The Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA) has confirmed that a group of gambling operators approaching the end of their second provisional licence period will continue operating under their existing status while regulatory assessments remain ongoing.
In an announcement dated 23 December, the regulator said it had not yet reached a final decision on whether to grant indefinite licences to certain operators whose provisional licences are close to expiry. The delay, it explained, is linked to the volume of information collected and the time required to complete proper vetting.
“Given the high amount of information collected from the operators and the time needed for proper vetting thereof, the CGA has not yet reached a final decision on the indefinite license for a group of operators which expiry date of 2nd period of provisional license is nearby,” the authority stated.
Under the Landsverordening op de Kansspelen (LOK), the CGA may grant an applicant a provisional licence for six months, followed by a further six-month extension to allow the licensee to comply with licensing conditions. After this second provisional period, the law requires the regulator to decide whether to issue a final, indefinite licence, taking into account the criteria set out in Article 2.2, paragraph 2 of the LOK.
The CGA stressed that the ongoing assessment does not alter the current standing of the affected operators. “The CGA assessment for this group is still in progress, and no final decision has been made at this stage,” the announcement said. It added that, “until a final decision is rendered and communicated to the operator, the current status remains unaffected.”
The CGA said each operator involved will be formally notified. “The respective operators will receive a separate letter from the CGA stating the above,” the authority confirmed.
The clarification is likely to be closely watched by offshore operators licensed in Curaçao, many of whom have been navigating a transition from legacy licensing structures to the newer LOK framework introduced as part of broader regulatory reforms.
Curaçao has long played an outsized role in the global online gambling market. Part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Caribbean island has built a reputation as a hub for offshore business, supported by a developed services sector and favourable tax conditions. Alongside tourism, oil refining, logistics, and financial services, iGaming has been a pillar of this ecosystem for more than three decades.
The foundations of gambling regulation in Curaçao date back to 1993, when the National Offshore Gambling Decree was introduced. Licence issuance began in 1996, marking the island’s formal entry into the online gambling sector.
For many years, the system was based on two licence types: master licences and sub-licences. Master licences, issued by the Ministry of Justice and valid for five years, allowed holders to offer gambling services and to issue sub-licences to third parties. Sub-licences remained valid as long as the underlying master licence was in force. Although the law technically allowed any entity to apply for a licence, in practice, only four master licence holders existed.
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