Bulgaria issues first online gaming license under new laws

The license was granted immediately after the Bulgarian State Gaming Commission (BSGC) blacklisted a further 20 domains from operating in the Eastern European country. Internet gambling had not been strictly regulated in Bulgaria, opening the door to an increasing number of scam websites, and the majority of international operators have now been placed on the black list.

Under the country’s gambling act, last amended in 2012, domains are blacklisted if they are suspected of operating in Bulgaria unlicensed or without paying tax. Operators are also required to have a physical presence in Bulgaria and minimum of five years experience in the online gaming industry. Blacklisted websites are given three days to cut access to Bulgarian customers or the BSGC has authority to order the country’s internet service provider to block access.

The frustrating system means that even if operators try to remove themselves from the blacklist by obtaining a license and paying tax, they are unable to until a new round of licensing ensues. The blacklist currently contains some of the world’s major gaming sites, such as William Hill, Betfair, Ladbrokes, Unibet and PokerStars – even though PokerStars is the official sponsor of the Bulgarian poker tour.

Should the government derestrict the online marketplace, analysts in the European market project that the sector could generate between us$ 200- us$ 300 million taxes a year. Instead, customers are left unprotected as they continue to wager illegally on offshore websites with tax revenue leaked overseas.