Gambling Regulations in Ireland 2026

Ireland’s gambling laws changed more in 2024–2026 than in the previous century. The Gambling Regulation Act 2024 creates a single regulator — the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) — and phases out the old Revenue Commissioners betting licences. This page is a player-facing summary of what is law, what has commenced, and what is still coming. It is not legal advice. For how we compare MGA, UKGC and GRAI badges on casinos, use licensed casinos. For a live betting-vs-gaming calendar, see the GRAI licence tracker.

A Short History of Irish Gambling Law

Until 2024, licensing sat across old statutes, mainly the Totalisator Act 1929 and the Betting Act 1931, with the Office of the Revenue Commissioners issuing betting permissions. The Gambling Regulation Act 2024, signed on 23 October 2024, repeals that patchwork and puts one independent authority in charge of online and in-person gambling.

The National Lottery is outside the Act. It stays under the National Lottery Act 2013 and is exempt from the GRAI advertising watershed.

The Gambling Regulation Act 2024: Key Dates

• 23 October 2024 — Act signed into law.
• 1 January 2025 — Betting duty / remote betting duty set at 2% of turnover on relevant bets by Irish customers; remote betting intermediaries pay 25% on commissions.
• 3 February 2026 — Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan signs the commencement order.
• 5 February 2026 — Order takes effect. GRAI can accept applications and issue remote and in-person betting licences. The Totalisator Act 1929 and Betting Act 1931 are repealed.
• 1 July 2026 — Remote operators must hold a GRAI licence as existing Revenue remote betting permissions expire.
• 1 December 2026 — In-person operators must hold a GRAI licence as existing Revenue retail betting licences expire.
• 5–20 August 2026 — GRAI public consultation on three draft regulations (prescribed games, records/accounts, remote account-holder information), closing 3pm, 20 August 2026.

A December 2024 A&L Goodbody note still listed older Revenue renewal dates (30 June 2025 remote / 30 November 2025 retail). The February 2026 Department of Justice release is the timetable we use for the GRAI switchover.

The GRAI board has seven members, including a chair, appointed by the Minister for Justice after a Public Appointments Service competition. Membership must include at least three men and three women. Required backgrounds include legal/compliance, gambling, consumer affairs, addiction treatment, ICT, and financial/audit work. Not every GRAI function is commenced yet.

Who Licenses What

• GRAI — licenses and supervises B2C, B2B and charitable gambling as each category goes live; runs a public register; owns advertising/sponsorship rules, the Exclusion Register, the Social Impact Fund, complaints, and AML supervision under the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) Act 2010.
• Revenue Commissioners — held in-person betting licences until they expire on 1 December 2026.
• Offshore operators — anyone offering gambling to Irish customers needs an Irish B2C licence for that activity, regardless of an MGA, UKGC or other foreign badge. GRAI can ask the courts to block sites and related bank transactions.

Until remote gaming licences exist, Irish players still use offshore-licensed casinos. That distinction is spelled out on licensed casinos and the GRAI tracker.

How to Check If an Operator Is Properly Licensed

Operators applying for a licence must name the business, list previous gambling licences, and put “relevant officers” and beneficial owners through a fit-and-proper test (no undischarged bankruptcy, valid tax clearance). Remote B2C applicants also file software and hardware details. The Act does not fix a clock; industry notes expect at least two to three months. GRAI licence fees are not set yet (Minister for Justice consent required). Under the outgoing Revenue regime, remote application fees were €10,000, with renewals €10,000–€200,000 every two years by turnover.

Licence Types and Key Conditions

GRAI oversees three categories, for in-person and remote activity:

B2C (gaming, betting and lottery) — required for any operator serving Irish customers, wherever it is based and whatever foreign licence it holds. Applicants specify the games, lotteries or pool-betting events they will offer.

B2B — “gambling products” (machines, equipment, software) and “gambling related services” (odds, hosting, support, fraud/risk, holding customer funds, installing or upgrading software). It applies to firms that supply Irish B2C licensees and to B2B firms located in Ireland even if they do not supply Irish licensees.

