Austria Gambling Reform Enters EU Review Process

Austria has taken another formal step toward changing its gambling laws after sending a draft of its proposed reforms to the European Commission. The submission starts a compulsory three-month standstill period during which the Commission will examine whether the planned legislation complies with European Union rules, including those covering state aid and the single market.

The Ministry of Finance submitted the draft package on Tuesday. Although the review is now underway at the European level, lawmakers in Austria can continue working through the parliamentary process while the Commission carries out its assessment.

If the proposal clears every stage as planned, Austria expects to introduce a newly structured gambling market in October 2027, opening the door for additional licensed operators under a different regulatory system.

Proposed Rules Focus on Player Safeguards

The draft legislation includes several measures aimed at strengthening player protection across different forms of gambling.

One of the central proposals is a nationwide exclusion register that would apply to casinos, slot machines, and online gambling. The register would combine self-exclusions with operator-imposed bans, preventing excluded players from moving to another gambling product or licensed operator to bypass restrictions.

The proposal also introduces mandatory deposit limits for online gambling and slot machines. Players between the ages of 18 and 26 would face lower deposit limits than older customers.

Other planned changes include reducing the maximum stake allowed on slot machines, slowing the pace of gameplay, and requiring a mandatory cooling-off period after 90 uninterrupted minutes of play.

Operators would also need to evaluate the addiction risks linked to their gambling products. Those assessments would contribute to gambling policy development and research efforts.

Authorities also plan to create a digital supervision platform that would manage a central deposit limit across operators instead of relying on separate limits set by each company.

The legislation would also expand enforcement powers against unlicensed gambling businesses. Regulators would receive authority to use payment blocking, blacklisting, and network blocking measures to make it more difficult for unauthorized operators to reach customers in Austria.

Licensing Changes Could Open the Market

Austria also plans to replace its current online gambling structure with an open licensing model.

Companies that currently provide gambling services illegally would have to stop those activities by January 1, 2027, if they want immediate eligibility for a licence once the new system begins.

Operators that do not meet those transitional conditions would have to wait 18 months before applying. That waiting period would increase to 24 months from 2030.

Applicants would also have to clear outstanding tax obligations and resolve unpaid claims involving around 20,000 affected players before becoming eligible.

The Austrian Betting and Gaming Association (OVWG) has questioned whether the proposed framework will successfully direct players toward Win2Day and licensed land-based gambling businesses. The association believes illegal operators could continue attracting customers if the new rules fail to encourage enough people to switch to the regulated market.

The proposed casino framework would permit up to 13 casino licences. Authorities could issue those licences in grouped packages rather than as individual concessions. When deciding how to award licences, regulators would have to consider market competition as well as geographical distribution.

Industry Figures Raise Questions About the Plan

Some industry observers have expressed concerns about the proposed licensing structure.

Niklas Sattler, a former Casinos Austria employee, said issuing licences individually would create a fairer competitive environment than distributing them through packages. Casinos Austria, which currently operates under the country’s monopoly, has argued in favour of keeping the package-based approach.

Sattler believes the future licensing process could divide the available concessions into two groups, with one package containing six licences and another containing seven. He said that arrangement could make it easier for a major company such as Merkur to enter the market while creating greater barriers for smaller businesses.

“We believe it’s quite unfair,” Sattler added.

Political analyst Felix Geyer also expressed doubts about whether the proposed timetable can be achieved.

“Given how slow political processes in Austria can be, I’m sceptical about whether they will be able to hand out licences within 12 months,” he said. “Especially since I don’t expect them to begin before the law actually comes into force.”

The European Commission’s review now marks the next stage of the legislative process. If the proposal remains on schedule through the remaining approvals, Austria’s revised gambling framework could take effect with a newly opened market in October 2027.

Source:

Austria Moves Gambling Reform Into EU Review, realmoneyaction.com, August 5, 2026.