😱 Bulgaria🇧🇬: Ministry of Finance, tax authority, and Parliament prepare comprehensive gambling law reform

😱 Bulgaria🇧🇬: Ministry of Finance, tax authority, and Parliament prepare comprehensive gambling law reform

The objective of the reform is to facilitate compliance for licensed operators while targeting the broader ecosystem that enables the operation of unlicensed gambling operators.

The proposed framework extends beyond payment service providers and seeks to address other actors involved in supporting the unregulated market.

➡️ Current situation: according to estimates from the Ministry of Finance, the unregulated market may represent approximately 40% of Bulgaria’s gambling sector.

➡️ Authorities' position:

🔣Deputy Minister Petkova stated that an increase in the tax burden could contribute to the further expansion of the unregulated market.

🔣During interagency consultations, proposals aimed at introducing additional advertising restrictions for the gambling sector were also rejected.

➡️ New regulatory focus: authorities intend to concentrate supervision on affiliate marketing operators, including websites and other digital intermediaries that generate traffic to casino and sportsbook platforms in exchange for commissions.

➡️ New obligations for affiliates: provisions currently being discussed as part of the 2026 budget establish a dedicated regulatory framework for individuals and companies involved in promoting gambling operators. Where such entities are based outside Bulgaria, they may be required to appoint a local representative to facilitate cooperation with Bulgarian administrative and judicial authorities.

➡️ Compliance requirements: affiliates may be required to strengthen oversight of the operators and domains they promote. The exact scope of these obligations will be determined in the final legislation and subsequent regulatory guidance.

➡️ Payment-related measures: the proposed framework seeks to prevent direct transactions with unauthorized operators. Bulgaria’s National Revenue Agency (NRA) plans to publish a blacklist of gambling websites and portals. Once a court ruling is issued in accordance with the Gambling Act, internet service providers will be required to block access to those websites.

Technical standards and operational procedures will also be established to enable financial intermediaries to accurately identify payment beneficiaries.

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