New Zealand opens online casino licensing process ahead of regulated market launch in 2027

The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) has started the first phase of online casino licensing in New Zealand, opening expressions of interest for one of 15 licences under the country’s new digital gambling regime. For PSPs, acquirers, and banks, this is the point where a regulated market stops being a policy document and starts looking like an actual onboarding queue.

1. The official invitation was published on 16 July and has been open since Friday. Interested operators must submit their expression of interest through the GETS public procurement portal by 14 August 2026, and each application requires a non-refundable fee of US$11.082.
2. The government has capped the market at 15 licences and requires applicants to show access to a minimum capital of approximately US$4.37 million. No company may hold more than three licences, which is a fairly direct way of keeping the market concentrated rather than letting it sprawl.
3. Applicants must disclose the full identity of their directors, their ownership and management structure, and a detailed description of the brand and gaming platform they intend to operate. The DIA is also asking for verifiable supporting documents, including credit reports, certified identification, criminal record certificates or international equivalents, and evidence of available capital.
4. Entain has already said it wants to apply for three licences. Its CEO, Stella David, said in March that, thanks to the TAB betting brand it operates in New Zealand, the company would be the only one able to combine sports betting and online casino games in a single offer.
5. Applicants must also declare any previous regulatory sanctions, ongoing legal proceedings, insolvency or liquidation cases, and adverse decisions from advertising regulators, both in New Zealand and elsewhere. The new Online Casino Gambling Act, passed by Parliament this year, legalised and tightly regulated the activity, with licence auctions expected in September, full applications in October, and final licences to start being issued in early 2027.

The thing to watch here is the structure: 15 licences, a capital threshold, and a hard cap of three per company. That points to a market that will be selective by design, which matters if you sit on the payment side and need to decide how much concentration risk you are willing to take on a handful of approved operators.