Online casinos in Belgium
Even if Belgium allows online gambling in international and Belgian online casinos, this does not mean that you can play in every European online casino that you will encounter on the internet. nowadays there are many online casinos in Belgium and it is not so easy to find the best of them, and it is much easier to find the average ones - but that's not what you need, right? After a long and careful research, the TopKasynoonline team has selected the best Belgian online casinos. To create this ranking, we used just such criteria:
- Security. The safety of our readers is Milan Rabszski's top priority, so information about the license is the first thing we need to check. Only casinos with a valid license issued by the Belgian or international gambling authority can land on our site, so you can be sure that your money and personal information are safe. of course, you can independently check whether the casino has a license, such information can be found in the footer of the official website of the casino. Usually, the casino gives the license number and the name of the institution where this license was issued.
- Variety of gambling. When you enter the best Belgian online casino, you expect to see a huge selection of games and be able to customize the offers from the casino to your taste. Our ranking includes brands that work with world-renowned providers such as Quickspin, Play'n Go, Thunderkick, Quickspin and Microgaming, as well as smaller companies that continue to create amazing products. You will be able to choose the right game according to your preferences, whether it is a classic 3-reel fruit slot in the old style or a state-of-the-art video poker with a live dealer.
- Convenience. Even a million games in a Belgian online casino will not matter if the casino is not convenient to use and does not offer the options you are looking for. That is why another key factor that we take into account when choosing an online casino in Belgium is the convenience for players and the variety of payment methods.
History of gambling in Belgium
The history of the gambling industry in Belgium goes back much earlier than you might expect. The first gambling game (it was, of course, a game of Cards) appeared in Belgium in the distant 1300 and became the first known gambling game in all of Europe. A hundred years later, in 1400, the Belgians began to organize the first lotteries. Over time, their interest in gambling has not diminished.
Despite its long history, Belgian gambling was not regulated until 1999, when the government passed the first gaming and betting law and established the Gambling Commission. This act regulated land-based gambling activities in land-based casinos, gambling parlors, and lotteries, while online gambling remained unregulated. The situation changed in 2010 when the gaming and betting act was amended with new rules on online casinos hosting Belgian players and established rules on the licensing procedure for online casinos approved by Belgium.
Since then, there have been no radical changes in gambling regulations, and the best online casinos can now operate freely and legally if they have a license. At the same time, Belgium continues to add unlicensed online casinos to the blacklist, which always causes some discontent among the blocked online casino operators, but this changes almost nothing.
Online gambling laws and regulations in Belgium
You may or may not know this, but the gambling law is not the same in all European countries: the currency is almost the same, but the attitude to gambling is different.
So that you can learn more about the various aspects of legalization, we have collected the most frequently asked questions on this topic and so we include answers to them, which were given by the best experts in this field. So at this point we want to discuss in more detail the Belgian law and whether it is possible to enjoy safe online gambling in Belgium in accordance with this law.
| Is online gambling allowed in Belgium? | We don't say this very often in articles like this one, but yes, under Belgium's online gambling law, all types of online gambling in Belgium are legal as long as you play at licensed Belgian online casinos. but even if you decide to bet at a casino that does not have an online gambling license issued by the Belgian government, the only thing you will worry about is whether this casino is really safe and trustworthy. Players are not prosecuted for playing in unlicensed venues, but a casino that is not legal will face serious charges. |
| Who is responsible for online gambling in Belgium? | All online gambling laws in Belgium are issued by the Belgian Gambling Commission, which is also responsible for licensing safe online casinos in Belgium and regulating other gambling-related issues. |
| What are the characteristics of legal online casinos in Belgium? | According to Belgian law, if a casino operator wants to operate and operate legally online in Belgium, they must have an official casino only in Belgium. Even the best online gambling sites in Belgium that do not have their land-based counterparts will be banned. Fortunately, this does not mean that online gambling in Belgium is bad and boring, as there are no legal online casinos for Belgian players. The gambling authorities in Belgium issue licenses and promote the online gambling industry without any problems, so Belgians have a large enough number of reputable online casinos to choose from. |
| What is the legal age to gamble online in Belgium? | In order to be able to place bets in Belgian online casinos, the player must be at least 21 years old. Sports betting and national lotteries are allowed from the age of 18, but there is currently discussion about raising the minimum age for gambling. |
Belgian gambling: mandates and licenses
Although European Union trade laws remove barriers to cross-border trade, this does not seem to have reached the Belgian government. Even if the betting site or casino is based in the European Union, it must be licensed in Belgium. The number of licenses issued is also strictly regulated.
