Austria Sends Its Gambling Reform Bill to the European Commission

Austria’s Finance Ministry has formally notified the European Commission of a draft overhaul of the country’s gambling rules, which starts a mandatory three-month standstill period before the law can take effect. For high-risk operators and PSPs, the interesting part is not the headline change itself but the mechanics: tighter online controls, a centralized player register, and a licensing reset with some very specific transition dates.

1. The bill now sits with the European Commission for the required three-month review period. During that time, the Commission may raise objections on state aid or on compliance with the EU single market rules, while Austria’s parliamentary process can continue in parallel.
2. The reform would create a national register combining voluntary self-exclusions and operator-imposed bans. It would cover casinos, slot machines, and online platforms, with the aim of stopping excluded players from simply moving to another operator or another game type and carrying on as if nothing happened.
3. Austria also plans deposit limits for online gambling and slots, with lower caps for players aged 18 to 26. The bill would reduce maximum bets and slot speed, and require a 90-minute break after continuous play. Operators would also have to assess the addictive potential of their products to support future research and prevention policy.
4. On licensing, the government wants open licenses for online gambling operators under transitional rules. Operators currently running without authorization would have to stop before 1 January 2027 if they want to be eligible for a license immediately. If they do not, they would face an 18-month wait, extended to 24 months from 2030. Applicants would also need to clear outstanding tax debts and pay uncovered claims from around 20,000 affected players.
5. The Austrian Betting and Gaming Association (OVWG) says it distrusts the transition period, warning that it could push customers toward Win2Day or legal land-based casinos while the black market ends up as the main beneficiary. The bill also includes a digital supervision platform with a centralized deposit limit independent of each operator, plus payment blocking, blacklists, and network blocking aimed at stopping illegal operators from serving Austrian users.

The draft also sets a maximum of 13 licenses. That is the number operators and PSPs should keep in mind, because in a market like this the real question is not whether regulation is coming; it is who gets access, on what timeline, and under which controls.