Norway’s new online gambling regulations on the way to the European Commission

The Norwegian government submitted its latest online gambling regulations to the European Commission for its opinion Monday, triggering a three-month “stand still” review period prior to implementation.

The legislation has been described as commercially protective and designed to keep foreign companies out of the market, and includes powers given to the Norwegian Gaming Authority to order blocks on financial transactions in any way associated with online gambling entities that are not authorised in Norway.

Foreign companies cannot obtain licences in Norway because there is no provision for this in the nation’s gambling laws, leaving locally established firms in which the state has an interest such as Norsk Tipping and Rikstoto to command the market.

The NGA is also empowered to require financial institutions to disclose information on clients who are suspected of being involved or associated with unauthorised online gambling, including account numbers.

Related and similar