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Curacao Gaming Commission
The Curacao Gaming Commission is associated with the goverment of Netherlands Antilles, and is one of the most respected regulators for online casino services of the industry. Curacao has been providing Curacao e-gaming licenses since 1996. The advocate and clearing house of the Curacao Gaming Commission is known as the Curacao Internet Gaming Association (CIGA). CIGA was established in 2001 and it controls approximately 30 online gaming operators. As a member of the Interactive Gaming Council (IGC) it is bound by the code of conduct of this organization.
Curacao was one of the first jurisdiction to regulate online gambling. Since it is an Overseas Country and Territory of the Netherlands it has a special status in the European Union. Online gaming is a legitimate business activity in the Netherlands Antilles, especially Curacao, provided the e-gaming company has obtained the proper licese. The Netherlands Antilles Online Gaming legislation was first created in 1993.
In order to receive a license from Curacao Gaming Commission, there strict guidelines to be followed. A company must be registered under the Netherlands Antilles Chamber of Commerce as a legal entity, either onshore or offshore, before applying for the license. An investigation into the company is then conducted by the Curacao Deparment of Justice. This process takes about 6 weeks to be completed. After the 6-weeks investigation process has finished, the company is granted a provisional license, which is subject to a number of conditions, including a 60,000 (ANG) guarantee deposit.
The Netherland Antilles (master) gaming licenses are based on the National Ordinance on Offshore Hazard Games.
There are two formats to be licensed:
- A master license
- A sub-license
A master license licenses the (e-)gaming company itself, and in addition opens the possibility to sub-license third parties subject to the responsibility and convenants under the master license. A sub-license under a master license â offer equal possibilities to performing e-gaming business legitimately, however without the possibility to further sub-license.
Basic requirements for applying for a (sub-)license are compliance with Due Diligence and KYC policies, full identification of Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBOs), satisfactory reference on UBOs as well as a detailed and transparent description of the games to be offered. In the case of a master license application the decision is taken at the sole discretion of the Minister of Justice, based on the documentation submitted by the Netherlands Antilles counsel.
Online gaming operators can obtain a sub-license to run Internet gambling operations for the Netherland Antilles.
License holders pay 10,000 (ANG) per month in license fees during the first two years. A new license fee can be determined after the first two years.
The island territory on which a license holder is located is entitled to demand a contribution of up to 2% of the license holder`s net gains from interactive gaming.