, 142 records, searchable by account number or operator name [7].

Malta Gaming Authority

Register: https://www.mga.org.mt/licensee-hub/licensee-register/ [8]. The embedded tool lets you “search by licensee name, authorisation status, URL or Gaming Service”, showed “Last Updated: 06/11/2026” when opened, and sits beside a separate URL checker.

What the number looks like: MGA/B2C/350/2016 is the format used in the Authority’s own cancellation notices: prefix, B2C or B2B, a sequence number, then the year of first issue [10].

How to search: By URL. One authorisation can cover many domains, and only the URLs on the record are covered.

Status words: The tool filters on “Authorisation Status” and “Licence Status” [8]. Cancellations, suspensions and revocations are posted on the enforcement register with dates, for example a suspension dated 16 September 2026 and a cancellation dated 7 April 2026 [9]. Cancelled operators can appeal under article 43(1) of the Gaming Act [10].

Gaps: The search form shows no number or expiry; the record you click through to is the proof.

Spelinspektionen (Sweden)

Register: https://www.spelinspektionen.se/licens-o-tillstand/licensregister/ [13]. The register lists every operator holding a valid licence or permit and gives the web addresses of gaming sites for operators with an online or betting licence. It listed 2,178 entries, including sports clubs with lottery permits, so expect noise. An English entry page exists [14].

What the number looks like: The register does not display a licence number format; you match on operator name or web address.

How to search: The box is labelled “Sök på spelaktör, spelplats eller webbadress” (operator, venue or web address). Use the web address. The list downloads as Excel.

Status words: Only operators with a valid licence appear, so absence is the signal.

Gaps: Swedish only in the main register.

AGCO and iGaming Ontario (Canada)

Register: https://igamingontario.ca/en/player/regulated-igaming-market [15]. The AGCO points to this directory of “fully registered and authorized Operators and their igaming sites” [16]. It showed 49 operators and 84 websites, searchable by site name, and said “The listing is accurate as of 2026-09-01”.

What the number looks like: There is no licence number to type in. A regulated site is one whose operator holds “a registration by the AGCO” and has “an operating agreement with iGO” [15].

How to search: By site name. Not in the directory means not regulated in Ontario, whatever the footer says.

Gaps: The listing is periodic, not live.

Alberta (AGLC and the iGaming Alberta Act)

Register: https://aglc.ca/gaming-registrants [19]. Filter the “Stream” to iGaming and the class to “iGaming – Operator”. Each entry shows legal name, trading name, site domain and expiry, for example an operator entry showing bet99.com with “Expires on July 13, 2027”.

What the number looks like: AGLC does not display a registration number in the public list; the record is name, domain, class and expiry.

How it works: Bill 48 (spring 2025) created the iGaming Alberta Act and the Alberta iGaming Corporation and made AGLC the regulator. An operator may only take deposits after AGLC registration, an AiGC agreement and launch notification [18].

Gaps: New regime; the list changes often.

Curaçao Gaming Authority (formerly Gaming Control Board)

Register: https://www.cga.cw/en/133i348441001 [21]. The old gamingcontrolcuracao.org address no longer resolved on 6 November 2026; the live site is cga.cw, which calls the Authority “the regulator for the online gaming industry” under the LOK [20]. The register page links to four PDFs: land-based casinos, online gaming licences, certificates and an enforcement register. The online registry, updated 5 November 2026, held 642 rows [22].

What the number looks like: Two formats appear side by side: OGL/2024/1590/0947 for licences granted under the policy effective 15 November 2023, and CGA/2025/2452/1255 for newer ones [22].

How to search: Open the PDF and search for the company name from the casino’s T&Cs. The registry lists licence number, licensee, B2B or B2C, company registration number, issue date, expiry date and status. It does not list domains, so you cannot search by website.

Status words: “Indefinite”, “Assessment in progress”, “Assessment in re-evaluation”, “Expired” and “Revoked as of [date]” all appear in the registry [22]. The enforcement register, last updated 14 September 2026, listed 32 licences revoked or not extended [23].

