Curacao Gaming Licence: Legal Support from Smart Money

One of the mandatory stages of launching an internet casino is buying a gambling licence. The modern iGaming market offers a lot of options. Offshore jurisdictions issuing gaming permits are located all over the world. They offer various conditions for applicants.

The Curacao Gaming Licence stands out from different business solutions. The jurisdiction proposes universal certification for all types of gambling sites and a minimum tax rate.

You can find out more about the advantages of this permit and order a ready-made website with a Curacao gambling licence from Smart Money. Our team is ready to take responsibility for the implementation of a project of any complexity and provide professional support at all stages of work.

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Curacao Online Casino Licence: About the Jurisdiction

Curacao is an island state that is part of the Lesser Antilles archipelago (Caribbean). Even though it is located off the coast of South America, the offshore zone is the territory of the Netherlands and has the status of an EU country. This characteristic allows local regulators to set loyal tax rates and develop all types of entrepreneurial activities (including gambling business).

Curacao casinos first entered the international market in 2001. From the moment of its foundation to the present day, the Curacao Internet Gaming Association is the only authorised body responsible for the legalisation of gambling projects.

Types of Curacao eGaming Licences

The first thing worth mentioning is that a Curacao eGaming licence can be issued for any type of gambling business (from slot machine clubs to poker rooms and sports betting establishments).

There are two types of this document:

1. Master Licence. This is a basic permission document that will allow you to organise different formats of gambling projects and provide legalising documents to third-party companies.-
2. Sublicence. It gives the right to organise full-fledged independent projects without permission from a third party. The Curacao sublicence allows the distribution of services is available in all corners of the world except for the Netherlands, France, USA, and on the territory of the offshore zone itself.

Requirements for Applicants

The Curacao Casino Licence is issued only to persons who have opened a representative office on the offshore territory.

To register an enterprise, you need to collect the following documents:

• police clearance certificate;
• copies of identity documents;
• bank account opening extract;
• receipts for payment of utilities for the maintenance of a representative office.

After registering a legal address, the investor can apply for the purchase of a licence.

To ensure the legal launch of Curacao casino, the operator needs to provide the following documents to the local regulator:

• confirmation of domain addresses ownership;
• technical parameters of games available on the casino website;
• a list of states in which the services will be provided;
• the layout of enterprise server equipment;
• a copy of the contract with software suppliers.

Besides, the operator must buy software for transit server equipment and provide its annual maintenance.

The Cost of the Permit

You need to know the cost of services to calculate the budget correctly.

Tax Policy of the Offshore Jurisdiction

• The operator of the Curacao casino has to pay a fixed flat tax rate, which makes up 2% of the company's revenue.
• Concluded transactions, sales and import duties of services are not subject to commission fees.
• Value-added tax is not charged.
• Unlimited withdrawal of dividends is available to entrepreneurs.

Curacao iGaming Licence: About the Benefits for Businessmen

The registration of firms in this offshore zone attracts investors with the following advantages:

1. The speed of the procedure. The process of legalising a gambling enterprise takes from 2 to 4 weeks.
2. Stable economic and political environment. The offshore territory is a member of the European Union. It offers applicants beneficial tax conditions with the opportunity to work legally in the largest gambling markets in the world.
3. Inexpensive registration. Curacao casino licence costs from 25 thousand dollars (depending on the set of basic services). Besides, there is a $5,600 monthly payment during the first two years of activity.
4. Single Curacao licence. The presence of the document gives operators the right to organise gambling start-ups of any format: bingo halls, poker rooms, slot machine projects, betting businesses, sweepstakes, etc.
5. Reliable partners. The availability of the gambling licence will let you enter into partnership agreements with leading software providers and the largest banks in Europe.
6. Additional services. Curacao eGaming offers a good range of related solutions: business technical support, private cloud servers, assistance in working with international financial organisations, etc.

Where to Order a Ready-Made Casino with a Curacao Licence as Fast as Possible?

Despite simplified legalisation and short terms for obtaining documents, the process can be simplified and accelerated even more. Just contact Smart Money employees.

We are ready to take on the complex support of your project and offer professional assistance for start-ups of any format.

Cooperation with Smart Money includes:

• consulting services;
• the help in collecting documents and registering a firm;
• the control of the procedure for filing and reviewing an application for a licence;
• the assistance in concluding agreements with banks and software suppliers;
• the development of a step-by-step business strategy, considering possible risks;
• professional maintenance (customer support 24/7).

