Casino bonus terms rules and the CMA

Casino bonus terms rules: consumer law and the licence code

Two different regulators shape the small print on UK casino bonuses. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) enforces general consumer protection law, which says contract terms must be fair and transparent. Between 2016 and 2019 it used that law to investigate online gambling promotions and secured formal promises, known as undertakings, from several operators. The Gambling Commission then wrote its own requirements into the licence code, so that unfair bonus terms became a licensing matter as well as a consumer law one.

This page focuses on the bonus terms themselves. The rules for adverts that promote them are on our UK gambling advertising rules page, and every other regulation is listed on the UK casino rules hub.

What the CMA investigated in online casino bonuses

The CMA opened its case on 21 October 2016, worried that players were being ‘locked into complex and strict requirements’ attached to promotions. When it announced enforcement action in June 2017, the concerns it listed read like a catalogue of the worst bonus terms of that era:

• restricting withdrawals of winnings unless players met extensive wagering requirements, sometimes affecting their own deposited money;
• rules restricting certain play strategies, written vaguely enough to be used after the fact;
• firms giving themselves wide discretion to cancel bets or change odds after acceptance;
• unreasonably high minimum withdrawal amounts and low daily, weekly or monthly withdrawal caps;
• dormancy terms letting firms take money from inactive accounts;
• terms requiring winners to take part in publicity.

The official CMA online gambling case page (opens in a new tab) records each stage, with links to the undertakings themselves.

The CMA undertakings on casino bonus terms

Undertakings are formal commitments a business gives to the CMA instead of facing court action. They bind the firms that give them, though the CMA made clear that it expected the whole sector to apply the same standards.

The programme closed on 29 April 2019 with a joint letter from the CMA and the Gambling Commission telling operators that putting consumer law at the heart of their business model was essential to keeping trust. Ladbrokes is now part of the same Entain group that runs Coral, through LC International Limited.

Your rights under casino bonus terms today

Put the CMA outcomes together with the Commission’s current guidance and a clear set of rights emerges. The Commission’s guidance for players who can’t withdraw their winnings (opens in a new tab) says you can withdraw at any time without unreasonable delay or restriction, and you don’t have to accept payment in instalments.

• Your own deposit: bonus terms shouldn’t trap your deposited money behind wagering. Where real money and bonus funds sit side by side, terms should make clear how you can access your cash.
• No confiscation for late verification: a business can’t take your money because you didn’t verify your ID within a time limit, and it can’t demand ID at withdrawal that it could have asked for earlier.
• No unfair changes after you opt in: a promotion’s key terms shouldn’t be changed against you once you have accepted it.
• Clear, findable terms: the Commission’s code requires bonus terms to be clear, transparent, fair and readily accessible.

For the practical side of withdrawing while a bonus is active, see can I withdraw a casino bonus? and our guide to sticky vs non-sticky bonuses, which explains how the order in which cash and bonus money are used affects you.

Gambling Commission bonus rules since 19 January 2026

The Commission’s rewards and bonuses code, LCCP 5.1.1 (opens in a new tab), now contains three hard limits on top of the general fairness requirement. Its announcement that gambling promotions would be safer and simpler (opens in a new tab) set out the reasons.

1. Wagering capped at 10x. No bonus can require you to play through it more than 10 times. Our 10x wagering cap page covers it in detail.
2. One product per promotion. An offer can’t mix casino with betting, bingo or lottery play; see the mixed-product promotions ban.
3. No time-based escalation. Incentives that grow the more often or longer you gamble were removed from the code.

The Commission’s own illustration shows the scale of change: a £10 bonus with 50x wagering used to mean £500 of play before winnings could be withdrawn. At 10x the same bonus needs £100. The Commission did consult on banning wagering outright but chose a cap instead.

Worked examples: reading today’s bonus terms

The table uses the published terms of offers checked on 5 October 2026 to show how the current rules play out in pounds. All are for new customers aged 18+ and terms apply.