Gaps: No domain column; the Authority says “no rights can be derived from these overviews” and the enforcement register “does not include all enforcement measures” [21][23]. An interim portal replaced the old one on 19 October 2026 after an unauthorised access incident [20].

Kahnawake Gaming Commission

Register: https://gamingcommission.ca/interactive-gaming/permit-holders/ [24]. The page lists operators and their URLs, sortable by either, and names five permit types including the Client Provider Authorization most casinos hold.

What the number looks like: No permit number is shown on the public list.

How to search: Sort by URL. Clicking the Commission’s logo on a licensed site should also open a “Certificate of Good Standing” generated live from its database [25].

Status words: None. Suspensions and terminations appear as news notices, for example an authorisation “suspended effective September 29, 2026” and a June 2026 warning about a site falsely claiming Kahnawake regulation [26].

Gaps: Significant. The list was marked “Updated September 28, 2023”, so read it with the news page.

Anjouan Gaming (ALSI)

Register: https://anjouangaming.com/license-register/ [27]. Columns are Company, Status, License Number, Type, Issue Date, Expiry Date and Domains. There is also a lookup at https://anjouangaming.com/verify-a-licence/ that accepts a licence number, company name or “operational domain” [28].

What the number looks like: ALSI-202608001-FI1: the prefix ALSI, nine digits, then FI and a digit.

How to search: By domain. On 6 November 2026 the register held 1,287 records, 565 listing more than one domain and one listing 63. One number can cover dozens of sites, so the only check that matters is whether your exact domain is on the record.

Status words: The definitions page lists Active, Suspended, Revoked and Expired, and says only Active holders may operate [29]. The register data itself read “valid” on all 1,287 records.

Gaps: On the same pull, 85 records marked “valid” had an expiry date already in the past. Our earlier audit of 1,295 Anjouan records found 124 in that state. Always read the expiry date, not the status word, and note the Authority’s own caveat that verification “does not constitute an endorsement” [28].

Tobique Gaming Commission

Register: https://thetgc.ca/license-holders/ [30]. The page lists companies “granted a remote gambling licence”, each with a licence expiration date and a type (B2B or B2C). Its other domain, tobiquegaming.com, returned a server error.

What the number looks like: No licence number is published.

How to search: No domains are listed, so take the company name from the casino’s T&Cs, find it in the list and check the expiry date.

Status words: None. Inclusion is the only signal.

Gaps: A “Fraudulent Sites” page lists domains “falsely presenting themselves as licensed” and says the list “is not exhaustive” [31]. Appearing there is a hard stop; not appearing proves nothing.

The five-minute check

  1. Find the licence line in the footer. Note the regulator, the licence or account number, and the company name.
  2. Copy the number and company name exactly. A wrong digit sends you to someone else’s licence.
  3. Open the regulator’s register from this page, not from the casino’s seal. Seals can link anywhere.
  4. Search by domain where the register allows it (UKGC, MGA, Spelinspektionen, Ontario, Alberta, Kahnawake, Anjouan). Where it does not (Curaçao, Tobique), search by company name.
  5. Match the company name on the record to the casino’s T&Cs. A mismatch means the licence belongs to someone else.
  6. Read the expiry date and the status word. Expired beats “valid”.
  7. Check the regulator’s enforcement page and a complaints database. A licence in force with a suspension notice or a wall of withdrawal complaints is still a casino to avoid.

Complaint history and reputation sources

Casino Guru runs a complaint resolution centre that showed 69,623 complaints, split into opened (1,439), unresolved (8,094), resolved (21,840) and rejected (38,250) [33]. Its Safety Index is built from “over 20 factors”, chiefly fairness of terms and conditions, casino size judged by revenue, player complaints and blacklist listings, with labels from “Very low” to “High” [32]. Its limits: size is a major input, so a large operator with a steady trickle of complaints can outscore a small honest one, and only complaints Casino Guru judges justified and unresolved count. Use it as a complaint archive first and a score second. Our own casino complaints database is limited to the brands we track.

