Curacao Announces New Online Gambling License Fees

In a significant move to regulate the online gambling industry, Curacao has revamped its application process for online gambling licenses. Under the current legislation, licenses were not differentiated between business-to-business and business-to-customer licenses. Instead, a single license covered up to 40 different domains, with no upfront fees. However, the annual fee was set at ANG36,000 ($20,090), with a monthly fee of ANG7,000 ($3,884).

Under the forthcoming LOK draft, aimed at business-to-consumer licenses, operators will face a license application fee of ANG9,000 ($4,993) and one-off due diligence fees ranging from ANG250 ($138) to ANG500 ($277) per person, depending on their role.

Monthly fees for business-to-consumer licenses will be ANG4,000 ($2,219), while annual fees will amount to ANG48,000 ($26,633). Business-to-consumer licenses offer an unlimited number of domains, with an additional annual fee of ANG500 ($277).

Operators transitioning from the existing legislation to the new LOK will not be required to pay the ANG48,000 ($26,622) fee upfront. Instead, this fee will be due on the first anniversary of their license. Additionally, the monthly fee will decrease from ANG7,000 ($3,884) to ANG4,000 ($2,219) starting from that point.

According to the upcoming LOK, all entities involved in business-to-consumer operations must hold a license. This includes companies directly interacting with players and those handling player data and funds. The same fee structure, as for business-to-consumer licenses, will apply to new business-to-business licenses, with an application fee of ANG9,000 ($4,993).

Business-to-business licenses do not incur monthly fees and do not include domain limitations. These changes signify Curacao's commitment to regulating its online gambling industry effectively.