Charitable / philanthropic — sports clubs, community groups and charities fundraising through gambling.

Limited exemptions: one-off charitable lotteries with total prizes up to €2,000 (other conditions apply); product-linked lotteries with prizes up to €5,000.

B2C conditions in the Act include:

• Stake and prize caps (GRAI may vary these by regulation): €10 maximum payment-in for lotteries and games; €3,000 winnings cap on games; €5,000 per week for periodical lotteries; €360,000 for one-off lotteries.
• No credit — no credit-card payments, including electronic payments loaded from a credit card, and no credit facilities to players.
• Inducements — individualised VIP-style incentives are restricted; promotions open to everyone remain allowed.
• Children and branding — branded merchandise must not be intended for children (this merchandise rule starts one year after commencement). Sponsorship of events aimed mainly at children is prohibited.
• Segregated Customer Accounts and change-of-control / remote-tech notifications to GRAI.
• Exclusion Register checks for remote B2C.

Legal Gambling Age

The materials we compiled prohibit allowing a child to gamble or to be employed by a licensee, and they require safeguards so children cannot access gambling places or services. They do not state a numeric minimum age. Irish Lucky’s own pages are 18+. GRAI has worked with HSE Addiction Services on family advice for spotting underage gambling.

Advertising and Sponsorship

• Watershed: no gambling ads on TV, radio or on-demand audiovisual media between 5:30am and 9:00pm. Charitable licensees are exempt if the ad carries no B2C/B2B branding. The National Lottery is not under this restriction.
• Streaming / on-demand: ads only to people who have an account with that service, with an exception for incidental logos at a sporting event.
• Social and video platforms: ads only where the recipient has an account and follows or subscribes to the licensee.
• Email and SMS: prior consent and an easy opt-out.
• Content: must not target children, encourage excessive gambling, or mislead about social or financial benefits. ASAI and broadcasting/online-safety codes still apply.

Penalties for Illegal Gambling

Powers largely commenced from 5 February 2026:

• Administrative fines up to €20 million or 10% of turnover, whichever is greater, with Circuit Court approval.
• Non-compliance notices, and court applications to suspend or revoke a licence.
• Search and seizure, including warrants for a private dwelling where needed.
• Court orders against operators and third parties (banks, ISPs, app stores), including emergency blocks on websites or transactions.
• Summary prosecutions within three years of an alleged offence.
• Breach of Exclusion Register rules (for example letting a self-excluded person play, taking their payment, or marketing to them): up to five years’ imprisonment and/or a fine.

Tax on Gambling (Summary)

A dedicated tax child page is not live yet. From the Act-era finance notes:

• Betting duty / remote betting duty: 2% of turnover on relevant Irish-customer bets from 1 January 2025.
• Remote betting intermediaries: 25% on commissions.
• E-gaming: generally 23% VAT on retained stakes from Irish customers.
• Lottery tickets: VAT-exempt.
• Social Impact Fund: annual turnover-based contribution from B2C and B2B (not charitable) licensees, for research, education and treatment.
• GRAI is government-funded for an initial three years, then self-funded via licensee charges.

Player Protection and Problem Gambling

GRAI runs the National Gambling Exclusion Register — online self-exclusion from GRAI-licensed bodies. Licensees must refuse registration and payments and must not send marketing that encourages gambling. Remote operators check the register in real time.

Other Act tools: player-set monetary limits; alerts on wins, losses and time spent; access to gambling history; suspicious-activity reports to GRAI; child-protection duties for remote gambling; account-closure and refund rules.

What Is Still Coming

• GRAI licence fees and, after three years, self-funding charges.
• Published technical standards (six-month software / three-year machine lead-in).
• Outcome of the August 2026 consultation (Sections 86, 152 and 173).
• Full in-person betting licensing from 1 December 2026.
• Branded-merchandise child rule, one year after commencement.
• Remote gaming (online casino) licences — not in the first betting wave; follow the GRAI tracker rather than a casino homepage claim.

For safer-play tools on sites we already list, see safe online casinos.