AskGamblers publishes complaints with four statuses, Solved, Opened, Not Solved and Rejected, and reported 39,580 processed and 30,915 resolved [34].

Trustpilot is for pattern, not score. Reviewers must have “a recent, genuine experience” and “businesses have no control over review removal” [35]. Read the one-star reviews: if they cluster on withdrawals and document re-requests, that is a payment problem.

Regulator enforcement pages are the primary source. The UKGC’s regulatory actions register lists sanctions and settlements by account number [7]; the MGA’s enforcement register lists cancellations and suspensions by date [9]; the AGCO publishes each monetary penalty as a notice, for example a $110,000 order in March 2025 for prohibited inducement advertising [17]; and Curaçao’s enforcement register lists revocations as a PDF [23].

Red flags

  • A licence seal in the footer that does not click through to a register entry for that exact domain.
  • “Licensed in Curaçao” with no licence number and no company name.
  • The company name in the footer differs from the company name in the terms and conditions.
  • Mirror domains ending in numbers (brand12.com, brand13.com), a pattern seen on Tobique’s fraudulent sites list [31].
  • The register shows an expiry date that has passed, whatever the status word says.
  • The T&Cs cite a regulator that has no public register you can open.
  • No named ADR body or dispute route anywhere in the terms.
  • Complaints that cluster on withdrawals being held for repeated document re-requests.

Sites that fail these checks go on our sites to avoid list.

Worked example: “Example Casino”

Example Casino’s footer says: “Operated by Example Holdings Ltd under licence ALSI-202509999-FI1 issued by Anjouan Gaming.” We copy the number, open the Anjouan register and search. The record shows Example Holdings Ltd, B2C, issued 15 September 2025, expiry 14 September 2026, four domains including examplecasino.com. Green: the company matches the T&Cs and the domain is on the record. Red: the expiry date passed two months ago, although the status still reads “valid”. Verdict: lapsed on the regulator’s own dates. We would not deposit until the record shows a future expiry.

A second casino says “Licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority, MGA/B2C/123/2019”. We search the MGA register by URL and the record shows that URL under a different company from the footer. The licence is real; it is not this company’s to use.

FAQ

How do I check if an online casino is licensed?

Take the licence number and company name from the footer, open the regulator’s own register (links above) and search by domain, or by company name where the register has no domain field. The casino is licensed only if the record shows that company, that domain and an expiry date still in the future. Anything less is a claim.

Is a Curaçao licence legit in 2026?

It can be verified, which is the first test: the Curaçao Gaming Authority publishes its online gaming registry and an enforcement register as PDFs [21][22][23]. But the registry has no domain column, the Authority says no rights can be derived from it, and we found no equivalent of Great Britain’s funds-protection ratings or Malta’s mandatory free ADR. Verified, yes; protective, less so.

What does “valid” mean on the Anjouan register?

Less than it should. The register marked every one of its 1,287 records “valid” on 6 November 2026, including 85 with expiry dates already passed. Anjouan’s own definitions page uses Active, Suspended, Revoked and Expired, and says only Active holders may operate [29]. Read the expiry date and the domains column, and treat the status word as decoration.

Can a casino be licensed but still unsafe?

Yes. A licence proves identity and jurisdiction, not conduct. The UKGC and MGA keep public enforcement registers because licensed operators get sanctioned [7][9], and Casino Guru lists thousands of unresolved complaints against licensed brands [33]. Check the licence, then the complaint history and the enforcement page, before you deposit.

Does a casino need a licence in my country?

In Ontario and Alberta the local register is the one to check [15][19]; elsewhere in Canada no province licenses private online casinos, so you are checking an offshore register. Ireland’s new regulator is only beginning with betting licences, so no Irish casino licence exists to check; Irish players are looking at offshore registers [37]. In Norway only Norsk Tipping is licensed, so a private casino is checked on its foreign regulator’s register [39]. Great Britain and Sweden keep their own registers [1][13].

