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• Gambling Commission

Gambling & Lottery Licences

We work with the Gambling Commission to issue licences for gaming, betting and lotteries.

Gambling Act 2005

The Gambling Act 2005 came into effect from early 2007 and:

• repealed most of the existing laws relating to gambling in Great Britain;
• replaced them with an improved, more comprehensive structure of gambling regulation;
• introduced a unified regulator for gambling, the Gambling Commission.

Licensing Considerations

When considering issuing a licence we take account of three key factors in our decision making:

• preventing gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, being associated with crime or disorder, or being used to support crime;
• ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way; and
• protecting children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling

Licences

Three types of licence are required by the new Act:

• an operator licence concerned with the management and conduct of gambling;
• a personal licence for persons with key operational functions connected with the gambling business;
• a premises licence for the property where the gambling takes place.

Operator’s licences and personal licences are issued and regulated by the Gambling Commission, whilst responsibility for the issue and regulation of premises licences will rest with local authorities.

PDF
 Lottery - Application Form (0.17mb)

Fees

The current fees are listed in the document below

PDF
 Gambling Act fees structure: April 2010 - March 2011 (0.02mb)

Gaming Machines

Gaming machines on premises are only permitted in accordance with a specific licence or permit issued by us or the Gambling Commission depending on the type of premises and category of machine available to use.

Lotteries

The Gambling Act 2005 controls the conduct of small lotteries and raffles by societies raising money for charitable, sports and other similar purposes, otherwise than for personal gain.

The Act defines all lotteries, which do not constitute gaming, as illegal but there are exceptions which do not require registration.  We are the registration authority for society lotteries.

Any charity or group who wish to hold any type of lottery or raffle must register with us under the Gambling Act.  Registration is annual and regulations cover the way in which a lottery is held.

No lotteries which are generally run as a fundraising operation by voluntary bodies are lawful unless approval has been given by us and a permit issued which is generally valid for 12 months.

There is a small fee for the issue of a permit which has to be renewed annually.  This ensure all proceeds are properly applied and no fraudulent activity is present.

Lotteries not promoted by societies or where the value of tickets for sale in a lottery exceeds £20,000 have to register with the Gambling Commission and not us.

Statement of Principles

Licensing authorities are required to prepare and publish a statement of the principles that they propose to apply when exercising their functions.  Our Statement of Principles is available to view.

Further Information

Publications and other materials related to the Gambling Act 2005 are available from the Department for Culture, Media & Sport and the Gambling Commission..

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