Swedish Gambling Authority

The Swedish Gambling Authority (Spelinspektionen, SGA) examines applications and issues licences in Sweden under the regime in force since 1 January 2019, which opens part of the market to competition. The market has three parts: online gambling and betting, gambling in the public interest (lotteries and land-based bingo) and a state-controlled part (land-based casinos and token machines). Gambling aimed at Swedish consumers needs a Spelinspektionen licence; a licence from another EU or EEA country does not carry over automatically. The authority keeps a licence and permit directory of 2193 entries and a national self-exclusion register.

Online operators obtain a commercial online gambling licence and a betting licence. The first covers casino games (roulette, card and dice games), online bingo, computer-simulated gambling machines and lotteries offered as side bets to them. Betting uses fixed or parimutuel odds and does not cover spread betting, events where most participants are under 18, or betting on animals pitted against each other. Both licences may include joint games with a company in another EEA country that holds an authorisation for the same game. Since 1 July 2023, anyone who manufactures, supplies, installs or modifies software for online gambling and betting needs a gambling software permit (B2B), and operators use only software from permit holders.

The application fee is SEK 230,000 for a commercial online gambling or betting licence (also SEK 230,000 for both applied for together) and SEK 120,000 for a gambling software permit. Fees are paid in Swedish kronor, processing starts once the fee is received, and it is not refunded if the application is rejected. Registering a gambling agent costs SEK 1,500. Licence amendments are free except for changes in the persons assessed for suitability, reported within 14 days at SEK 1,000 per natural person or SEK 3,000 per legal person. The supervision fee is invoiced in advance for each 12-month period: SEK 240,000 per online gambling or betting licence and SEK 16,500 per software permit; once paid, it is non-refundable. Licences and permits are granted for up to 5 years; renewal is a new application filed at least 4 months before expiry, keeping the current licence valid until the decision. The tax is 18% of the profit made on gambling in Sweden.

Documents are filed in Swedish or in translation, extracts such as criminal records are, as a rule, no older than 6 months, and the application names the websites that will offer games and a contact person. Qualifying shareholders, the board and management are assessed for suitability, and a holder from outside the EEA keeps a physical representative residing in Sweden. The gambling system is in Sweden, or abroad under an exemption requested with the application: in a country where the holder may offer gambling and whose authority has an agreement with Spelinspektionen (as of October 2020: the United Kingdom, Gibraltar, Malta and the Netherlands), or with remote access for the regulator on request. An accredited body assesses the system before use. Spelinspektionen's case number serves instead of a licence number, the regulator's logo is clearly visible on the operator's home page, linking to its website or licence register, and a licence cannot be transferred to another legal person. Players are registered from age 18, only with a permanent address or long-term residence in Sweden, electronic identification and a deposit limit; a bonus is offered only on a player's first gambling occasion, with at least 60 days to meet its terms.