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Finland’s long-planned change away from a full gambling monopoly has cleared its final political hurdle, after President Alexander Stubb approved the new Gambling Act and related laws on January 16, 2026.
The reform sets Finland on a two-track system that will look familiar to iGaming operators across Europe: a competitive licensing market for key online products, while the state keeps exclusive control of lotteries and most land-based gambling.
What changes, and what stays with Veikkaus
Online betting, online slots and casino games, and online money bingo will open to competition under licences.
Veikkaus, the state-owned operator, does not disappear. Instead, it keeps exclusive rights over lottery-style games, scratch cards, and physical slot machines and casino games.
Finland’s Parliament backed the overhaul in mid-December, with reporting on the vote putting support at roughly 158 in favour.
The key dates iGaming operators are watching
The law is already signed, but the market will be fully open later on these dates.
- March 1, 2026: Companies can start applying for licences with the National Police Board.
- July 1, 2027: The competitive market goes live, and the Finnish Supervisory Agency takes over licensing and supervision.
- July 1, 2028: Licensed operators can only use gambling software from suppliers that hold a Finnish gambling software licence, tightening the B2B layer a year after launch.
Until the end of June 2027, Veikkaus remains the only company authorized to operate and market gambling games under National Police Board supervision.
A harder line on onboarding, limits, and self-exclusion
Finland is pairing market access with stricter account-level controls.
The new act keeps the gambling age limit at 18, and it requires strong identification at registration to confirm a player’s age. It also moves to mandatory identification across gambling, which the government says will support tools like self-exclusion, spending controls, and self-monitoring.
Players will also have to set daily and monthly transfer limits for money added to their player accounts, and Finland plans a centralised self-exclusion system that covers all licensed operators.
The government’s stated goal is simple: push more play into a supervised system while limiting harm
In the government’s own wording, the reform aims to “prevent and reduce” gambling harm and lift channelisation, meaning more Finnish wagering happens inside the regulated market instead of flowing offshore.
Finland is offering licences and legal market access, but it is pairing that with identity checks, stricter marketing rules, and a B2B licensing layer that can reshape which suppliers end up powering the market after launch.
The next real milestone is March 1, 2026, when applications open and operators start working through Finland’s licence requirements.
After that, the big question is how Finland writes its secondary rules and how tough the regulator becomes on marketing, product design, and compliance once the market opens on July 1, 2027.
Source: Tribuna
