Online Gambling in the Netherlands 2026

Written and fact-checked by the GamblingHolland.nl editorial team · Last updated October 2026 · Sources: Kansspelautoriteit, Belastingdienst · Editorial policy

Gambling in the Netherlands: the website we wish existed when the market opened

We have been writing about gambling in the Netherlands since before the online market even existed here. We watched the first KOA licences being handed out in 2021, sat through every advertising ban and tax hike since, and read more KSA sanction decisions than is probably healthy. All of that ends up on this site: what is legal, what it actually costs to play, which operators hold a real Dutch licence and where the small print bites.

GamblingHolland.nl is an independent information platform. We do not run a casino and we do not take bets. Some links to operators and lotteries earn us a commission (our affiliate disclosure explains how), but the facts on this page come from the Kansspelautoriteit and the Dutch tax authority, not from anyone's marketing department.

The state of the Dutch gambling market in 2026

Honestly? 2026 is the strangest year this market has had since it opened. The gambling tax jumped to 37.8% on 1 January, and instead of bringing in more money, the legal market shrank: licensed operators booked €602 million in gross gaming revenue in the second half of 2025, down 18% on a year earlier. Meanwhile roughly nine out of ten Dutch players still play at licensed sites, but only about half of every euro gambled stays in the legal market. The rest leaks to illegal operators that pay no Dutch tax and offer no player protection. That tension runs through almost everything we publish, and you can follow it on our market trends and market statistics pages.

What you can play in the Netherlands

Everything below is legal in the Netherlands, as long as you play at a KSA-licensed operator and you are 18 or older. What surprises most newcomers is not what is allowed, but how tightly it is regulated compared to almost anywhere else in Europe.

Casino games

Slots are, by some distance, where the Dutch money goes. Our page on online slots in the Netherlands explains why the licensed lobbies look the way they do, and what payout percentages actually mean. If you prefer a table, we have separate pages on Dutch roulette sites, blackjack and baccarat. Roulette is our own favourite game, so much so that we run a sister site about it: roulette.casino explains the odds, the house edge and how every bet on the wheel works, without any casino promotion. And if you want a human being dealing your cards, the live casino studios, with real dealers, streamed tables and the game shows built on top of them, are where the industry has put most of its creativity in recent years.

Sports betting

Betting on football is practically a national pastime here, but the rules around it have tightened hard: gambling ads disappeared from TV in 2023 and shirt sponsorship followed with the sponsorship ban of July 2025. Our sports betting page covers how the licensed bookmakers compare, which bookmakers are legal, and the one corner of the market most people forget exists: horse racing betting, which has its own dedicated licence.

Poker

Online poker in the Netherlands is a small but stubborn scene. Only a handful of licensed rooms offer it, and liquidity is nothing like the old pre-regulation days. We keep track of who still deals cards, and at what stakes, on our Dutch poker sites page.

Lotteries

The lotteries are the oldest and, by participation, biggest form of gambling in the country: millions of households play, many without ever thinking of it as gambling. The Postcode Lottery turns your own postcode into your ticket number, the classic Lotto and the Eurojackpot chase the big jackpots, and krasloten are the instant-win corner of the market.

Licensed operators we review

Every operator below holds (or held) a Dutch KOA licence, and we have reviewed each one the same way: licence details first, then games, payments and how they handled the players we heard from. The full picture, including licence numbers and expiry dates, lives on our licence overview. Always double-check current licence status in the KSA register before you deposit; 2026 is a year in which several five-year licences expire and not everyone is coming back.

Regulation: how the KSA keeps score

The legal foundation is the Gambling Act (Wet op de kansspelen), extended in October 2021 by the Remote Gambling Act (KOA) that opened the online market. The Kansspelautoriteit enforces it, and enforce it does: fines in the hundreds of thousands of euros for advertising to young adults are no longer news, they are routine. A few rules shape daily life for players more than any other. Age and identity checks happen before your first bet, not after. Since October 2024, deposits above €700 a month (€300 if you are under 24) require an affordability check, and operators must contact you well before that point. Gambling advertising has been banned from TV, radio and billboards since July 2023, bonuses may only be offered to players of 24 and over, and anyone can lock themselves out of every legal casino at once via CRUKS.

