The Dutch government has published its revised policy on gambling, further to the “Vision on Gambling” policy paper, in which it announces its intension to tighten current laws and regulations and implement additional measures to better regulate online gambling, in particular.
Amended policy
The original 2011 Vision on Gambling places great emphasis on the personal responsibility of players and providers. According to the Dutch government, this gambling policy offers insufficient protection against the risks of online gambling. Research shows that the number of people gambling online has increased since 2021 when the online gambling market was legalised.
In addition, the number of high-risk and problem gamblers is increasing, especially among minors and young adults. For this reason, a new Vision on gambling was published, which focuses on better protection against the risks of gambling in which both active gamblers and people who have not yet come into contact with games of chance will be better protected. The new Vision includes measures to better protect players.
Proposed measures
The new measures proposed in the revised Vision on Gambling include the following:
- The age limit for the most high-risk games of chance will be raised from 18 to 21 years, but it is not yet clear which games of chance this concerns.
- The duty of care of legal providers of online games of chance will be clarified and further tightened. Providers must adhere to stricter rules to protect players. Independent experts must be involved in the implementation of this duty of care.
- An overarching deposit limit with a financial capacity test will be introduced. Players will receive a single overarching limit for deposits and losses at all gambling providers, which cannot be increased without a financial capacity test. Playing limits of players will be registered and monitored.
- Advertising for remote games of chance will be further restricted by introducing a ban with the proviso "no, unless". When restricting advertising, bonuses and promotional games of chance will also be considered.
- Expansion of the powers of the Dutch Gaming Authority (Ksa) –
- Investigations are being conducted to determine if the Ksa can work undercover with fake IDs to better monitor legal providers.
- It will be possible to suspend the license of legal online gambling providers without the need for a notice of intent to revoke the licence.
- The Ksa will be given the authority to block websites that offer illegal games of chance.
- To better combat illegal activities, it will be possible for the Ksa to give instructions not only to illegal providers, but also to payment service providers, platforms and media parties.
- Provide more measures for prevention and research –
- Adjustments will be made to improve the functioning of the gambling self-exclusion system and database, known as CRUKS. Ways to more easily include players (involuntarily) into CRUKS are being investigated.
- Legal adjustments to make it easier to share information about match fixing.
- Researchers will be given access to anonymised player data to better analyse gambling addiction.
Timetable
The drafting of a bill should begin in late 2025 with the bill ready for consultation in 2026. In the interim, the government will consider whether certain measures can be implemented sooner, such as tightening the duty of care and restricting advertising.
Conclusion
The newly published policy shows that the government wants to fundamentally change the Dutch gambling policy to make participation in legal and illegal gambling more difficult. Furthermore, the Vision on Gambling indicate that the Dutch government is also committed to strengthening the European approach to illegal gambling.
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