This page is maintained rather than published once. Every figure below is taken from the National Police Board's own published guidance and is dated. Where the regulator's material is internally inconsistent, we say so rather than picking the version we prefer.
The dates
- 1 March 2026 — the National Police Board began accepting gambling licence applications. There is no closing date and no statutory cap on the number of licences.
- 1 July 2027 — licensed gambling may begin. No licence can take effect earlier, and none can be granted retroactively. The Lupa- ja valvontavirasto, the Finnish Licensing and Supervision Agency, takes over from the Police Board.
- Software licence dates — see the inconsistency noted below.
Who can apply
A gambling licence may be granted to any legal entity or natural person resident in the EEA who meets the fitness and propriety requirements. There is no limit on how many are granted, and several operators may hold one at the same time.
An exclusive licence may only be granted to a limited liability company controlled by the Finnish state and already in the gambling business. In practice that means Veikkaus. It covers pools games, lotteries, slot machines and casinos.
An international cooperation licence is required where a licensee intends to offer gambling in partnership with one or more operators that do not hold a Finnish licence. Every participant must be known and lawfully authorised in its own jurisdiction.
Holding a licence in another EU or EEA state confers nothing. The authority assesses every application independently under Finnish law.
Cost
The application fee is 29,000 euros for both the gambling licence and the exclusive licence. It is charged whether the decision is positive or negative, and it is not refunded on refusal.
The invoice is issued once the application becomes pending, and the fee must be paid before a decision is taken. An unpaid invoice stops the application.
Withdrawing an application does not avoid the fee if processing has already started.
Once a licence is in force, an annual supervision fee is also charged. The Police Board's guidance states this but does not give the amount.
Duration
A gambling licence runs for a maximum of five years and can be renewed. An exclusive licence is always ten years.
The applicant chooses the start date, subject to the 1 July 2027 floor.
Processing time
The target is three to six months, stated on the Police Board's own guidance, which adds that applications may take longer and that the site will be updated with actual average times.
A senior inspector gave the same three-to-six figure to Iltalehti in September 2026. A different senior inspector gave six to eight months to Yle in the same week. The published figure is three to six.
As of 22 September 2026, 75 applications had been received and none had been decided. We have written separately on what that implies for anyone planning a launch.
How to apply
In writing to the National Police Board, via the online service, by email or by letter. The Board recommends the online service, which is reached through the Regional State Administrative Agency.
Applications are processed in Finnish or Swedish. Attachments in other languages may have to be translated at the applicant's cost, and the authority is explicit that this can delay processing.
A representative logs in using strong electronic identification. Someone without a Finnish personal identity code can use common European identification methods together with the Finnish Authenticator app.
One gambling licence can cover every planned implementation, provided each is specified. Separate licences can be applied for instead, but each attracts its own 29,000 euro fee and adds administrative obligations.
What the application has to contain
Fitness and propriety is assessed on the applicant, its significant owners and its executive management.
Financial position. Financial statements comprising income statement, balance sheet and notes, with comparatives for the previous period, the auditor's report, lists of accounts and records, and balance sheet breakdowns. A cash flow statement where one is required. A newly established company may instead attach an action plan and a financing plan stating estimated turnover, available equity, available debt, a breakdown of short and long-term liabilities, and significant agreements.
Identity and standing. Finnish personal identity codes for responsible persons where they exist; date of birth and other identifiers where they do not. Applicants registered abroad must themselves supply criminal records and certificates of compliance, because the Finnish registers the authority relies on do not cover people without a Finnish identity code. Certificates must show bankruptcy status, debts in enforcement, unpaid taxes and any business disqualification.
Constitutional documents. Articles of association or bylaws, or a free-form statement of purpose where none exist. Applicants registered abroad must attach a register extract; Finnish-registered applicants need not.
Software suppliers. Known suppliers must be named on the form. Changes must be notified in writing within two weeks.
Marketing. A description of the methods and channels to be used, covering internet, television, radio, print, social media, outdoor advertising, sponsorship and event advertising, plus every brand name used. It must also describe how minors and vulnerable people will be protected from marketing. A marketing plan may be attached.
All attachments must carry the issuing authority's name and contact details and be no more than six months old, measured from the date the application becomes pending.
Three things applicants underestimate
The marketing statement is a supervision document. The Police Board states plainly that it uses the explanation to plan guidance and advice, and that incomplete or unclear information can be used to plan future audits. It is not a formality.
Application documents are in principle public. Documents held by an authority are public unless publicity is specifically restricted by law. Confidential material must be identified and the grounds stated, and the authority decides. An applicant should assume anything it does not flag may become readable.
A new company is not disqualified, but it is scrutinised further. Where the applicant is newly established, the assessment may extend to the fitness and propriety of other companies directly or indirectly linked to it.
The software licence dates do not agree
The Police Board's own frequently asked questions page gives two different answers.
Two passages say applications open 1 July 2027 and the obligation begins 1 July 2028. A third says applications open 1 January 2027 and the obligation begins 1 January 2028.
Finnish law firm guidance from Borenius, Krogerus, Hannes Snellman and Nordia all states the July dates, and the July dates are consistent with the market opening on 1 July 2027. We use July and flag the discrepancy. At least one competing English-language site has published the January dates as fact.
A software licence is needed to manufacture, supply, install or adapt betting software, random number generators, live casino streaming, transaction monitoring and recording, calculation engines, result determination and winnings handling.
What is not published
- The annual supervision fee.
- The actual average processing time. The Board has said it will publish this.
- How many decisions the authority expects to issue before 1 July 2027.
- Which of the two software licence date sets is correct.