Innovations in the Gambling Market in 2023

Curacao Licence: Current Conditions in 2024 (NOOGH)

Company registration in Curacao (NOOGH)

Cost of the business registration

9 000

The cost includes:

Registration fee (as well as notary expenses)

Commission of the Central Bank

FIU registration

Chamber of Commerce fee

Documents that are necessary for company registration:

01

Verified copy of the UBO passport

02

Certified utility bill (not older than 3 months)

03

Letter of recommendation from the bank

04

CV

05

Certificate of no criminal record

06

The properly signed enclosed acceptance form

Acquisition of a Gambling Permit (NOOGH)

The cost of support for obtaining a licence (registration on the portal)

12 500

Approximate time frame

3–4 months

At the moment, the new LOK legislation has not been adopted in Curacao, and therefore, all licences are issued in accordance with NOOGH.

The NOOGH legislation does not separate B2B and B2C licences and only offers operational permits without any division into categories (before the LOK comes into force).

NOOGH

Fees according to the current legislation

0

Application fee

18 500

Annual fee (charged when the certificate is granted)

0%

Guaranteed pension trust tax

3 600

Monthly licence fee

2 domains

Domains (it is possible to add up to 40 mirrors)

61 700

Total annual licence fee (state duty)

121 500

Total expenditures for the first year

The Ministry of Finance has been working on improving the legal framework of the jurisdiction for several years.

In November 2022, the Ministry of Finance presented a plan for key changes that are expected to come into force in the 3rd quarter of 2023, as part of the international iGaming exhibition SiGMA.

Innovations are aimed at regulating the gambling market. They are motivated by:

• the desire of the government to attract large investments in the sector;
• a global trend towards tightening control over organisers of gambling activities;
• the emergence of new payment methods (cryptocurrencies), games (NFT slots), and other solutions that require transparent regulation;
• the liquidation of the monopoly in the market caused by the limited number of Master Licences.

In February 2023, during the ICE conference in London, Curacao Finance Minister Javier Francisco Antonio Silvania confirmed that the bill was in the final stages of development. At the moment, it has been approved by the Social Economic Council (SER) committee. Further, the document must be confirmed by the Council of Advice (RVA) and the Parliament of Curacao.

The final version of the law will be available to the public only after it is signed and published on the government's official site. According to the minister, entrepreneurs will have an 18-month transitional period to adapt their iGaming projects to the new norms.

Key Changes in the Gaming Field

The Ministry of Finance has announced several innovations in the gambling market.

Transparent Regulation

Control and oversight functions will be transferred to the Curacao Gaming Authority (CGA). The executive body is planning to be created based on the Internet Gaming Association with significantly expanded competence.

The main tasks of the CGA are as follows:

• the registration and prolongation of licences;
• the control over the activities of operators and software developers;
• the issuance of recommendations and requests for corrections;
• the resolution of disputes between casinos and players;
• the revocation of gaming licences, etc.

Besides, the CGA will be involved in the development and implementation of gambling laws (together with the Ministry of Finance) if required in the future.

Two Types of Licences

The bill will eliminate the existing Master Licence and Sublicense system. Instead, it will introduce two types of permits:

Increasing Regulatory Requirements

The Ministry of Finance introduces additional conditions for applicants:

1. The opening of a local representative office. An entrepreneur must rent premises within the jurisdiction and hire a local employee for at least one key position. It can be a director, chief operating manager, AML officer, etc. The businessman needs to maintain a physical office within 5 years after obtaining a permit, as well as increase the staff to at least three employees within two years.
2. The passage of the Due Diligence procedure. This is a two-factor verification of investors and funding sources for iGaming projects. Along with the application for a licence, the candidate should submit personal declarations of each co-founder and capital provider and confirm the legality of the funds' origin.
3. The support for Responsible Gambling principles. The government plans to introduce new mechanisms for identifying and protecting players. These are age verification, self-restriction and self-exclusion tools, as well as informing users about the risks of gambling addiction. In addition, operators have to undergo independent audits and certifications of games regularly.
4. The connection to the goAML system. This is an international database of financial violations in terms of sponsoring terrorism and money laundering. After joining the service, the operator gives access to the personal information of customers and payment transactions.

The Cost of the Permit

The exact price of the licence will be known after the signing and publication of the law.

The Ministry of Finance claims that the cost of the document will remain competitive in the promising gambling market as before. Opening an online casino or a bookmaker site with a Curacao licence will be beneficial for investors.

Tax Incentives for Businesses

The government is working on two important fiscal initiatives:

1. Investment Tax Incentive. The simplified taxation scheme implies the phased exclusion of almost all fees for 10 years. To take advantage of the preferential regime, an entrepreneur must invest at least $3 million in the gambling industry of Curacao and create 10 job positions for local specialists.
2. Sales T. This initiative is aimed at B2B permit holders. The authorities plan to exempt them from sales tax for 10 years. This will reduce the fiscal burden on the gambling business, given that the lion's share of income in the B2B sector is generated by the sale of software (games, platforms, security programs, etc.) for B2C operators.

