Gambling legislation reforms

Closes 13 Aug 2025

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Casino Act 1986 reforms

General commentary on the descriptions of changes in this consultation

The commentary below focuses solely on the substantive changes currently proposed in the FSA Bill and the GSC Bill. In the interest of keeping this document concise, it does not generally address consequential or ancillary amendments made to support the implementation of those substantive changes.

Please note that the descriptions provided are of the proposals as they currently stand. These may be subject to revision following the outcome of the public consultation or during the legislative process in the branches of Tynwald.

Read the changes to the Casino Act 1986

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Some minor amendments have been made within the Casino Act 1986 to ensure consistency and alignment across all categories of licence holders. These changes are intended to support a coherent and consistent supervisory framework across the sector. These changes are of a technical nature and do not affect the underlying policy of those provisions, and as such have not been detailed below in the interests of brevity.

Rights of appeal

A few provisions under the Act which previously were not subject to a right of appeal have been given such a right. This includes:

  • Section 12C (refusal to issue a temporary premises certificate, as well as the decision that any objections to a temporary premises certification is without justification under section 12C(4))
     
  • Section 12D (the issue of a temporary premises certificate subject to conditions)
     
  • Section 12E (the variation or revocation of a condition (including the imposition of new conditions) on any temporary premises certificate)
     
  • Section 12F (the revocation or suspension of a temporary premises certificate)

The Gambling (Amendment) Act 2006 has been updated in consequence.

Section 2 (Duties of the Board)

This section has been revised to align with FATF Recommendation 28 and to incorporate fitness and propriety considerations. Whilst the FATF do not define ‘fitness and propriety’ it is an internationally recognised term, and generally captures three core principles: integrity, competency and financial status. Previously, the section only referred to ‘character and financial status’.

An additional change has been made to include temporary premises in addition to the main casino premises, as being premises that would fall under the GSC’s regulatory purview under the Act. It’s omission would appear to be an oversight, and is now being corrected:

  • (2) The Board shall, subject to the provisions of this Act and of regulations made thereunder,:
    ...
    • (b) Supervise and control the operation of any casino and any premises in respect of which a temporary premises certificate is issued
       
    • (c) Investigate (as the context requires) the fitness and propriety and financial standing of any person applying for or holding any licence or otherwise concerned with the operation of any online gambling conducted in the Island; and

Section 3 (Casino licence)

A new subsection (1ZA) has been included which replicates the power inserted into OGRA at section 4(1A), and makes clear that an application for a casino licence must be in such a form (i.e. an application form) as is required by the GSC, and submitted with the relevant prescribed documents and information to support it.

Subsection (6) is being replaced to include reforms designed to strengthen the GSC’s entry controls. The reforms rely on the newly added definitions of ‘controller’, ‘associates’, ‘beneficial owners’ and ‘senior managers’, and provide the GSC with sufficient basis to ensure that all of these entities can be scrutinised at the application stage, and to the newly re-formulated standard of ‘fit and proper’. The changes will read as follows:

  • (6) The Council of Ministers shall not grant a casino licence to any person unless it is satisfied:
    •  
    • (a) In the case of a licence intended to be granted to an individual:
       
      • (i) That the individual is a fit and proper person to hold a casino licence
         
      • (ii) That the individual has adequate knowledge and financial means available to operate the casino
         
      • (iii) That any controller of the business that the individual proposes to carry on is a fit and proper person to act as such
         
      • (iv) That any senior manager of the business that the individual proposes to carry on is a fit and proper person to act as such
         
      • (v) That the individual is the occupier of the whole of the casino and any associated premises and has such security of tenure of the casino and any associated premises as the Council of Ministers considers adequate; and
         
      • (vi) That the individual intends to operate all the facilities and amenities to be provided at the casino and any associated premises
         
      • (vii) That the casino is being or will be operated in a manner consistent with the regulatory objectives set out in section 5 (regulatory objectives) of the Gambling Supervision Act 2010
    • (b) In the case of a licence intended to be granted to a body corporate:
       
