Casino Regulations
| Status |
Regulated. Local licences are available for casino games in hotels, restaurants, amusement parks, similar facilities and on vessels in international traffic. Licences for organising card games in tournament form are also available. The state licence to operate land-based casinos has been removed from the Gambling Act as of January 1, 2026, meaning that no entity can obtain a licence to provide gambling in a specific premises intended for casino gambling. The state casinos, previously operated by AB Svenska Spel's subsidiary Casino Cosmopol AB, have been discontinued since April 2025. While dedicated casino premises are discontinued as of 2026, the 'Casino' licenses and fees below apply to authorised table games in alcohol-licensed restaurants, hotels, and vessels. |
| Games Permitted |
Casino games under a land-based commercial gambling licence Section 2, Chapter 7 of the Gambling Ordinance permits roulette, card games, dice games, additional games where the player plays against the licensee and blackjack as casino games that can be organised under a land-based commercial gambling licence. Casino games under a licence to organise gambling on vessels in international traffic Section 2, Chapter 8 of the Gambling Ordinance permits roulette, card games, dice games, additional games where the player plays against the licensee and blackjack as casino games that can be organised under a licence to organise gambling on vessels in international traffic. |
| Regulatory Authority | |
| Authorised Operators | Lists of authorised land-based commercial gambling licensees organising casino games and authorised operators of casino games on vessels in international traffic have been published by the Swedish Gambling Authority. |
| Licensing and Costs |
The licence to organise casino games is valid for a specified period of time up to five years. If the application for licence renewal has been submitted four months before the current licence expires, the licence shall be valid until the Swedish Gambling Authority has decided on the result of the renewal application. (Section 8, Chapter 4 Gambling Act). Section 1, Chapter 4, of the Gambling Act states the following prerequisites for a licence applicant:
As specified in Section 2, Chapter 4 of the Gambling Act, a licence may not be granted to anyone who:
A licensee who does not have residence or establishment in a country within the European Economic Area (EEA) must have a physical representative who is resident in Sweden and Sections 1 and 2, Chapter 4 of the Gambling Act also apply to the physical representative (Section 4, Chapter 4, Gambling Act). Casino games under a land-based commercial gambling licence General licensing information According to Section 2, Chapter 9 of the Gambling Act, the land-based commercial gambling licence to organise casino games is issued if the gambling is provided in conjunction with:
Information related to licence applications has been published by the Swedish Gambling Authority. Licensing costs Section 2(6), Chapter 15 of the Gambling Ordinance states the following application fee for commercial casino gaming:
According to the Appendix of the Swedish Gambling Authority’s Regulations on supervision fees (SIFS 2026:1), the annual supervision fee owed by a commercial casino gambling licensee to cover the cost of the supervision exercised by the Swedish Gambling Authority ranges from SEK3,000 to SEK850,000 (€78,000). Additional information regarding organising casino games under a land-based commercial gambling licence is available in the Swedish Gambling Authority’s Regulations and general advice on land-based commercial gambling (LIFS 2018:6). Casino games under a licence to organise gambling on vessels in international traffic General licensing information Section 1, Chapter 10 of the Gambling Act provides for a licence to organise casino games, which do not take place online or at a casino, on vessels in international traffic. Information related to licence applications has been published by the Swedish Gambling Authority. “The provisions in the agreement regarding gambling machines on passenger vessels operating a regular service between Sweden and Finland shall apply to such machines on vessels in international traffic that are subject to this agreement”. (Section 4, Chapter 1 Gambling Act) Licensing costs The annual supervision fee is SEK6,000 (€540) per vessel (Appendix 1, Swedish Gambling Authority’s Regulations on supervision fees (SIFS 2026:1)). Additional information regarding the licence to organise gambling on vessels in international traffic can be found in Chapter 8 of the Gambling Ordinance. Additional information regarding cash and token gambling machines on vessels in international traffic is available in the Swedish Gambling Authority’s Regulation and general advice on gambling on ships in international traffic (LIFS 2018:7). |
| Taxation | According to Sections 7, 8 and 9 of the Gambling Tax Law, the monthly tax paid by a gambling operator amounts to 22 percent of the difference between total receipts and winnings paid out (gross gaming revenue). |
| Taxation of Players’ Winnings |
As explained by the Swedish Tax Agency, gambling winnings are tax-free when:
As explained by the Swedish Tax Agency, a tax on profits over SEK100 is payable if:
The net profit is the sum of winnings less the sum of bets paid during the calendar year. The tax on net profit in this case is 30 percent. |
| Player Credit | Section 8, Chapter 14 of the Gambling Act prohibits a licensee or a gambling agent from allowing participation in games being financed with credit. This extended credit ban on gambling also imposes a prohibition on the use of credit cards for gambling payments. |
Cardrooms
Card games in tournament form are subject to the licence to organise land-based commercial gambling or gambling on vessels in international traffic.
According to Section 5, Chapter 9 of the Gambling Act, a land-based commercial gambling licence to organise card games in tournament may be granted if:
The licence may have a validity period of two years and cover a maximum of two tournaments per day (Section 6, Chapter 9, Gambling Act).
The licence only covers poker games where there are both community cards and pocket/hole cards (Section 8, Chapter 7, Gambling Ordinance).
Section 2(8), Chapter 15 of the Gambling Ordinance states the application fee for the licence to organise card game tournaments is as follows:
Additional requirements can be found in Chapter 9 of the Gambling Act and Chapter 7 of the Gambling Ordinance.
Annual land-based card tournaments can be organised by a commercial online gambling licensee independently or jointly with another online licensee. The number of players may not exceed 10,000 (Section 7, Chapter 9, Gambling Act).
A list of authorised organisers of land-based card games in tournament form has been published by the Swedish Gambling Authority.
Online poker is also permitted under Section 3 of the Swedish Gambling Authority’s Regulations and general advice on commercial online gambling and betting (LIFS 2018:5). Please refer to the “Online Gambling” section of this report for more information.
Regulatory Framework
Gambling
All gambling-related regulations and guidelines have been published on the Swedish Gambling Authority’s website.
Anti-Money Laundering
Additional guidelines and related documents on money laundering and terrorist financing have been published on the Swedish Gambling Authority’s website.
Data Protection
Advertising
Relevant Contacts
Gambling Regulator
Swedish Gambling Authority (Spelinspektionen)
Tel: (+46) (0) 152 650 100
Email: registrator@spelinspektionen.se
AML Regulators
Financial Police (Finanspolisen) (within the Swedish Police)
The Swedish Police Authority leads a national coordinating function for measures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, and the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority participates in this function.
According to Section 2, Chapter 18 of the Gambling Act, the Swedish Gambling Authority supervises licensees’ compliance with measures against money laundering and terrorist financing.
Data Protection Authority
Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection (Integritetsskyddsmyndigheten)
Tel: (+46) (0)8 657 6100
Email: imy@imy.se
Advertising Regulators
Consumer Agency
Tel: (+46) (0)771 525 525
Email: konsumentverket@konsumentverket.se
The Swedish Gambling Authority and the Consumer Agency jointly work on the supervision of gambling advertising in Sweden.
Swedish Advertising Ombudsman (Reklamombudsmannen) (self-regulatory body)
Tel: (+46) 08 662 0550
Email: ro@reklamombudsmannen.org
The Swedish Advertising Ombudsman (Reklamombudsmannen) is a self-regulatory organisation founded by the Swedish advertising industry, and reviews whether commercial advertising targeted at the Swedish market is compliant with the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Marketing Code.