New UK casino licences

What counts as a new UK casino licence

A new UK casino licence is a remote casino operating licence that the Gambling Commission has granted to a company that did not hold one before, or to a new company inside an existing group. The licence belongs to the company, not to the website. One licence can cover dozens of casino brands, and a single brand can move from one licence to another over its life. That is why the phrase "new licence" on a review site can mean several different things, and why the public register (opens in a new tab) is the only place to settle the question.

Under the Gambling Act 2005, anyone who provides remote gambling and advertises to consumers in Britain needs a Commission licence. The Commission's operating licences guide (opens in a new tab) also says the company does not have to be incorporated in any particular country, but it must give a UK address for service. So a new licensee may be based in Malta, Gibraltar, Cyprus or London and still be fully licensed for British players. Our remote casino licence explainer covers the licence itself; this page is about spotting and reading new ones.

What a new licence entry on the register shows

Each business entry on the register lists the account number and company name, the head office address, the licence status, every licensed activity with the date it started, the trading names and domains linked to the account, and any regulatory action. For a brand-new licensee the giveaway is simple: the remote casino activity carries a recent start date, and the regulatory action list is empty because there has not been time for any.

The Commission adds a caveat worth knowing. Trading names and domains are supplied by the businesses themselves, so the Commission cannot vouch for their accuracy. If a site's address is missing from the domain list, that is a reason to look harder, not proof of anything on its own. Our guide on how to check a casino licence walks through a full search, and what a casino licence number is explains where the number should appear on the site.

Licence statuses you may see

• Active: the company may currently offer the activities listed.
• Suspended: the Commission has stopped the activity for now; you should not be able to play.
• Revoked: the Commission has taken the licence away.
• Surrendered: the company gave the licence up, often because brands moved to a different licence account.
• Expired: the licence lapsed.

Recent licence changes on the register, with dates

The clearest way to understand new UK casino licences is to look at real entries. Every example below was taken from the Commission's register and is listed with the date shown there. None of these is an unknown start-up: in each case an established brand or group set up or moved to a licence account.

Two lessons stand out. First, a recent licence date tells you about the company, not the brand: Sky's casino brands did not appear in 2024, they moved. You can see the newer Sky entry on the register page for account 65519 (opens in a new tab). Second, a surrendered licence is not necessarily bad news. It often means the business tidied its group structure. The signal to worry about is a suspension or revocation, or a site that claims a licence the register does not show.

Why companies apply for new UK casino licences

Genuinely new operators do apply, but in practice a large share of new licence accounts come from restructuring inside groups that are already licensed. Common reasons include:

• Group reorganisation: brands consolidated into one company, leaving older accounts to be surrendered.
• Acquisitions: a buyer moves acquired brands onto its own licensed company over time.
• Market entry: an overseas group sets up a licensed company to bring an existing international brand to Britain.
• Leaving a white label: a brand that ran on someone else's licence gets its own, so it controls its own compliance.
• Product scope: a company that held only a betting or bingo licence adds remote casino.

Our pages on casino sister sites and rebrands, closures and white labels go deeper into how brands sit under licences. The full application process is covered in how online casinos get a UK licence.

The people behind a licence: personal management licences

An operating licence is not just a company certificate. Senior people inside a licensee need their own personal management licences (PMLs). The Commission lists roles such as the chief executive or senior leadership, the heads of finance, marketing, compliance and IT, and the head of anti-money laundering. A PML costs £463 and must be renewed every five years, and the requirement was extended on 29 November 2024 to cover more roles.

For players this matters because it puts named, accountable individuals behind every new UK casino licence. The register has a separate search for personal licences, and the Commission can act against individuals as well as companies. VIP schemes, for example, must be overseen by a senior executive who holds a PML.

Rules a newly licensed casino must follow from day one

There is no grace period for a new licensee. The Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice apply in full from the first customer, and the current online version took effect on 29 July 2026. These are the dated rules you should expect to see working on any newly licensed site:

If a site that claims a new UK licence offers 35x wagering, a £10 slot spin, a credit card deposit or an autoplay button, it is either not licensed here or is breaking its licence. The 10x wagering cap and the £5 slot stake limit are the two quickest tells.

How to check a new casino licence yourself

This takes about two minutes and works for any site, new or old.

1. Scroll to the casino's footer and note the company name and the Gambling Commission account number. Our guide to reading a casino footer shows what should be there.
2. Open the Commission's business search and enter the account number, the company name or the site's domain.
3. Confirm the status reads Active and that remote casino is among the licensed activities.
4. Open the trading names and domains tabs and look for the exact web address you are on.
5. Note the start date. A recent date means the company is new to its licence, not that the brand is untested.
6. Read the regulatory actions tab. Settlements and warnings are public, with links to the Commission's statements.
7. Check the casino's terms for its customer funds protection rating and its named dispute resolution service.

Red flags around "newly licensed" casino claims

Unlicensed sites often borrow the language of licensing. Watch for these patterns, which are covered in more detail on our new casino red flags page:

• A licence badge that links to an image rather than to a register entry.
• Only an overseas licence (Curaçao, Anjouan or similar) shown, with a claim that it "covers the UK". It does not.
• A UK account number that belongs to a different company or that lists no casino activity.
• "Licence pending" or "application in progress" wording while the site already takes deposits.
• Promises of no ID checks, no limits or crypto-only payments, which a British licensee cannot offer.
• No mention of GAMSTOP or a named dispute resolution service.

Playing at an unlicensed site means losing the protections above, including access to an independent adjudicator and the rules on paying out winnings. Our page on unlicensed casino risks sets out what you give up.

Does a new licence mean less scrutiny?

No. The Commission's enforcement record shows action against both long-standing and recently restructured operators. In August 2025, white-label operator ProgressPlay was fined £1m for anti-money laundering and social responsibility failures across 134 websites, a reminder that a single licence can sit behind many sites. In October 2025, the UK company running Unibet paid a £10m penalty. Every action is published on the Commission's enforcement list (opens in a new tab) and summarised in our Gambling Commission fines explainer.

A brand-new licensee will usually show no actions at all, which is neutral rather than reassuring: it simply has no track record yet. Weigh that alongside the size and history of the group behind it.

UK casino licensing timeline

For the full sequence of changes, see our 2026 rules timeline and the latest UK casino rules feed.

Licensed alternatives to unverified new casinos

We don't list new casinos until we can verify them, and we never point readers to sites without a British licence. If you want a licensed site with a checkable register entry, the three below are partners whose licence accounts you can confirm in seconds: Coral (LC International Limited, 54743), PlayOJO (Skill On Net Limited, 39326) and Casumo (Recro Limited, 61549). The offer details below date from our check on 5 October 2026. All are for new customers aged 18 or over, and terms apply.

• Coral: bet £10 on slots to get 100 free spins at 10p each, selected games, no wagering on spin winnings; certain payment methods excluded.
• PlayOJO: 80 free spins on Big Bass Bonanza with a first deposit of £10 or more, 10p each, winnings paid as cash; not available in Northern Ireland.
• Casumo: 50% bonus up to £100 on a first deposit of at least £20, wager the bonus 10x within 7 days, £5 maximum bet while the bonus is active.

Compare more on our latest welcome offers page or return to the new casinos hub. Gambling should stay within a budget you can afford to lose; if it stops being fun, the National Gambling Helpline is free on 0808 8020 133.

18+. Gambling should be entertainment that costs money, not a way to make it. Set a deposit limit before you play: how to set deposit limits. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.