The Finance Ministry has set a deadline of October 1 for unlicensed operators. After that, any gambling business that has not applied for a Brazilian online gambling license will see its operations suspended before the regulated market launches on January 1.
Bet operators that do not apply by the end of this month will be considered illegal from October 1. Brazil’s new gambling regulator, the SPA, will allow them until October 10 to return customer funds and close accounts.
The ministry said in a statement:
Only companies that are already operating and have requested authorization by September 30, 2024, can continue operating until December 2024. By January 1, 2025, only fully compliant companies will be able to continue operating.
The SPA is currently reviewing 113 online gambling license applications after the priority application window closed on August 20. Applications must meet technical requirements set last month and will have to pay a fee of 30 million reais by the end of the year.
Regis Dudena, secretary general of the SPA, said:
We will keep the transition period until the end of December only for those who have already demonstrated that they want to operate in compliance with the law and in accordance with Brazilian regulations.
The number of gambling operators in Brazil’s unregulated market that haven’t applied for a license remains unclear. However, they are likely to face growing challenges in continuing operations, even without an official deadline in place. Pix, the most popular payment method for gambling in Brazil, is set to be targeted by the government, which has announced plans to block payments to unlicensed operators.
Additional measures under Resolution No. 615 will require both player and operator accounts to be authorized by the Central Bank of Brazil, further restricting unlicensed operators’ access to the market.
