Belize Gaming License

Can you get a Belize online gambling license in 2026?

No. Belize is not issuing new online gambling licenses. The Gaming Control Board said so in a notice on 23 May 2024, and the Ministry of Investment repeated it on 9 June 2025: no online gaming company is licensed to operate from Belize, and none will be issued until further notice.

Any provider offering to obtain a Belize online gaming license right now is selling something the government says does not exist. Both notices tell entities claiming such a license to cease and desist.

What is the moratorium on Belize online gaming licenses?

The moratorium is a government freeze on new online gaming licenses in Belize, announced by the Gaming Control Board and restated by the Ministry of Investment. Both notices instruct any entity claiming a Belize license to cease and desist, and direct enquiries to the Investment, Policy and Compliance Unit.

The two notices on record:

• 23 May 2024, Gaming Control Board: notice on illegal online gaming.

• 9 June 2025, Ministry of Investment, Investment, Policy and Compliance Unit: a moratorium is in force, no online gaming company is currently licensed to operate from Belize, and operations by anyone claiming a license are unauthorised and illegal.

No later notice reverses either statement. Nothing published by the Government of Belize between June 2025 and August 2026 reopens online licensing, and the Gaming and Lotteries Commission has published no application route of its own.

Who regulates gambling in Belize?

The Gaming and Lotteries Commission regulates gambling in Belize under the Gaming and Lotteries Control Act, 2026. The Commission replaced two earlier bodies: the Gaming Control Board, which handled mainly land-based gambling under the Gaming Control Act, and the Belize Computer Wagering Licensing Board, which handled online and remote wagering.

The distinction matters because the two former bodies were not one desk. The Gaming Control Board, chaired by Bob Bounahra and drawn from nine government ministries, ran land-based licensing and inspections. The Belize Computer Wagering Licensing Board sat under separate legislation for computer wagering.

Neither former board maintained a public register or a detailed online presence, which is why agent descriptions, not regulator publications, are the source for most process detail below.

What laws govern gambling in Belize?

One law governs gambling in Belize: the Gaming and Lotteries Control Act, 2026, which received assent on 23 February 2026 and was gazetted the next day. Section 61 repealed the Gambling Prevention Act, the Computer Wagering Licensing Act, the Lotteries Control Act and the Gaming Control Act.

Repealed by section 61 of the 2026 Act:

• Gambling Prevention Act, Chapter 109.

• Computer Wagering Licensing Act, Chapter 149, the law behind online and remote wagering licensing.

• Lotteries Control Act, Chapter 151.

• Gaming Control Act, Chapter 152.

Subsidiary legislation survives the repeal. Under section 62(2), regulations made under the repealed Acts, including the Gaming Control (Online Gaming) Regulations 2004, stay in force so far as they are not inconsistent with the 2026 Act, until replaced.

Section 62(1) also preserves licences already issued: anything done under the repealed Acts is treated as done under the 2026 Act.

What is the Gaming and Lotteries Control Act 2026?

The Gaming and Lotteries Control Act, 2026 is Act No. 3 of 2026. The Act consolidates four repealed gambling laws into one framework and creates the Gaming and Lotteries Commission as a body corporate. Section 18 covers anyone conducting gaming services online or otherwise, so online operators fall inside its scope.

What the Act sets up:

• The Gaming and Lotteries Commission, with a Board of Directors drawn from named ministries under Schedule I, plus an Executive Director and staff.

• Two licence types under section 17(1): a licence to conduct gaming services, and a licence to promote, hold and conduct a lottery. Section 17(2) adds categories of storage, operator and owner.

• A duty on every online gaming service licence holder to open a bank account for processing user transactions, under section 26.

• A gaming tax on licensed premises and on online gaming service licence holders under section 29, split equally between the General Fund and the Official Charities Fund.

• A ministerial power to grant an exclusive lottery licence, which is then exempt from the application, deposit and tax sections and from business tax.

The Act sets no figures. Application fees are prescribed under section 18(1), the security deposit is set by the Commission under section 24(1), and the gaming tax rate is prescribed by the Minister responsible for finance under section 29(2). None of those had been published as of August 2026.

The Act began life as the Gaming and Lotteries Control Bill 2025, introduced in the House of Representatives on 27 June 2025 and reviewed by the Senate that November.

How did the Belize online gaming license work historically?

Before the moratorium, a Belize online gaming license was offshore only. Agents describe the historical route as: incorporate a Belize company, keep customer service and the client database in Belize while servers could sit offshore, and pass fit-and-proper probity checks. Three review stages followed, per vendor descriptions rather than published regulator guidance.

Stage 1: Initial evaluation (fit-and-proper)

A preliminary application opened the file and gave access to the application guidebook. The applicant then submitted probity forms, a business plan, passports and clean criminal record certificates, and the regulator assessed whether the applicant was fit and proper. Source: agent descriptions of the pre-moratorium process.