Entrepreneurs can use the expatriate regime if they hire highly skilled professionals. It implies reduced taxes on the wages of foreign personnel.

Cryptocurrency Payments

Curacao is the first jurisdiction in the world to issue a permit for a Bitcoin casino. The Latvian company received the licence in 2017.

Today, settlements in cryptocurrency are not prohibited by local legislation. However, the market itself requires more transparent regulation. The new version of the law will allow exchange operations with digital assets. Nevertheless, the norms for accepting deposits and withdrawing prize money in cryptocurrency are still under development.

The innovations will have a positive impact on the interaction between entrepreneurs and local banks. Today, businessmen are experiencing some difficulties when connecting their iGaming portals to the local financial system.

How Entrepreneurs will Apply for Licences in 2023

The scheme for obtaining permission depends on whether the operator is an active licensee of the jurisdiction or if the enterpriser is just planning to launch a gambling project.

The Transition to New Rules for Sub-Licence Holders

Within 18 months of signing the law, the operator must submit a new application to the CGA.

Further, within 6 months, the entrepreneur receives a preliminary licence. To get it, the businessman should:

• prepare and send a package of documents to the compliance officer (company charter, business plan, and personal declarations of investors);
• pay the state fee;
• pass a preliminary interview.

Then, if the application is approved, the operator has 12 months to obtain a full-value licence. To do this, it is necessary to prepare technical documentation (platform description, quality certificates, AML policies and procedures, etc.), go through another interview with the officer, and confirm the presence of a local office and employees.

The Issuance of Permits for New Entrepreneurs

The procedure consists of two stages.

In the first stage, the operator:

• applies to the CGA;
• submits a personal declaration and a business plan of an iGaming project for the check.

Only after preliminary approval by the Curacao Gaming Authority, the entrepreneur can register a legal entity, open an account with a local bank, rent an office, and hire staff.

In the second stage, the operator:

• sends technical documents to CGA;
• is interviewed by a compliance officer.

Based on the results of the verification, the CGA may issue a full-value or preliminary licence. The full permission is valid for 10 years, as before.

The Benefits for Operators

Registration of an offshore company attracts investors with the following advantages:

1. Speed of the procedure. The process of legalising a gambling company takes 2 to 4 weeks.
2. Stable economic and political environment. The offshore zone is a member of the European Union. It offers operators favourable tax conditions with the possibility to work in the largest gambling markets in the world within the framework of the law.
3. Affordable cost. Curacao casino licences cost from $25,000 (depending on the set of basic services). Besides, a monthly $5600 surcharge is provided for the first two years of the firm’s activities.
4. Unified Curacao Gaming Licence. The presence of this document will allow you to organise the operation of gambling websites of any format: bingo projects, poker rooms, slot machine portals, bookmaker and sweepstakes platforms, etc.
5. Reliable partners. The availability of a gambling licence will let you enter into partnership agreements with leading software providers and major banks in Europe.
6. Additional services. Curacao eGaming proposes a good selection of related solutions: technical support of business projects, private cloud servers, assistance in working with international financial institutions, etc.

Where to Order a Ready-Made Casino with a Curacao Licence?

Despite the simplified legalisation procedure and short terms for obtaining the necessary documents, the launch of your website can be simplified and accelerated, just contact Smart Money managers.

Order service

We are ready to undertake comprehensive project support and offer professional guidance for start-ups of any format.

Cooperation with Smart Money implies the following benefits:

• consulting services;
• assistance in collecting documents and registering a company;
• control over the application and consideration procedures;
• assistance in concluding agreements with banks and software suppliers;
• development of a step-by-step business strategy considering possible risks;
• professional customer support (working with clients in a round-the-clock mode).

The Main Things about Curacao Casino Licences

Obtaining a gambling licence from Curacao is one of the most convenient and fastest ways to enter the international market legally.

• The Curacao Gambling Commission offers loyal conditions for applicants: low taxes, no hidden fees, favourable economic environment, and high speed of processing applications.
• Sites with Curacao online casino licences can operate in the European market. The jurisdiction is part of the EU. It allows gambling operators to distribute their services on legitimate grounds.
• Low cost. The licensing cost depends on the basic package of services. It starts from 20-25 thousand dollars.
• Record time of legalisation. The permit can be obtained in 2–4 weeks.
• Smart Money will help you simplify the procedure of getting a Curacao online casino licence. We propose professional counselling and legal support of your project on favourable terms.

The Smart Money catalogue presents the best solutions for the iGaming business: payment aggregators, casino slots from leading suppliers, bookmaker franchises, live content, mobile applications, and others.

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A line of products for organising the work of land-based enterprises is available to our partners (from furniture to cash register software and self-service terminals).

Hans Adrian

B2b Gambling Business Advisor & Strategist