A Curaçao casino licence is permission to run online gambling under the law of Curaçao, an island that is one of the countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is not a UK licence. For a player in Great Britain, a site with only a Curaçao licence is outside GAMSTOP, outside the UKGC complaint route and outside the stake and wagering rules. This page explains who issues the licence, what it is and is not, and how to read a statement of one.
What the licence is
Curaçao is a country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, alongside Aruba, Sint Maarten and the Netherlands itself. Each of the four makes its own laws, including gambling laws. A casino licensed in Curaçao therefore has permission under Curaçao rules, and has no permission under rules in other places.
The confusion often comes from the word Kingdom. It describes a union of four countries. It is not a single gambling regulator, and neither the Dutch regulator nor the UK regulator has a role in Curaçao licensing. Equally, a Curaçao licence has no weight in Great Britain.
Who issues it
The regulator is the Curaçao Gaming Authority, abbreviated CGA, which describes itself in these terms on its website, cga.cw. It was formerly called the Curaçao Gaming Control Board. The CGA applies the National Ordinance on Games of Chance, known by its Dutch initials as the LOK.
When we read the CGA's site it was also announcing a move to a new platform for online gaming. What the ordinance and the platform regulate is set out by the CGA itself, and this page does not assess either. The Curaçao government publishes its own information at gobiernu.cw.
What it means for a UK player
The answer is the same as for any licence outside the UK system. A UK player at a site with only this licence has:
- no GAMSTOP cover, since the site is not a UKGC licensee and never checks the register. See the GAMSTOP page.
- no UKGC complaint route and no UKGC-approved ADR provider.
- no UK stake limits, and no ten times cap on wagering requirements, set out under stake limits.
- no UK affordability checks, which the affordability checks page explains.
- no UK disclosure of how customer funds are protected.
Playing there is not an offence for the player, since the Gambling Act 2005 section 33 offence is committed by the operator. Whether a site is authorised to serve people in Great Britain is a separate question from whether it is licensed in Curaçao, and only a UKGC licence answers it.
A licence is not a promise about service
A Curaçao licence tells you who the site's regulator is meant to be. It tells you little about how disputes are handled, how quickly payments move or whether a complaint would ever reach the regulator. Those things are set by the regulator's rules and its own practice, and a UK player has no independent way to test them.
The same is true of every foreign licence, and this site treats Curaçao the same way as the other places covered. See the licence countries hub for the full list.
How to read a statement
Sites with this licence often show a seal in the footer. A seal is a picture that the site chose to include, and it can be copied. A more useful approach:
- Note the licence number and the company named beside it.
- Look for the same company on the CGA's own website, or ask the CGA how to check a licence.
- Compare the company name in the terms, the licence and the payment descriptor.
- Remember that a brand may be run by a company with a different name.
- Search the Gambling Commission's register as well, with the UKGC licence check guide, because a Curaçao licence can sit alongside a UKGC one.
If any step fails, the statement remains unverified. A site can also hold a licence that covers some games and not others, and the terms of the licence decide that, not the logo.
Why it appears in searches
Searches for non-UK casinos and casinos not on GAMSTOP often lead to sites licensed in Curaçao. The non-UK casinos page sets that search out as information. The wording on those sites rarely says what a UK player gives up, which is why this site does.
What this page does not do
This page does not rank licences, endorse a site or say that a site is safe. The facts about the CGA come from the regulator's own pages, and we have not assessed the ordinance or the licence terms. For the exact rules, read the CGA directly.
Gambling help
Gambling is for adults aged 18 and over. If gambling is causing harm, the GamCare National Gambling Helpline is free on 0808 8020 133, 24 hours a day, at GamCare. You can register with GAMSTOP for UK licensed sites, and BeGambleAware provides advice and tools.