Stage 2: Government evaluation (Administrative Completeness Check and Gaming Board review)

An Administrative Completeness Check confirmed the file was complete, then the Gaming Board ran its initial evaluation and background checks. Agents put this stage at 8 to 16 weeks, with an expedited route of 4 to 6 weeks for a further USD 1,000 to 2,000. Source: agent listings.

Stage 3: Approval by Belize's Gaming License Review Committee

In Belize, the Gaming License Review Committee took the final decision. A granted licence ran 12 months and was renewed by 31 March, with agents advising that renewal start 60 days before expiry. All of this describes the regime before the moratorium and before the 2026 Act.

What did a Belize gaming license cost historically?

Historical Belize gaming license costs come from agent and vendor listings, not from a published regulator schedule. Those listings put the application package near USD 15,500, annual renewal near USD 10,000, a security deposit of USD 500,000, and a turnover tax of 0.75% capped at USD 250,000 a year.

Read the table as history. Under the 2026 Act, fees and the deposit are whatever the Commission prescribes, and no schedule had been published as of August 2026. No figure above describes a price a new applicant can pay today.

What taxes applied to Belize gaming operators?

A 0.75% tax on gross turnover applied to Belize gaming operators, capped at USD 250,000 a year, with no VAT and no separate gaming profits tax. Vendors also report an exemption where the whole business operated outside Belize. Under the 2026 Act, the Minister responsible for finance prescribes the gaming tax rate.

The 0.75% figure and the USD 250,000 cap come from agent listings describing the pre-moratorium regime. Section 29(2) of the 2026 Act leaves the rate to ministerial prescription, so the historical rate carries no guarantee of continuing.

Can a Belize license serve players inside Belize?

No. A Belize online gaming license was offshore only, and its conditions barred operators from accepting bets from Belize residents. Sources are consistent on this point. The 2026 Act keeps gambling inside Belize under license too, so domestic-facing operations sit outside the historical offshore-only model.

Belize residents were never blocked from reaching platforms licensed elsewhere. The restriction bound the licensee, not the player.

What are the advantages of a Belize gaming license?

By design, a Belize gaming license bundled casino, sportsbook, poker and lottery under one permission, taxed turnover at 0.75% with a USD 250,000 cap, charged no VAT, and let servers sit offshore in an English-speaking jurisdiction. None of that is available to a new applicant while the moratorium holds.

What the regime offered on paper:

• One licence covering casino, sports betting, poker, esports and lottery, instead of separate permissions per vertical.

• A 0.75% turnover tax capped at USD 250,000 a year.

• No VAT and no separate direct gaming tax, per agent listings.

• Servers permitted offshore, with customer service and the client database in Belize.

• English-language jurisdiction and a company formation step measured in days.

Every line above is written as design and history. None of it is a reason to apply in Belize in August 2026, because applications are not being accepted.

What are the disadvantages of a Belize gaming license?

The main disadvantage is availability: no new Belize gaming license is being issued. Beyond that, the historical regime demanded a USD 500,000 deposit, the regulator published little online, reform has only just landed, the license could not serve Belize residents, and banks treat low-oversight jurisdictions as high friction.

Ranked by what actually stops a project:

• The moratorium. New online licences are not issued, and the government calls claimed licences unauthorised and illegal.

• A USD 500,000 security deposit under the historical regime, which is a hard entry barrier for a startup operator.

• Thin regulator transparency. No public register and little published guidance from either former board.

• Regulatory uncertainty. The Gaming and Lotteries Commission is new, and its fees, deposit levels and tax rate are unpublished.

• Offshore-only scope. Belize residents cannot be served.

• Payment and banking friction. Acquirers and banks price low-oversight jurisdictions as high risk, which affects processing and account opening.

What are the alternatives to a Belize online gaming license?

Four offshore jurisdictions are issuing licenses now: Anjouan, Curacao, Kahnawake and Tobique. Anjouan is the fastest route to a first license, Curacao carries the most recognised offshore brand, Kahnawake the strongest reputation, and Tobique offers a Kahnawake-style option with a shorter queue. None grants access to regulated EU markets.

Full jurisdiction list, including onshore and EU options: gambling license hub.

Choosing between them turns on what the project needs first: speed to launch, a name that payment providers recognise, or a regulator whose reputation survives a partner's due diligence. None of the four opens a regulated European market, and none should be presented to players as if it did.

Why choose MGL for a Belize gaming license?

MGL tracks the Belize gaming license position rather than selling a license that cannot be issued. Work covers a current-status read, a costed comparison of jurisdictions that are open, monitoring of the Gaming and Lotteries Commission as it stands up, and corporate, AML and compliance preparation that transfers to whichever jurisdiction you pick.

Corporate structure, AML and KYC policies, responsible gaming policies and banking preparation are jurisdiction-agnostic. Built once, they carry into Anjouan, Curacao, Kahnawake or Tobique, and into Belize later if the Commission opens applications.

Ask us where Belize stands this month and which open jurisdiction fits your model.