Alderney Gambling Control Commission eGambling licence: what it covers and what it means for players

For players in Great BritainAlderney licensees used to be able to advertise in Great Britain under the pre-2014 rules, but that ended with the Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act 2014. Since 1 November 2014, section 33 of the Gambling Act 2005, read with section 36(3) and (3A) as substituted by the Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act 2014, means that anyone providing remote gambling facilities used in Great Britain needs a Gambling Commission operating licence, even if all their equipment is offshore (where the provider knows or should know the facilities are used, or likely to be used, in Great Britain). The same 2014 Act repealed section 331 (the 'foreign gambling' advertising rule that had let operators from listed jurisdictions advertise in Great Britain), and advertising unlawful gambling is an offence under section 330. An Alderney licensee serving British customers therefore also needs a Gambling Commission licence, and that GB licence is what authorises the British business. The AGCC no longer handles UK-based players' complaints at first instance. How to check a site.

Licence types

Category 1 eGambling licence (B2C: registering and verifying players, contracting with them and managing player funds)
Category 2 eGambling licence (B2B: effecting the gambling transaction and operating the gambling platform in an approved hosting centre)
Category 1 and Category 2 associate certificates (for non-Alderney companies)
Core service provider associate certificate (software and other core service suppliers)
Temporary eGambling licence (short-term use of Alderney equipment, mainly disaster recovery or transition)
Hosting certificate (approved hosting premises in the Bailiwick of Guernsey)
Key individual certificate

What players get

Category 1 licensees (and associates holding customer funds) must keep money owed to registered customers in segregated accounts, separate from operating funds, unless the Commission accepts an adequate written guarantee; they must also tell customers the risks to their funds on insolvency, and the AGCC warns these funds can never be fully safeguarded.
Licensees must meet prudential ratios intended to show they can keep operating for at least three months, in addition to segregating customer funds.
Customers can set deposit, loss and wager limits (including a zero limit, which also stops direct marketing to them); licensees may not exceed or encourage customers to raise these limits (Regulation 237).
Only approved, independently tested gambling equipment may be used; players must be registered and at least 18.
Customers who are not satisfied with a licensee's response can lodge a formal complaint with the AGCC, which attempts resolution, investigates and can refer to a Commissioners' hearing (Regulations 238-239). The AGCC states it no longer handles UK-based players' complaints at first instance, following the EU consumer ADR directive.

How to check a licence

The AGCC publishes extracts of its register online: eGambling licensees with their licence category and websites (https://www.gamblingcontrol.org/applications-guidance/egambling-licensees), plus associate certificates, core service provider associates, hosting providers and temporary licensees (index at https://www.gamblingcontrol.org/licensees). The full register can be inspected at the Commission's offices by appointment. For British customers, also check the Gambling Commission's public register (https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-register/).

Recent changes

2024-02-08: Alderney eGambling (Proliferation Financing etc) Regulations 2024 extended licensees' AML/CFT risk duties to cover breaches of targeted financial sanctions.
2024-03-13: Alderney eGambling (Amendment) Ordinance 2024 came into force, adding information gathering and sharing powers for the Commission.
2024: The Bailiwick of Guernsey, including Alderney's eGambling sector, was evaluated by MONEYVAL; the AGCC describes the outcome as positive and says changes to Alderney law followed its findings.
2026-01-01: Alderney eGambling (Amendment) Ordinance 2025 took effect: it removed the rolling reset of the EUR 3,000 deposit threshold that triggers customer due diligence, added a definition of 'promoting' eGambling so the AGCC can act against businesses structuring themselves to avoid licensing, and updated application forms.

Context

The AGCC describes itself as a tier-one eGambling regulator and points to the Bailiwick's 2024 MONEYVAL evaluation as an endorsement.

The AGCC reported 74 player complaints in 2025, down from 142 in 2024, with none needing a formal hearing.

In 2025 the AGCC carried out 29 inspections, and two licensees were issued with rectification proposals and notices.

New-business enquiries are handled by Alderney eGambling Limited, a States-owned body kept separate from the regulator so that the AGCC does not advise applicants it will later assess.

Not yet verified

Established year 2000 is inferred: the AGCC was created by the Gambling (Alderney) Law 1999 (commenced by an Ordinance of 2000), and its June 2025 news post says it was founded 25 years earlier. No page gives an explicit founding date.
The AGCC-hosted copy of the 2025 Amendment Ordinance leaves the States resolution date blank; the 1 January 2026 start comes from the Ordinance's own commencement clause and the AGCC 2025 annual report confirms it was made in 2025.
No official AGCC seal or validator scheme was found to describe.

We could not confirm these from a primary source, so we have not stated them as fact.