      • (i) That the body is incorporated in the Island
         
      • (ii) That the body is a fit and proper person to hold a casino licence
         
      • (iii) That any director of the body is a fit and proper person to act as such
         
      • (iv) That any controller of the body is a fit and proper person to act as such
         
      • (v) As to the beneficial ownership of the share capital of the body
         
      • (vi) That any beneficial owner of the body is a fit and proper person to be such an owner
         
      • (vii) That any senior manager of the body is a fit and proper person to act as such
         
      • (viii) That the body has adequate financial means available to operate the casino
         
      • (ix) That the body is the occupier of the whole of the casino and any associated premises and has such security of tenure of the casino and any associated premises as the Council of Ministers considers adequate; and
         
      • (x) That the body intends to operate all the facilities and amenities to be provided at the casino and any associated premises
  • (6A) In assessing whether the Council of Ministers is satisfied as to the requirements in subsection (6), the Council of Ministers may have regard (among other things) to:
     
    • (a) In the case of a licence intended to be granted to a body corporate, the integrity, competence, financial standing, structure and organisation of that body
       
    • (b) The integrity, competence and financial standing of any other person mentioned in subsection (6), as the context requires
       
    • (c) The business the applicant for the licence proposes to carry on
       
    • (d) The money laundering or financing of terrorism risk
       
    • (e) The integrity of any person associated with a body corporate or associated with any other person mentioned in subsection (6)
  • (6B) The Board may, after consulting the Council of Ministers, issue written guidance setting out the criteria that the Council of Ministers will normally apply in assessing whether it is satisfied as required by subsection (6)

An additional, policy change has been made, which is to replace the previous requirement for the GSC to only satisfy itself of the integrity of vote-carrying shareholders with a need to satisfy itself over any shareholder (regardless of whether those shares carry voting rights or not). This change has been made in response to FATF recommendation 28, which provides in relation to a casino that the regulatory body should ‘prevent criminals or their associates from holding, or being the beneficial owner of, a significant or controlling interest… of a casino’. The recommendation makes clear that the GSC must have oversight of any kind of beneficial owner of the casino, not just those that have a controlling interest via vote-carrying shares. The definition of ‘relevant share’ has therefore been omitted from the Act, and all references to shares have been reworded to just refer to shares, generally.

Section 4 (Conditions of casino licence)

Changes made are as follows:

  • In subsection (3)(b) the notification requirement for changes in beneficial ownership of shares also includes changes to a ‘controller’ of the licence holder or a change in the ownership structure of the licence holder. This is consistent with the equivalent licence conditions that may be attached under new section 6(2A) of OGRA
     
  • Subsection (3)(c) is being replaced to bring within scope the GSC’s duty to be satisfied of a new director’s fitness and propriety as opposed to ‘integrity’ prior to that director being approved by the Board. Fitness and propriety is a broader term which incorporates the consideration of a person’s integrity as well as competency and financial standing
     
  • New subsection (3A) has been inserted in order to make clear that in the assessment of a prospective new director’s fitness and propriety (in accordance with subsection (3)(c) above), that the GSC may take into account any of the factors mentioned within section 3(6A) (as can be seen above)
     
  • A right to appeal has also been introduced in relation to a decision of the GSC to refuse the appointment of a director under section 4(3)(c)
     
  • The definition of ‘AML/CFT legislation’ contained within subsection (7) has been amended to align with the definition as it will now be defined under the Gambling (AML/CFT) Act 2018

Section 5 (Duration etc of casino licence)

New subsection (2A) has been inserted in order to set out the basis for GSC application forms and the information that the GSC collects at the licence renewal application stage.

Section 7 (Beneficial ownership of casinos)

The definition of ‘beneficial owner’ has been omitted, given it has been introduced as a bespoke definition within section 22.

Section 11 (Regulations)

This section has been amended as follows:

  • A power has been added for the Board to, by regulations, provide for anything necessary or expedient for the licensing, regulation and good conduct of a casino. This change has been introduced for consistency purposes with the regulation making power under section 12M(1)(a). There are no new regulations currently being considered under this new regulation making power
     
  • An additional power for regulations to be able to make any provision necessary for achieving compliance with personal data protection legislation has been added
     
  • A new subsection (2A) has been included to provide an express basis for some of the provisions of the current Casino Regulations 2011, which could benefit from a more secure statutory footing within these enabling powers. This change will be retrospective

Section 12G (Appeals to the Gambling Appeals Tribunal)

This section has been omitted, with the appeals provisions being replicated within the Gambling (Amendment) Act 2006, which contains the rest of the appeals provisions for the majority of the other Gambling Acts. Some further consequential amendments have been made within the Act, to refer to that 2006 Act, instead of section 12G.

