Sweden is making ready main modifications to its Playing Act following the discharge of a authorities inquiry led by investigator Marcus Isgren. The report, delivered to the Ministry of Finance, outlines new measures meant to strengthen shopper protections, safe state revenues, and clamp down on unlicensed playing operators who proceed to succeed in Swedish gamers via loopholes. If permitted, the brand new guidelines are scheduled to take impact on January 1, 2027.
From Directional to Participant-Based mostly Oversight
At current, Swedish playing regulation applies solely when operators are deemed to be “directed” at Sweden—usually via the usage of the Swedish language, native foreign money, or particular advertising and marketing. This strategy has left a niche within the system, permitting offshore corporations to function English-language websites with euro funds whereas nonetheless accepting Swedish clients.
Isgren’s report recommends abolishing this “directional criterion” and introducing a “participant criterion.” Beneath the brand new mannequin, the important thing query can be whether or not folks situated in Sweden can entry and take part within the recreation, slightly than whether or not the positioning actively targets the market. To stay exterior the Act’s scope, operators can be obligated totake concrete and efficient steps to dam Swedish residents.
The memorandum launched by the Ministry of Finance (Ds 2025:23) highlights that this reform is designed to “exclude unlicensed playing in a simpler approach than is presently attainable,” with the broader intention of deterring crime linked to playing and bolstering shopper safety.
Expanded Ban on Promotion and Funds
The inquiry goes past website entry, recommending tighter restrictions on those that facilitate unlicensed playing. Present regulation already bans promoting for unlawful operators, however the proposed modifications would prolong this prohibition to cowl cost processors, monetary establishments, and different service suppliers.
A presumption rule can also be included. This may require anybody processing funds for playing corporations to imagine that transactions contain Swedish residents until there’s definitive proof of overseas play. In apply, this measure would make it considerably tougher for unlicensed operators to maneuver cash out and in of Sweden.
The inquiry additional suggests amending prison provisions, which means each unlicensed playing exercise and the promotion of unlicensed companies can be explicitly punishable below prison regulation.
Authorities and Business Response
Finance Markets Minister Niklas Wykman, who initiated the Playing Act overview in February 2025, welcomed the proposals. In his assertion, he described the report as “an important step in making a safer and fairer playing market.” The subsequent stage will see the proposals reviewed throughout the Authorities Places of work earlier than referral and parliamentary debate.
State-owned operator Svenska Spel additionally voiced its assist. President and CEO Anna Johnson praised the suggestions, describing them as “long-awaited and welcome.” Johnson emphasised that “DNS blocking of unlawful playing websites is a pure subsequent step to take. It could additional strengthen the Swedish licensing market in addition to the safety of Swedish shoppers.”
In the meantime, the Swedish Commerce Affiliation for On-line Playing (BOS) additionally backed the modifications, notably the shift to criminalising unlicensed operators that presently exploit regulatory loopholes. BOS secretary basic Gustaf Hoffstedt commented: “This is a vital contribution to the potential for strengthening the Swedish playing licence market, which is now proposed to criminalise virtually all unlicensed playing in Sweden. I foresee the federal government shortly submitting a invoice to the Riksdag in accordance with the investigation’s proposal.”
BOS has lengthy pushed for reforms, repeatedly warning that the directional criterion undermines the licensing system. In early September, the affiliation referred to as for a broader playing inquiry to deal with market leakage, suggesting that stress-free strict bonus restrictions might enhance channelisation. Hoffstedt argued that such a overview can be “this authorities’s most vital measure to guard and strengthen the authorized regulated playing market, earlier than Sweden goes to the polls in September subsequent yr.”
Trying Forward
The federal government inquiry arrives in opposition to the backdrop of Sweden’s channelisation charge—measuring the proportion of playing carried out with licensed operators—falling to 85%, in comparison with 86% a yr earlier. With the aim set at 90%, regulators see the proposed reforms as key to reversing this decline.
If the Riksdag adopts the suggestions, the brand new framework will come into pressure in the beginning of 2027, marking one of the crucial important updates to Sweden’s playing regulation since its re-regulation in 2019.
Supply:
Scope of software of the Playing Act, Ds 2025:23, regeringen.se, September 24, 2025.
