German lawmakers are to permit online casino games in Germany, provided operators comply with the terms of the regulatory framework due to come into force from 1 July 2021.Confirmed to iGB by multiple state sources, operators will have until 15 October to start complying with the Glücksspielneuregulierungstaatsvertrag (GlüNeuRStV) to avoid prosecution in the market.
In practice, this means that operators will have to limit in-play betting markets to next goalscorer and final results, while for slots a €1 per spin stake cap must be enforced. Players will also be subject to a €1,000 monthly deposit limit.
These must also be offered separately to table games, for which states have the option to grant their state lotteries exclusive rights, and each state may only issue as many table games licences as there are land-based casinos.
However, sources suggest that operators will be allowed to begin work to comply with the terms of the GlüneuRStV by 15 October, rather than having to comply in full with the legislation by that date. iGB is awaiting responses from State Chancellery officials for more clarity on this element.
The transition period has been under discussion for a number of months. It emerged in July that Nordrhein-Westfalen, Berlin, Hamburg and Bavaria were playing leading roles in these talks, and while a conclusion was ultimately agreed upon, a number of states expressed serious misgivings.
Last month GVC Holdings, which has a strong presence in Germany through its bwin brand, began circulating a proposed transitional framework under which operators would implement the GlüNeuRStV in phases.
This, it said at the time, would ensure key elements of the incoming treaty would be in place in a matter of months. Customer identification controls, for example, would be in place within 10 weeks, GVC said, while deposit limits could be enforced in three and a half months.
The transition period aims to end a period of uncertainty for the gambling industry, after efforts to finally implement the third amended State Treaty on Gambling for 18 months ahead of the GlüNeuRStV coming into force failed.
The third State Treaty was derailed by a legal challenge from Austrian bookmaker Vierklee, which successfully argued that the licensing process was not fully transparent and weighted in favour of market incumbents in the Hesse courts.
While the Regional Council of Darmstadt, the body responsible for processing licence applications, declared its intention to appeal the ruling, it then agreed to pause enforcement action against an operator to negotiate a transitional arrangement.
Under the GlüNeuRStV, the Regional Council will be replaced as the regulatory authority by a new entity, to be based in the state of Sachsen-Anhalt. For that treaty to come into force, however, it must still be ratified by 13 of Germany’s 16 states.
A new tracker by sports betting operator body the Deutscher Sportwettenverband shows that it has been notified to 10 state parliaments to date, but is yet to progress to bill stage in any of these.
It also awaits an assessment from the European Commission. Germany notified the legislation to the EC in May this year, and it was originally subject to a standstill period running until 19 August. However this was extended to 18 September, after Malta submitted a detailed opinion on the legislation.
