The Dutch KSA licence in 2026: what the Remote Gambling Act asks, and what it costs

The Dutch remote licence at a glance

A Dutch online gambling licence is a “vergunning kansspelen op afstand”, issued by the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) under the Remote Gambling Act, the Wet kansspelen op afstand (Koa). Koa amended the Betting and Gaming Act of 1964, entered into force on 1 April 2021, and the regulated online market opened on 1 October 2021.

Key facts

Applications go through the KSA’s Koa portal. From 1 January 2026 the KSA applies revised policy rules for granting remote licences, published as the BRVKOA 2026, so older checklists found online may be out of date.

The 2026 tax stack

Think of the Dutch burden as layers. Kansspelbelasting, the gambling tax, is charged on gross gaming result and has risen each year since 2024; the KSA levy sits on top, and together they take close to 40% of GGR.

Dutch gambling tax and levy by year

The levy is split by the KSA into 1.70% for its own supervision costs and 0.25% ring-fenced for addiction prevention. Trade press reported in 2026 that the tax rises brought in far less than the Treasury forecast, and industry bodies, including the state lottery, have asked for a review. Until the law changes, plan on 37.8%.

What the KSA checks before granting a licence

The KSA assesses the company, the people behind it and the technology, and it screens integrity under the Bibob Act. An application that only covers the platform, without convincing answers on ownership and past conduct, will not pass.

• Reliability of owners and managers: background, source of funds and, historically, whether the applicant targeted Dutch players before holding a licence.
• Certification of the gambling system: the platform and games must be inspected by an accredited certification body before launch and on a recurring basis.
• Control database (CDB): a data vault that records player and game data the KSA can access for supervision.
• Duty-of-care plan: a written addiction-prevention policy with monitoring, interventions and a trained responsible person.
• AML/KYC: customer due diligence under the Dutch anti-money-laundering act (Wwft), with identity verification before play.

CRUKS and the duty of care in daily operation

CRUKS is the central register of excluded players, and a licensed site must check it every time a player logs in. Exclusions, voluntary or imposed, last at least six months and apply across all licensed operators.

Since 1 October 2024 the KSA also enforces monthly deposit thresholds: €700 for adults and €300 for players aged 18 to 24. Above those amounts the operator must actively check that the player can afford to keep depositing. Players must also set their own deposit, login and session limits when they open an account. For a product team this means the cashier and the account area carry most of the compliance logic, which is exactly why a wallet that stays in your own platform matters.

Marketing after the 2023 reset

Untargeted gambling advertising on TV, radio, billboards and in public spaces has been banned since 1 July 2023. Advertising is still possible online, but only when it can be targeted away from minors and vulnerable groups, and role models such as athletes may not appear in gambling ads.

Sponsorship was phased out as well, with the last transitional arrangements ending in mid-2025. The practical result is that Dutch brands compete on product, payments and retention rather than on mass media, which raises the value of a well-curated lobby.

Your game catalogue under Koa

The Netherlands has no separate B2B licence, but it still controls content: the licensee is responsible for certifying the games it offers, and only certified games may go live. When you evaluate a content supplier, ask which titles are already certified for the Dutch market and whether certification documents are available for your inspection body.

That is where integration choices pay off. A casino game aggregator API with per-game metadata (studio, category, currency, market) lets you filter a Dutch lobby by certified titles from studios players already know, such as Pragmatic Play, Evolution, Play’n GO, NetEnt, Hacksaw Gaming and Push Gaming. Pass the country parameter at launch so studio territory restrictions apply, keep free play on a separate getGameDemo call, and run the site locked to EUR.

Because deposit thresholds and CRUKS checks sit in the operator’s account system, a seamless wallet fits Dutch rules naturally: every bet and win is a call against the balance you already control. Casino, live dealer and a sportsbook API come through the same SoftAggregator integration, with 40,000+ games from 200+ providers and documentation open at /docs.html. Catalogue and currencies change continuously; the live list is in the API.

Timeline and first-year budget

Plan for six months or more from filing to launch; the KSA sets no guaranteed turnaround and complex ownership structures take longer. A first-year budget should include at least the items below.

• €61,300 application fee, paid at filing.
• Certification of platform and games by an accredited inspection body, plus the control database set-up.
• Gambling tax of 37.8% and the 1.95% levy on gross gaming result from the first month of trading.
• Compliance staffing for duty of care, AML and CRUKS operations.

Nothing on this page is legal advice. It is general information for planning; get Dutch counsel for the application itself.

Operator questions about the Dutch market

Sources and review date

This page relies on Dutch government and KSA publications, supplemented by trade press for the tax debate. Everything was checked in September 2026.

• Wet kansspelen op afstand (Koa), in force 1 April 2021; regulated online market open since 1 October 2021
• Kansspelautoriteit, “Kansspelheffing online kansspelen”: 1.95% levy (1.70% KSA, 0.25% addiction prevention), checked September 2026
• Kansspelautoriteit, fee (leges) increase effective 1 April 2026: remote licence application from €48,000 to €61,300
• Kansspelautoriteit, policy rules for remote licensing (BRVKOA 2026), in force 1 January 2026
• Kansspelbelasting rates: 30.5% (2024), 34.2% (2025), 37.8% (2026), as reported by the Dutch Tax Administration and trade press
• Kansspelautoriteit, deposit threshold rules effective 1 October 2024 (€700 / €300 for ages 18–24)

Last reviewed: 24 September 2026.