Ensuring the protection of Belgian players and betters.
The Belgium Gaming Commission acts as the national gambling regulatory authority, It supervises land-based gambling and online gambling through the recently amended Belgian Gaming Act, which has seen the approval of licenses for a number of offshore-based casino operators.
Created in 1999, BGC gives advice to the government and parliament, makes decisions on whether to approve or reject casino, gaming arcade and online gambling licenses, controls all games of chance, has the right to penalise operators, and ensures protection of players through responsible gambling measures.
It controls all aspects of gambling including the National Lottery, casinos, sportsbooks, poker and bingo, and its role is constantly changing as the world of online and mobile gambling becomes increasingly more complex and technological.
Part of its role is to research and study industry trends, including how best to develop and maintain a regulatory gambling framework that is consistent both with the interests of Belgian consumers and with European Union laws which are aimed at reducing restrictions on cross-border gambling and trade.
Under the Belgian Gaming Act, in order to be granted a license for online gaming operations, the applicant must already hold an equivalent land-based license. The online license is therefore considered a supplementary license to casino, gaming arcades and betting shops that have already been authorized.