Gambling tax in 2026: what you actually pay

Here is the part that confuses almost everyone, so let us keep it simple. The Dutch gambling tax is 37.8% in 2026, the highest it has ever been, but at licensed casinos and Dutch lotteries the operator pays it, not you. Win €10,000 on a licensed slot or on the Lotto, and €10,000 lands in your account. The exception that catches people out: prizes above €449 from foreign or unlicensed providers, where you must file and pay the 37.8% yourself. That is one more practical reason to stay inside the licensed market. The full rules, including the rate history and how the €449 exemption works, are on our gambling tax page.

Payments: iDEAL rules, crypto is out

Practically every licensed casino runs on iDEAL. Deposits are instant and free, and our page on casinos with iDEAL compares how quickly they pay back out. What you will not find at any legal Dutch operator is cryptocurrency. Bitcoin and other crypto are not an approved payment method under the Dutch licence conditions, full stop. Any site that lets Dutch players deposit crypto is by definition operating illegally here.

Playing safely

We write about this market because it interests us, not because we think everyone should gamble. More than 100,000 people have registered with CRUKS, and behind every one of those registrations is someone for whom it stopped being fun. Set a deposit limit before your first session, not after a bad night. If you ever catch yourself chasing losses or hiding how much you play, take our anonymous gambling self-test (it takes two minutes) and have a look at our safe gambling guidelines. There is no judgement on those pages, just honest tools.

Frequently asked questions

Is online gambling legal in the Netherlands?

Yes. Online gambling has been legal since 1 October 2021 under the Remote Gambling Act (KOA), but only at operators licensed by the Kansspelautoriteit. As of 2026 there are 31 licence holders, of which 28 actively offer games. Playing at unlicensed sites is not prosecuted for the player, but you have no legal protection and you owe gambling tax on winnings above €449.

How do I check whether a casino has a Dutch licence?

Look it up in the public Kansspelwijzer register of the Kansspelautoriteit, which lists every licensed operator. Our own licence overview summarises the same information per brand, with our review linked next to it.

Do I pay tax on my winnings?

Not at licensed Dutch operators and lotteries. There the operator pays the 37.8% gambling tax and your prize is paid out net. Only winnings above €449 from foreign or unlicensed providers must be declared and taxed by you personally.

Can I pay with Bitcoin or other crypto at Dutch casinos?

No. Cryptocurrency is not an approved payment method under the Dutch licensing rules, so no legal Dutch casino accepts it. Sites that do accept crypto from Dutch players are operating without a licence. iDEAL is the standard payment method at every licensed operator.

What are the deposit limits in 2026?

Since October 2024, operators must contact you when your net deposits pass €350 a month (€150 if you are under 24), and deposits above €700 a month (€300 under 24) are only possible after an affordability check. You also set your own personal limits when you register, and lowering them takes effect immediately.

What is CRUKS and how does it work?

CRUKS is the national self-exclusion register. One registration blocks you from every licensed online casino and every physical casino and gaming hall in the Netherlands at once, for a minimum of six months. Registration is free and can be done online with your DigiD. Our CRUKS page walks you through it.

Which online casino is the best in the Netherlands?

There is no single honest answer. It depends on whether you care most about slots, live casino, sports betting or payout speed. That is exactly why we write separate reviews instead of a ranked top 10: compare the operators in the table above on the points that matter to you, and always verify the licence in the KSA register before you deposit.

GamblingHolland.nl is an independent information platform and does not offer gambling services. Gambling carries financial risk, so only spend what you can afford to lose and play only at KSA-licensed operators. If gambling stops being fun, consider CRUKS self-exclusion or the free helpline on 0800-1995, and find support through AGOG. 18+.