DGOJ opens dialogue with Spain’s online gambling sector on the planned reform of the Juego law

Spain’s regulator, the DGOJ, has started the consultation phase that will shape the next version of Law 13/2011. For online gambling operators and their payment providers, the interesting part is not the political choreography; it is the direction of travel on KYC (identity verification), payment controls, illegal-market enforcement, and advertising.

1. The first meeting took place on 21 July and marked the start of a new phase in the reform process after the public consultation launched by the DGOJ in May. Jdigital, which represents online gambling operators in Spain, was the first entity called in to discuss the proposals submitted during that consultation.
2. The regulator said it received more than 50 submissions from associations, operators, and other sector participants. That matters because the final draft is being built from a fairly wide set of industry objections and suggestions, not from a single operator view.
3. The DGOJ will continue meeting with representatives of land-based gambling and other organizations involved, including LaLiga, before drafting the final reform text. In practice, this is the part where the regulator collects competing pressures before putting them into a legal draft.
4. The planned changes focus on several points that high-risk PSPs will care about directly: stronger identity verification systems and payment methods, tougher measures against illegal gambling, possible rules on celebrities and influencers in gambling advertising, and new tools to strengthen player protection.
5. The consultation round will continue until September. After that, the DGOJ will prepare the draft of the reform to Law 13/2011, which will then go through another public information and hearing process, giving operators, associations, and other stakeholders another chance to comment before the legislative process moves on.

For payment teams, the signal is straightforward: Spain is looking at tighter controls around onboarding, transaction flows, and user routing toward licensed operators. If you process for the regulated market there, this is the part of the reform worth watching closely.