Romania Licensed Casinos Online

Gambling is very popular in Romania. In accordance with the 2016 Euromonitor research, the country’s gambling revenues ranked 4th in Eastern Europe. The current Romanian online gambling laws were passed in May 2015. Back then, the previous legislation was updated to make the outdated Romanian internet gambling market keep up with the European Commission standards.

2015 was the year when the first online casinos licensed by the Romania National Gambling Office appeared on the market. Even though the online gambling licensing and legislation framework in Romania is far from perfect, significant improvements have been made by the government on the scene. Read on to find out how the National Gambling Office works, explore the main application requirements and basic compliance policies.

How the Commission Works

Along with the legislative updates made in 2015 in the field of online gambling in Romania, the requirement for foreign operators to apply for the Romania casino license was implemented. Fully licensed Romanian online casinos are obliged to pay a 20% tax from their profit gained from Romanian gamblers, as well as some recently introduced additional fees. While to many operators the high tax rates are unsustainable, a lot of gambling companies have successfully obtained licenses from Romania Jurisdiction.

The following renowned operators have managed to obtain a license from the National Gambling Office:

• 888
• Amaya
• Betfair
• Unibet, and more

The Romani online gambling jurisdiction grants licenses to operators who offer the following gambling services:

• casino games
• poker games
• various slots
• enjoyable bingo
• sports betting services

While online casinos are legal and properly regulated in Romania, the country’s government only grants the Romania online gambling license to those casino companies whose online operation is based on a local brick and mortar gambling venue. That’s one of the main reasons why a multitude of Romanian online casinos still operate without a license. Compared to the situation with online casino licensing in Belgium, the Romanian system is more relaxed and flexible.

Application Requirements & Compliance Highlights

Even though there’s a state monopoly over online gambling in Romania, private companies here are permitted to offer gambling services online. To begin operation, their owners must apply for a license, undergo authorization procedure as well as various background checks. Usually, the licensing and authorization process in Romania takes up to four weeks.

Below, you will find the main requirements the operators must meet to obtain the online gambling license from the ONJN:

• casino owners must prove that they have no history of criminal conduct
• they must have a bank account opened to deposit the facility’s operation funds
• their online casino servers must store all the data concerning the online gambling services provided at the website
• the gaming software used by the operators must comply with the ONJN standards

Cutting to the chase, the online casino licensing procedure in Romania is not as easy as ABC. What’s more, the hefty taxes and fees may seem totally shocking to many operators. Usually, online gambling facility owners aimed at obtaining the Romanian casino license turn to specialized law firms to assist them with the issue. That way, the process of obtaining the license becomes a lot more effective and a lot less time-consuming.

The gambling license from Romanian National Gambling Office is valid for ten years – provided that the gaming operator pays the annual license fee. The annual license fee depends on the total number of stakes gathered from the casino players. If this amount is less than €500,000 per year, the minimum annual license fee of €6,000 is applied. If the amount is more than €10 million per year, the maximum annual license fee of €120,000 is charged.

There’s also the so-called authorization fee of 16% – or €100,000 minimum – for online gambling operators. Together with the license and authorization fees, online casinos licensed in Romania are also charged the annual fee of €5,000 by the Public Foundation for Responsible Gaming. These are some of the main fees online gambling operators licensed by the ONJN have to deal with when working under the online gambling licenses in Romania.

Based on the Romanian gambling law, the casino owners can obtain a license in one of the three classes:

• Class 1 license: issued to operators that offer online gambling services based on contracts with players.
• Class 2 license: issued to operators that offer both online and offline gambling services.
• Class 3 license: issued to operators who provide lottery games.

Licensing and authorization requirements vary based on the class of license, as well as the type of authorization implied. On the whole, these are two separate procedures. The licensing procedure is more or less straightforward. Applications for all types – or classes – of licenses can be submitted simultaneously, together with the papers necessary for each procedure. Sometimes the Oficiului Național Pentru Jocuri de Noroc requests additional documents to be added to the potential licensee’s file – for the purpose of conducting all the background checks to the fullest extent possible.

Today, the reputation of online casinos licensed and regulated in Romania is far from stellar. Many operators are discouraged by multiple fees charged by the regulator, while a lot of players consider this particular jurisdiction to be unwilling to confront the growing problem of gambling addiction. When it comes to the latter issue, a lot of experts say Romania should borrow the Finnish online gambling regulation model. In Finland, the online gambling industry is nationalized and the government invests much of the revenue in social programs, e.g. anti-addiction treatment.

Player Protection

Even though through the recent reforms, the government of Romania has developed a decent framework for online gambling, the sector still requires further evolution and regulation. For example, according to the new draft law, certain online gambling advertising restrictions will be enforced by the government for the purpose of protecting vulnerable players and preventing gambling addiction. However, the draft law lacks clarity which will most likely result in confusion once it gets introduced.

Fair Gaming

Despite the Romanian online gambling licensing and regulatory framework still being highly loose and even somewhat subpar, the National Gambling Office continues to improve the situation both in terms of land-based casinos and internet gambling facilities. For example, Romania’s draft law that puts into effect the fourth EU Anti-Money Laundering Directive is soon to be introduced. On the one hand, the draft law contains strict measures that encourage fair gaming. On the other hand, it lacks vital details that can prevent certain fair gaming principles from being applied in a reasonable way.

Funds Protection

In conformity with the Romanian gambling legislation, both land-based and online gambling casino owners have certain financial obligations towards their community of players. For example, the owners of brick and mortar casinos are required to pay €1,000 to the public anti-addiction fund on an annual basis. What’s more, both online and offline gambling operators are obliged to develop a guarantee fund – in case they are unable to pay fees to the government’s budget. When it comes to players’ money protection, we haven’t found any solid evidence that online casino sites that are licensed in Romania take serious measures to protect their players’ money in case of their bankruptcy or any other financial trouble.

Operator Responsibilities

The list of online gambling operator responsibilities based on the principles of fair gaming is published at the official Oficiului Național Pentru Jocuri de Noroc website. We’ve translated them in English for your better understanding of the jurisdiction’s approach and i.e. to help you form your own opinion on casinos with Romanian License. So, in accordance with the National Gambling Office legal framework, all its potential licensees must:

• advertise their business as an entertainment, not as a source of income;
• hire and train professionals responsible for providing safe and fair gambling services;
• inform players about potential dangers related to online gambling;
• identify problem gamblers and take necessary measures to prevent them from playing further;
• partner with the government on a regular basis in terms of various social programs and initiatives.

To provide their players with secure and reliable online gambling experiences, Romanian casino owners are required to set regular deposit limits, as well as to introduce the functionality that allows gamblers to self-exclude from playing online games. Also, online casinos with Romanian license are obliged to contact their self-excluded i.e. possibly addicted players informing them about the possibility of receiving treatment at specialized centers.