Online licenses are limited to 9 A+ licenses for land-based casinos, 180 B+ licenses for online slots and 34 F1+ licenses for betting. Only companies that are licensed A, B and F1 "in the real world" can be licensed to offer the same online services, and the law states that there should be no difference between services offered online and offline.
A licenses: they allow major Belgian offline casinos to offer online casino games. In most cases, casinos are run in conjunction with existing companies. Holders of an A+ license, as of February 2018, include large casinos such as Casino of Spa and Grand Casino Brussels. All nine licensees have links to major existing land-based casinos. In fact, online gambling sites must have a permanent offline establishment in Belgium.
B licenses: regulate operators that can operate online vending machines.
License C: regulates slot machines and bingo in pubs and cafes where alcohol is served.
F licenses: these licenses (F1, F2, F1+) regulate operators that may run sports betting and offer online horse racing betting services.
- an F1 licence is required to place bets.;
- an F2 license is required if you accept bets;
- the F1+ license makes it easy to place bets online.
TOP 3 payment methods for Belgian gamblers
In legal online casinos, Belgian depositors have a lot of good options to choose from for deposits and withdrawals.. A bank or credit card is not always required. Anonymous banking is often preferred. Most brands accept euro deposits. So, what are the best payment methods in Belgium?
- Paysafecard
- Idebit
- Bancontact
Paysafecard is a leading prepaid scratch card program that works with gambling sites. When making deposits at online casinos, players from Belgium can use a simple prepaid voucher to deposit and withdraw funds. There is no need to use a debit or credit card, and a Paysafecard coupon can be picked up at a local point of sale in Brussels or even in your city.
Secure bank transfers are very important for Belgium players. idebit is an online payment processor that enables secure transfers directly from your Belgian bank account. It is available in several European countries, including Belgium, so transfers in euro are simple and easy.
Bancontact is one of the leading electronic payment systems in Belgium. Payments with Bancontact are instant and processed instantly.Online transactions are always protected by 3D-secure, which makes it a safe banking choice for all players at Belgian casinos.
Landline gambling options in Belgium
According to the current Belgian gambling law, land-based casinos are allowed, but they must have a license. So, how does gambling develop in such casinos?
| Slots | Table games | Sports betting | Poker |
| There is a strict limit that requires having about 15 automatic gaming terminals per table open, for at least five hours. All casinos have a monopoly on video slots. However, players can enjoy a whole range of one-armed bandits, video slots and progressive Real Money slots. | Well-known and popular games such as roulette, Sic Bo and craps are offered at most Belgian online casinos. There is also European Roulette, commonly called "La Roulette anglaise" (English roulette). It is played like traditional European Roulette with the La Partage and en Prison rules removed from French roulette. | Bets can only be placed in licensed betting shops and on horse racing tracks. There are several racetracks in Belgium. The most popular is the Hippodrome Wellington Racecourse in Ostend - a seaside track with an adjacent golf course. there are flat races and sled races. | Poker is treated as a random game by the Belgian Gaming Commission, however Belgium requires a license to offer Texas Hold'em or omaha. however, there is an exception that is based on the rules of the games and betting Act 1999. under this act, small stakes card games outside casinos are allowed. |
Predictions for the profit of online gambling in Belgium
For many years, Belgium remained one of the few European countries that welcomed online gambling and issued gambling licenses to international online casinos. With today's law, hundreds of players in Belgium have the chance to enjoy all kinds of online casino games and place their bets for real money at casinos that have been vetted, approved and licensed. Due to the fact that this approach collects positive feedback from players, there is almost no chance that Belgium will follow the example of its neighbors and stop licensing Belgian online casinos.
