More recently, it was decided to develop gambling in Andorra. Interestingly, this decision concerns not only real casinos, but also online “institutions”.
Over the past few years, significant progress has been made in regulating both offline and online gambling. According to representatives of the Andorran Government, a new bill on regulation and legalization of gambling could be expected at the end of 2016.
Legalization of the casino is important for small European countries: tourism is about 80% of the country’s GDP, and gambling business only attracts tourists.
The Andorran Government attaches great importance to the protection of consumers ‘ rights, while applying rather strict guidelines. Statement by one of the representatives of the Government, Anthony Riberaigua: “More than 10 million tourists a year should be fascinated by the country as a whole, and not become a” captive “of numerous gambling objects.
It was for this reason that there were talks about a single regulation of gambling.
The only legal and regulated forms of gambling in Andorra are bingo and lottery (but online bingo and lotteries are not regulated). Previously, the country was given licenses for online gambling, but later this practice was discontinued for unknown reasons.
On December 13, 2017, the Andorran government approved a regulation on gambling licensing in principality. This provision was considered by the Council of Ministers on the initiative of the Andorran gambling regulator. The bingo operators were to be granted class I and class J licenses.
Class I license was a professional activity of the operators, and the license of class J was related to the commercial activity connected with the sale of game equipment.
Casinos in Andorra
There are a lot of casinos in Andorra, and every year more and more tourists come for gambling in Andorra, but the casino itself is not regulated.
According to the Andorran government, there should be one casino in the country: to protect customers and avoid the fragmentation of the player base (so that the casino will remain stable and profitable) slot machines will be available only in this casino
Casino gambling tax is expected to be relatively low, to provide an incentive for gambling corporations, though not as low as that of the neighboring Catalans.
Bingo in Andorra
Bingo in Andorra is the only legalized form of gambling, but not regulated: for bingo gambling in Andorra there is a huge game room, which is located in the capital. Those who want to play this game of chance, at any time of the year can arrive in the capital and visit the institution. However online bingo is not available.
A user from Andorra can safely play on foreign online bingo sites, and most bingo platforms have no restrictions for players from the principality.
Poker in Andorra
Online poker in Andorra, as well as other forms of online gambling in Andorra, is currently not regulated in the country. Most international online poker platforms have no restrictions for players from Andorra.
The legal status of online poker in Andorra also changes according to the new gambling legislation. Online poker, along with casino gambling and sports betting, is clearly recognized as a potential source of income for the Andorran government.
Once the bill is enacted, Andorra is expected to be open not only to online poker operators inside the country, but also to foreign companies, since the low population of Andorra (about 85 000 inhabitants) is likely to be unable Provide enough traffic, which after becoming a profit – even with such a low tax level of Andorra.
Sports betting in Andorra
Sports betting in Andorra currently has no rules, which means that residents of the country are free to participate in online sports betting on any foreign platform they wish. There are not many foreign online gambling betting sites that restrict access for users from Andorra.
The regulator of the gambling business of Andorra will be created with the adoption of the new bill. This institution will be responsible for issuing gambling licenses, including online sports betting.
The lottery in Andorra
The lottery in Andorra is one of the most popular types of gambling. In Andorra, lottery tickets can only be purchased at ground-based lottery points in the retail trade, as there is no online version of the lottery in the country. On the other hand, several foreign lottery platforms are available online for Andorra residents.
The lottery has a great popularity among the population.
Bitcoin Casino in Andorra
Bitcoin Casino in Andorra The concept is new, yet unexplored. Like all other forms of online gambling in Andorra, currently bitcoin is also not regulated in the country. Bitcoin players can gain access to international gambling platforms.
Bitcoin is quite well known in Andorra. However, because of the anonymous nature of the currency, there are no statistics on how many Andorran residents are involved in bitcoin gambling or other activities used by this currency system.
