Austria sends Gambling Act reform to the European Commission for review

Austria’s Ministry of Finance has submitted draft Gambling Law changes to the European Commission, starting the TRIS review process and a three-month standstill period. For payment providers and operators, the immediate point is simple: the country is moving from a monopoly model toward an open online licensing framework, but only after EU compatibility checks and a fairly strict cleanup of existing activity.

1. The submission goes through the European Commission’s Technical Regulation Information System (TRIS), which gives member states three months to review the draft and raise objections on compatibility with EU rules on fair competition, barriers to market entry, and the free movement of services.
2. Austria has been debating reform of the Gambling Act of 1989 (Glücksspielgesetz – GSpG) since 2015. The current framework is a monopoly built around exclusive licences held by Österreichische Lotterien for lotteries and online gambling, and Casinos Austria for land-based casinos.
3. The dispute has not been academic. The text says the monopoly framework has faced repeated legal challenges from European operators, who argue that Austria’s exclusive online licensing regime is incompatible with EU principles on the free movement of services. The European Court of Justice (CJEU) has been pulled into the argument more than once, and the European Commission has already urged Austrian governments to overhaul online gambling rules.
4. In 2026, the coalition government of the ÖVP, SPÖ and NEOS agreed the first comprehensive package to reform Austria’s gambling laws, which the draft describes as the most significant overhaul of the Glücksspielgesetz in more than three decades. The centrepiece is an open online licensing framework for operators that meet strict regulatory, financial and responsible gambling standards.
5. There is also a hard transition date. Operators currently serving Austrian consumers without authorisation must stop by 1 January 2027 if they want to qualify for a licence. Companies that do not comply will be blocked from obtaining a licence for 18 months, rising to 24 months from 2030, and all outstanding tax liabilities and unresolved player compensation claims must be settled before a licence is granted.

For PSPs, the practical takeaway is that Austria may be preparing to replace a closed market with a licensed one, but the entry conditions are not soft. The draft ties market access to regulatory compliance, tax settlement, and player compensation clean-up before a licence is even on the table.