Section 12M (Regulations under this Part)

Equivalent changes have been made for consistency, to those introduced at new section 11(2A), which have been discussed above.

Section 13 (Casino concession)

An amendment has been made to subsection (8) in order to reflect that the revocation of a casino licence is an appealable decision under the Gambling (Amendment) Act 2006. This is not a new ground of appeal, and just brings the subsection into line with the decisions that already may be appealed under the 2006 Act.

Section 14A (Inspection and investigation)

A new section has been inserted in order to give effect to the Schedule containing the new inspection and investigation powers.

Section 14B (Directions)

A new power to issue directions to the holder of a licence has been included. A direction is a tool which compels the holder of a licence to undertake specified actions in order to correct a failure identified in their compliance with their obligations under the Act or under the conditions of their licence.

A direction under this section may:

  • (a) Require the holder of a licence to comply with a request for information under paragraph 3 (requests for information for regulatory inspection purposes) of Schedule 2 (inspection and investigation)
     
  • (b) Require the holder of a licence to take such action in respect of the holder’s business as is specified in the direction
     
  • (c) Impose such requirements as are necessary to secure that any business carried on by the holder of a licence is in whole or in part suspended or discontinued; or
     
  • (d) Where a holder of a licence intends to surrender a licence, require the person to take such action as is necessary to secure that any business carried on by the holder is in whole or in part discontinued and wound up, and the direction must include a statement of the reasons for its issue

Non-compliance with a direction may be taken into account by the GSC when considering whether to take any of the further actions cited within subsection (4), namely, suspending or cancelling a casino licence, refusal to renew the licence, a number of actions that may be taken in respect of a temporary premises certificate, a variation of the certificate.

In the case of a direction which relates to the surrender process of a licence however, non-compliance will be considered a criminal offence, by virtue of the fact that none of the previously cited consequences would be particularly effective in the case of a licence holder that is in the process of surrendering its licence.

The issue of a direction under this section is subject to a right of appeal. The Gambling (Amendment) Act 2006 has been updated in consequence.

Section 14C (Persons unfit to be directors, senior managers, controllers or owners)

This new provision empowers the Gambling Supervision Commission (GSC) to issue a direction preventing an individual from continuing in the role of director, senior manager, controller, or beneficial owner of a casino licence, where the GSC reasonably believes that the individual is not fit and proper to hold such a position.

This amendment mirrors the equivalent changes being made to section 15 of the Online Gambling Regulation Act (OGRA), and is intended to provide consistency across the relevant legislative frameworks. The aim is to strengthen the GSC’s regulatory toolkit and enhance its ability to maintain effective oversight of licence holders.

The issue or variation of a direction under this section is subject to a right of appeal. The Gambling (Amendment) Act 2006 has been updated in consequence.

Section 19A (Offences in connection with information)

Provides for a new offence for providing the GSC either knowingly or recklessly with false or misleading information, or for failing without reasonable excuse to provide any information in connection with a requirement to provide that information to the GSC.

Section 22 (Interpretation)

New definitions have been inserted as follows (these are discussed in the section on these definitions above.):

  • New definition of ‘associate’
     
  • New definition of ‘beneficial owner’ (defined in line with s.4(1) the BO Act 2017 (opens in a new tab))
     
  • New definition of ‘controller’
     
  • New definition of ‘data protection legislation’
     
  • New definition of ‘equipment’
     
  • New definition of ‘exchange’ (and associated definitions of ‘designated exchange’ and ‘recognised exchange’)
     
  • Omitted definition of ‘quoted company’
     
  • Omitted definition of ‘relevant share’ (discussed above in section 6)
     
  • New definition of ‘senior manager’
     
  • New definition of ‘subsidiary
     
  • New definition of ‘temporary premises certificate’
7. Do you have any comments that you would like to make with respect to the other proposed amendments to this Act?