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Licence guide · Pennsylvania (US)
Pennsylvania iGaming under the PGCB: certificates, the 54% slot tax and supplier licences
Pennsylvania is one of the biggest online casino markets in the United States, and the most heavily taxed of the large ones. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reported $2.93 billion of iGaming revenue for fiscal year 2025/26, and more than $1.3 billion of it went to tax. This guide unpacks how the state’s certificate system works, what each authorisation costs according to the Board’s own fee schedule, and why a 54% slot tax changes the way you build a lobby. Checked September 2026.
Act 42 of 2017 in one minute
Online casino play in Pennsylvania is authorised by Act 42 of 2017, which amended Title 4 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes (Amusements) and was signed in October 2017. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) regulates it, and the first real-money sites went live in July 2019.
The same Act brought in a long list of other products: video gaming terminals at truck stops, online lottery, fantasy contests, airport tablet gaming and satellite casinos. Online sports wagering sits under a separate chapter of Title 4 with its own certificate, which is why a Pennsylvania brand that wants both verticals goes through two approval tracks.
Definition: an “interactive gaming certificate” is the PGCB authorisation, held by a slot machine licensee or a qualified gaming entity, to offer casino-style games over the internet to players located in Pennsylvania. An “interactive gaming operator” licence covers the company that actually runs the online platform on the certificate holder’s behalf.
Three categories of interactive games
Pennsylvania splits online casino content into three categories, and a certificate is issued per category. Most major brands hold all three, but the split matters because the tax rate follows the category, not the brand.
Interactive gaming categories and rates under Act 42 of 2017
| Category | What it covers | Tax on gross interactive revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Non-peer-to-peer games simulating slot machines | Online slots and other slot-style games | 54% |
| Non-peer-to-peer games simulating table games | RNG and live-dealer blackjack, roulette, baccarat and similar | 16% |
| Peer-to-peer interactive games | Online poker and other player-versus-player games | 16% |
Since April 2025 Pennsylvania has also been a member of the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement, the compact that lets licensed poker rooms share player pools with other member states such as New Jersey and Michigan.
What the PGCB charges: the published fee schedule
The Board publishes a single fee schedule for every licence and certificate it issues, effective June 2018. Certificates and licences run for five-year terms, and every application also carries investigation deposits for the company and each principal.
PGCB “License, Registration, Certification, Permit and Application Fees” schedule (effective June 2018, checked September 2026)
| Authorisation | Initial fee (5 years) | Renewal (5 years) |
|---|---|---|
| Interactive gaming certificate, all three categories | $10,000,000 | $250,000 |
| Interactive gaming certificate, single category (later window or qualified gaming entity) | $4,000,000 per category | $250,000 |
| Interactive gaming operator licence | $1,000,000 | $100,000 |
| Interactive gaming manufacturer licence | $10,000 | $10,000 |
| Interactive gaming supplier licence | $10,000 | $10,000 |
| Interactive gaming service provider certification | $5,000 | $5,000 |
| Interactive gaming service provider registration | $2,500 | $2,500 |
On top of those amounts, applicants pay an application deposit (typically $5,000 for the company and $2,500 for each affiliated entity or principal on the schedule) and reimburse the actual cost of background investigations, which the Board does not cap in advance. Budget separately for game testing by the Bureau of Gaming Laboratory Operations and for geolocation and self-exclusion services.
Who can hold a certificate, and how newcomers get in
Pennsylvania does not sell certificates to any company with the fee in hand. The Act offered them first to the state’s existing slot machine licensees, then opened any unclaimed categories to “qualified gaming entities” at $4 million per category; online-only brands enter as licensed operators partnering with a certificate holder.
- First 90 days: each slot machine licensee could petition for all three categories for $10 million.
- Days 90 to 120: licensees could petition for one to three categories at $4 million each.
- After that: categories left unclaimed were offered to qualified gaming entities, including companies licensed in other jurisdictions.
- Operators: the brand that runs the platform (often a well-known international group) holds an interactive gaming operator licence and works under the certificate holder’s authority.
Unlike New Jersey’s five-brand cap, Pennsylvania has allowed certificate holders to run more than one online brand through separate operator agreements, which is why many land-based properties partner with both a casino-first and a sportsbook-first brand.
Why 54% changes the economics of your lobby
At a 54% slot tax, an online slot has to earn roughly twice as much gross revenue as in a 25% state to leave the same margin. That shifts the lobby mix: table games, live dealer and poker, all taxed at 16%, are worth more to a Pennsylvania operator than their share of play suggests.
The 54% combines several shares set in Act 42, including a local share for host communities, and applies to gross interactive gaming revenue. For fiscal year 2025/26 the PGCB reported iGaming revenue of $2,933,453,989, up 18.42% on the year, generating $1,337,414,660 of tax, a blended effective rate of around 45%.