What if the casino is not on any register?

Do not deposit, and if you already have, withdraw what you can. An operator with no verifiable licence has no regulator to complain to, no funds-protection rule and no ADR route. Tobique and Kahnawake both publish warnings about sites that invent their authorisation [26][31]; if the brand is on one of those pages, close the account.

Sources

  1. Gambling Commission, Register of gambling businesses, https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-register/businesses, accessed 6 November 2026.
  2. Gambling Commission, LCCP licence condition 8.1.1 Display of licensed status (remote operators), https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/licensees-and-businesses/lccp/condition/8-1-1-display-of-licensed-status-remote-operators, accessed 6 November 2026.
  3. Gambling Commission, Opening accounts (consumer guide), https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-and-players/guide/opening-accounts, accessed 6 November 2026.
  4. Gambling Commission, What to look at before you gamble, https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-and-players/guide/what-to-look-at-before-you-gamble, accessed 6 November 2026.
  5. Gambling Commission, The customer funds insolvency ratings system, https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/guidance/customer-funds-segregation-disclosure-to-customers-and-reporting/the-customer-funds-insolvency-ratings-system, accessed 6 November 2026.
  6. Gambling Commission, LCCP social responsibility code 6.1.1 Complaints and disputes, https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/licensees-and-businesses/lccp/condition/6-1-1-complaints-and-disputes, accessed 6 November 2026.
  7. Gambling Commission, Regulatory actions register, https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-register/regulatory-actions, accessed 6 November 2026.
  8. Malta Gaming Authority, Licensee Register, https://www.mga.org.mt/licensee-hub/licensee-register/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  9. Malta Gaming Authority, Enforcement Register, https://www.mga.org.mt/licensee-hub/enforcement-register/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  10. Malta Gaming Authority, Cancellation of Authorisation for BTM Entertainment Group Limited (C-73982), https://www.mga.org.mt/licensee-hub/enforcement-register/22-03-2024-cancellation-of-authorisation-for-btm-entertainment-group-limited-c-73982/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  11. Malta Gaming Authority, Directive 5 of 2018, Alternative Dispute Resolution Directive (v2, July 2025), https://www.mga.org.mt/app/uploads/Directive-5-of-2018-ADR-Directive-v2.pdf, accessed 6 November 2026.
  12. Malta Gaming Authority, What is the process to submit a player complaint to the Authority or an ADR entity?, https://www.mga.org.mt/faqs/what-is-the-process-to-submit-a-player-complaint-to-the-authority-or-an-adr-entity/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  13. Spelinspektionen, Licensregister, https://www.spelinspektionen.se/licens-o-tillstand/licensregister/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  14. Spelinspektionen, Licence and permit directory (English), https://www.spelinspektionen.se/en/licence-and-permit/licence-and-permit-directory/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  15. iGaming Ontario, Regulated igaming market (directory of igaming sites), https://igamingontario.ca/en/player/regulated-igaming-market, accessed 6 November 2026.
  16. Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, List of Registered Internet Gaming Operators, https://www.agco.ca/en/lottery-and-gaming/list-registered-internet-gaming-operators, accessed 6 November 2026.
  17. Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, AGCO issues $110,000 in penalties to BetMGM Canada, https://www.agco.ca/en/news/agco-issues-110000-penalties-betmgm-canada-offering-cash-induce-new-gambling-customers, accessed 6 November 2026.
  18. Government of Alberta, Alberta iGaming factsheet (13 January 2026), https://www.alberta.ca/system/files/sartr-igaming-phase-3-factsheet.pdf, accessed 6 November 2026.
  19. Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis, Gaming Registrants, https://aglc.ca/gaming-registrants, accessed 6 November 2026.