Two lessons stand out. First, a bigger bonus isn’t automatically better: Casumo’s £100 bonus needs £1,000 of slot play in a week, and with a typical slot returning around 96% over the long run, the expected cost of that play is roughly £40, before variance. Second, terms beyond wagering, such as the max bet rule, bonus expiry and game weighting, decide whether you can realistically complete an offer.

Unfair casino bonus terms to watch for

Most licensed operators have rewritten their terms since the CMA case, but problems still surface. In July 2025 the Commission fined Taichi Tech, which ran Fafabet, £170,000, partly because of a term allowing it to close accounts or forfeit winnings at its own discretion; the Commission’s announcement of the Taichi Tech fine (opens in a new tab) explains the failings. Warning signs include:

• wording that lets the casino void winnings ‘at its discretion’ without a clearly defined breach;
• vague bans on ‘irregular play’ with no examples of what counts;
• a cap on how much you can ever withdraw from your balance, as opposed to a published per-transaction limit;
• terms that let the casino change an offer after you have opted in;
• wagering above 10x on a bonus offered to British customers after 19 January 2026, which shouldn’t exist at a licensed site.

Our guides to voided winnings and bonus abuse explain how legitimate rules differ from catch-all clauses.

How to check casino bonus terms before you opt in

1. Confirm the casino is licensed by the Gambling Commission on the public register.
2. Find the full terms for the specific offer, not just the general site terms, and note the date they were last updated.
3. Write down the qualifying deposit or stake, and any excluded payment methods.
4. Calculate the wagering in pounds (bonus × multiple) and check it is no more than 10x.
5. Note the expiry, the maximum bet while the bonus is active, and which games count.
6. Check for a cap on bonus winnings and how your cash and bonus balances are used.
7. Save a copy or screenshot of the terms as they stood when you opted in.

Our longer guide on how to read bonus terms works through a full set of terms line by line.

What the bonus terms rules don’t do

Neither the CMA case nor the Commission’s code sets how generous a bonus must be or bans common conditions such as maximum bets, expiry dates or game weighting. Those are allowed if they are clear, fair and shown up front. The rules also can’t protect you at unlicensed sites, which don’t follow British licence conditions at all; our guide to offshore casinos explains the risks. And while the undertakings named particular companies, they didn’t create a separate legal code for the whole industry; the wider protection comes from general consumer law and the licence conditions.

What to do if a casino applies an unfair bonus term

Complain to the casino first, quoting the exact term and explaining why you think it is unclear or unfair, and attach your screenshots. The operator has eight weeks to respond. If you are still unhappy, you can take the dispute to the independent adjudicator the casino names, free of charge. The CMA doesn’t resolve individual disputes, and the Gambling Commission doesn’t either, though both use reports to spot wider problems. Our casino complaints and ADR page covers each step, and what happens if I break bonus terms? explains the casino’s side.

Casino bonus terms rules timeline

For a summary of how offers have changed since the cap, see casino bonuses before and after the 10x cap.

Casino offers with straightforward bonus terms

Under the current rules, offers with no wagering on winnings are the simplest to understand, because there is no playthrough to calculate. Coral and PlayOJO both structure their welcome offers that way, and both are licensed by the Gambling Commission.

Terms apply and both offers are for new customers aged 18+. Coral: between 1 October 2026 and 1 February 2027, deposit (excluding certain types) and bet £10+ on slots to receive 100 free spins on selected games at 10p each; you must accept them within 48 hours and use them within 7 days, and spin winnings have no wagering. Neteller, PayPal, Paysafe, Skrill, prepaid cards and certain debit cards don’t qualify. PlayOJO: a first deposit of at least £10 through the designated offer link brings 80 free spins on Big Bass Bonanza at 10p each, with winnings paid as cash and no wagering; it excludes Northern Ireland and can’t be combined with other offers. Coral and Ladbrokes share an operator, so read the terms about holding accounts at both. Bonuses don’t change the house edge, so treat them as extra entertainment rather than a route to profit.

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.