- Weight live-dealer blackjack, roulette and baccarat higher in navigation than you would in a lower-tax state.
- Treat bonus budgets as taxable cost and model them per category.
- Track revenue by category from day one, because the regulator reports and taxes it that way.
Suppliers, manufacturers and the question to ask every content partner
In Pennsylvania the companies behind the games are licensed too. A studio that designs interactive games needs an interactive gaming manufacturer licence, and a company that distributes or services them for Pennsylvania operators needs an interactive gaming supplier licence; lower-risk vendors are certified or registered as service providers.
So when you evaluate any content source for this market, aggregators included, ask two things for every studio on the list: does the studio, and the distributor in between, hold the right PGCB authorisation, and which exact titles have been approved for Pennsylvania? The answers vary by studio and change over time, so keep the evidence per game rather than per contract.
Bureau of Gaming Laboratory Operations: how games go live
No interactive game can take a Pennsylvania wager until the PGCB’s Bureau of Gaming Laboratory Operations has approved it. The Bureau tests the game and the platform against the Board’s technical standards, and it accepts supporting reports from independent test labs such as GLI, BMM or eCOGRA.
Approval attaches to a specific version. A new paytable, a new RTP variant or a code change goes back to the Bureau, so studios usually release Pennsylvania builds on their own schedule rather than on the global one.
Building a Pennsylvania-ready catalogue with one API
In practice, a Pennsylvania lobby is an approved subset of a much bigger catalogue, and the technical job is to show exactly that subset to players in the state. Per-game metadata, a country parameter and a seamless wallet do most of the work.
A casino game aggregator API that tags each title with studio, category, currencies and market lets you filter by approval status and by tax category, so slots and table games can be tracked separately from the start. Because live dealer carries the lower rate, the live casino API belongs in the plan as a core vertical, not an add-on, with studios such as Evolution or Playtech as the industry reference for regulated US live content.
- Country parameter at launch: studio territory restrictions are applied automatically when brands also serve other markets.
- Separate demo launch (getGameDemo): free play stays apart from real-money sessions and the wallet.
- USD-locked site or currency per player: a Pennsylvania brand runs in USD while the same account can serve other markets in their own currencies.
- Sportsbook through the same connection: groups that hold a sports wagering certificate as well can add a sportsbook API for their non-US brands without a second integration.
SoftAggregator provides one API, a seamless wallet, 40,000+ games from 200+ providers and public documentation at /docs.html, with a quick start and responsive support. Catalogue and currencies change continuously; the live list is in the API.
Pennsylvania questions from operators
How much does it cost to license an online casino in Pennsylvania?
A certificate for all three interactive categories cost $10 million for a slot machine licensee in the first window; single categories cost $4 million each. The company running the platform pays $1 million for an interactive gaming operator licence. Renewals every five years are $250,000 and $100,000.
What is the tax on online slots in Pennsylvania?
54% of gross interactive gaming revenue from slot-style games. Online table games and peer-to-peer poker are taxed at 16%. The rates come from Act 42 of 2017 and were unchanged in September 2026.
Can an offshore or new company get a Pennsylvania iGaming certificate?
Certificates are tied to Pennsylvania slot machine licensees, with unclaimed categories offered to qualified gaming entities. Most new brands enter as a licensed interactive gaming operator partnering with a certificate holder.
Do game suppliers need a PGCB licence?
Yes. Studios need an interactive gaming manufacturer licence and distributors an interactive gaming supplier licence, each $10,000 for five years plus investigation deposits. Each game must also be approved by the Bureau of Gaming Laboratory Operations.
How long does PGCB approval take?
The Board does not publish a fixed timeline. Background investigations and game testing set the pace; operators commonly plan for several months to a year from filing to launch.
Is live dealer allowed in Pennsylvania online casinos?
Yes. Live-dealer table games fall into the table games category, taxed at 16%, and the studio streaming them must be approved by the PGCB.
Does Pennsylvania share poker liquidity with other states?
Yes. Since April 2025 Pennsylvania has been a member of the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement, alongside states such as New Jersey and Michigan.
Sources and last update
Every figure here was taken from public sources and re-checked in September 2026. No outbound links: search for the documents by title.
- Act 42 of 2017, amending Title 4 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes (Amusements), Pennsylvania General Assembly
- Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, “License, Registration, Certification, Permit and Application Fees” schedule, effective June 2018
- Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, fiscal year 2025/26 revenue press release, 17 July 2026
- Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, interactive gaming licensing process and Bureau of Gaming Laboratory Operations pages
- American Gaming Association, Pennsylvania regulatory fact sheet and State of the States 2026
Last reviewed: 24 September 2026.
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