Online gambling is officially allowed from 2021

On July 1, 2021, a new version of the State Treaty on the Regulation of Gambling came into force in Germany (Glücksspielstaatsvertrag 2021, GlüStV 2021). The document unified the approaches of 16 lands, for the first time centrally allowing online slots and online poker throughout the country with strict requirements for player protection and market transparency.

What exactly is allowed and what restrictions apply

Online slots and online poker are allowed under uniform behavioral limits. Key requirements for virtual machines: a maximum of 1 € per spin and at least 5 seconds per game round - measures aimed at reducing the intensity of the game.

Deposit limit: basic €1,000 per month applies across all operators with a German license. The limit is managed and controlled through the LUGAS inter-land system.

Online table games (roulette/blackjack) are regulated separately: lands have the right to introduce a monopoly or a special permit regime for this segment.

Central Regulator and Supervisory Infrastructure

From January 1, 2023, Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL), a joint land regulatory service that licenses and controls cross-border online offers, ensures uniform application of the rules, and also fights illegal sites and their advertising. Headquarters - in Hull (Saale).

• LUGAS is an inter-land activity and limit control system that prevents simultaneous play by several operators and monitors compliance with monthly limits.
• OASIS - a nationwide register of self-exclusion, blocking access to licensed offline and online products for all listed players; in the early years, the system gained hundreds of thousands of records.

Taxation: 5.3% from rates turnover

Since July 2021, a 5.3% turnover tax has been introduced for online slots and online poker. This rate also applies to a number of other forms of gambling and affects the economics of products (including RTP).

Advertising and operator responsibility

The market is moving towards "controlled liberalization": allowing online formats, Germany has strengthened requirements for KYC/AML, introduced centralized limits, a ban on parallel sessions, mandatory pauses and a systematic fight against illegal offers. GGL publishes reports on supervision and measures against unlicensed sites, and courts are increasingly becoming the scene of proceedings with operators operating outside the legal field.

Transition and whitelisting

In 2021, there was a transitional regime of "tolerance" for operators who applied and began to bring products into line. As GGL became established, licensing and whitelisting (allowed domains) became the main tool for legal presence in the market.

Where the market is heading

Further discussions concern the fine-tuning of limits and "affordability thresholds" for different player profiles, as well as the optimal balance between protection and competitiveness of a legal offer. Possible updates to the inter-land agreement discuss the adjustment of deposit rules and validation of payment behavior.

Bottom line. From July 1, 2021, Germany legalized and formalized online gambling at the federal level, combining the admission of key verticals (slots, poker) with a strict control architecture (GGL, LUGAS, OASIS) and a fiscal model in the form of 5.3% of the turnover rates. As a result, a transparent but strict regime has been formed, which continues to be adjusted pointwise as the market and technologies develop.