  20. Curaçao Gaming Authority, home page, https://www.cga.cw/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  21. Curaçao Gaming Authority, License register, https://www.cga.cw/en/133i348441001, accessed 6 November 2026.
  22. Curaçao Gaming Authority, Online Gaming License Registry (PDF, last updated 5 November 2026), https://gamingcontrol.spin-cdn.com/media/license_registry/20261105_20261105_ogl_registry.pdf, accessed 6 November 2026.
  23. Curaçao Gaming Authority, Enforcement Register (PDF, last updated 14 September 2026), https://gamingcontrol.spin-cdn.com/media/license_registry/20260915_20260914_enforcement_register.pdf, accessed 6 November 2026.
  24. Kahnawake Gaming Commission, Permit Holders, https://gamingcommission.ca/interactive-gaming/permit-holders/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  25. Kahnawake Gaming Commission, Logo Certificate Program, https://gamingcommission.ca/interactive-gaming/logo-certificate-program/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  26. Kahnawake Gaming Commission, News, https://gamingcommission.ca/news/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  27. Anjouan Gaming Authority, License Register, https://anjouangaming.com/license-register/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  28. Anjouan Gaming Authority, Verify a Licence, https://anjouangaming.com/verify-a-licence/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  29. Anjouan Gaming Authority, Licence Status Definitions, https://anjouangaming.com/licence-status-definitions/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  30. Tobique Gaming Commission, License Holders, https://thetgc.ca/license-holders/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  31. Tobique Gaming Commission, Fraudulent Sites, https://thetgc.ca/unlicensed-sites/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  32. Casino Guru, “Our method, your safety: how we rate casinos” (Safety Index methodology), https://casino.guru/top-online-casinos, accessed 6 November 2026.
  33. Casino Guru, Online Casino Complaint Resolution Center, https://casino.guru/complaints/all, accessed 6 November 2026.
  34. AskGamblers, Casino Complaints, https://www.askgamblers.com/casino-complaints, accessed 6 November 2026.
  35. Trustpilot, Guidelines for Reviewers, https://corporate.trustpilot.com/legal/for-reviewers/guidelines-for-reviewers, accessed 6 November 2026.
  36. Government of Alberta, Alberta’s iGaming Strategy, https://www.alberta.ca/albertas-igaming-strategy, accessed 6 November 2026.
  37. Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, Commencement of Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland Remote Betting Licences (1 July 2026), https://www.grai.ie/news/commencement-of-gambling-regulatory-authority-of-ireland-remote-betting-licences, accessed 6 November 2026.
  38. Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, Licence Application Guidance (licensing phasing), https://www.grai.ie/licensing-regulation/business-to-consumer-licenses/licensing-phasing, accessed 6 November 2026.
  39. Lotteri- og stiftelsestilsynet (Norwegian Gambling and Foundation Authority), Gambling in Norway, https://lottstift.no/en/gambling-in-norway/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  40. Lov om pengespill (pengespilloven), LOV-2022-03-18-12, §§ 4, 5, 6, 10 and 37, https://lovdata.no/dokument/NL/lov/2022-03-18-12, accessed 6 November 2026.
  41. Lotteri- og stiftelsestilsynet, Du risikerer å ikke få gevinsten din om du spiller hos ulovlige spillselskaper, https://lottstift.no/for-spillere/du-risikerer-a-ikke-fa-gevinsten-din-om-du-spiller-hos-ulovlige-spillselskaper/, accessed 6 November 2026.
  42. Lov om skatt av formue og inntekt (skatteloven), LOV-1999-03-26-14, § 5-50 Tilfeldig inntekt, https://lovdata.no/dokument/NL/lov/1999-03-26-14/§5-50, accessed 6 November 2026.
  43. Skatteetaten, Rate for general income, 2026 (22.0 percent for persons), https://www.skatteetaten.no/en/rates/general-income/, accessed 6 November 2026.

Last updated 6 November 2026 · Tom Perkins, iGaming Editor · Information, not legal advice · How we review

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