Brazil’s MP 1.394/2026 ends licensed fixed-odds betting in 30 days, keeps the fees, and leaves operators on the hook

Brazil has published Provisional Measure No. 1.394/2026, and the mechanics matter more than the politics: fixed-odds betting, online games, intermediation, and advertising are prohibited nationwide, including products offered from abroad. For PSPs, acquirers, and operators, the immediate issue is that paid licenses are being extinguished without compensation while the regulatory and tax obligations tied to the operating period remain in place.

1. The measure was published on Friday (25) in an extra edition of the Diário Oficial da União and was signed by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Finance Minister Dario Durigan, and Justice and Public Security Minister Wellington César Lima e Silva. It bans the exploration, offer, intermediation, and advertising of fixed-odds betting throughout Brazil, including sports betting and online games such as the so-called “Tigrinho,” even when the service is offered from outside the country.
2. Article 4 is the blunt part. Authorizations granted under Law 14.790/2023 “shall be extinguished upon the expiry of thirty days” from publication. The measure also says the termination is based on “public interest” and gives the betting operator no right to a full or partial refund of the authorization fee, and no right to compensation from the government.
3. Each company paid R$ 30 million for a five-year authorization. According to data from the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets of the Ministry of Finance, SPA-MF, 85 licensed betting operators are active in the country, and revenue from authorization fees totals about R$ 2.5 billion. The first authorizations took effect in January 2025, which means those operators will have used less than 22 of the 60 months they paid for in advance.
4. On that proportional basis, each operator loses more than R$ 19 million in paid-but-unused licensing value. Across all operators, the amount exceeds R$ 1.6 billion. Operators authorized after January 2025 lose even more. The measure does not recognize the costs companies incurred to meet Brazil’s compliance requirements, including facial-recognition identification systems, integration with the Sistema de Gestão de Apostas (Sigap), anti-money-laundering controls, responsible-gaming programs, and local headquarters and representation in Brazil.
5. The Instituto Brasileiro de Jogo Responsável (IBJR) called the ban a “serious sign of legal uncertainty” for investors who relied on Brazil’s rules. According to BNLData, platforms intend to go to court to seek reimbursement of both the authorization fees and their investments. At the same time, the text keeps all obligations from the period when the companies were operating, including the regulatory obligations listed in Article 10.

For high-risk payment providers, the practical takeaway is simple: a license in Brazil can be turned off by decree-like legislation, but the exposure does not disappear with it. Settlement flows, compliance spend, and historical obligations can survive the operating right itself, which is exactly the kind of asymmetry processors and banks try to price before they touch a vertical.