Regulated
The Isle of Man (“Island”) is an established licensing jurisdiction and is home to a large number of start-ups, SME, and multi-licensed operators. The Island has been licensing online gambling since 2001 and has since developed a wealth of experience and an internationally recognised reputation that places consumer protection at the heart of its objectives.

In the Isle of Man, the gambling regulator that oversees all forms of online and land-based gambling on the Island is called the Gambling Supervision Commission (“GSC”) and it is an independent statutory board. The GSC regulates land-based gambling operations (casino, amusement, slots, betting offices and lotteries) and online gambling services. The GSC was established in 1962 to protect the interests of gamblers and in 2001, the Isle of Man was one of the first jurisdictions in the world to regulate online gambling. The status and constitution of the GSC are set out under the Gambling Supervision Act 2010, and under that legislation, the regulatory objectives of the GSC are:

• To ensure that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way.
• To protect children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling.
• To prevent gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, associated with crime or disorder, or used to support crime.

All forms of online gambling are regulated under the terms of the Isle of Man Online Gambling Regulation Act 2001 (“OGRA”).

OGRA regulates gambling and therefore activities such as marketing, free-play games with no prizes, call centres, customer support and design of software do not require a licence – although note that this is fact-specific. A licence is available for software in certain circumstances – see further below. Whether or not a licence is required under OGRA will always come down to specific facts and circumstances and must be checked, but as a general rule, performing activities such as registering players, offering the games or striking the bet using Isle of Man infrastructure will require a licence.

Note that in certain circumstances work permits may be allowed to move certain staff to the Island. As of March 2016, e-gaming workers have been granted certain exemptions from requiring a work permit, but certain conditions apply.

Market size
The gambling and digital technologies industry represents a significant size of the Island’s economy; in 2021, Digital Isle of Man reported that the gambling industry contributed approximately 18% to the Island’s GDP. This is anticipated to show further growth throughout 2023, with an already strong start. Digital Isle of Man reported in February 2023 that there had been a record-breaking 79% increase in licences over the last 5 years, a 17% increase on the previous year.

Competitive landscape
The Island has 90 licensed operators, the highest ever number, including Games Global and The Rationale Group. Please refer to link to current register of licence holders under OGRA.

Top Key Attractions and Challenges
Attractions

• The Island has a strong supportive business ecosystem that works closely with and supports the online gambling sector. This includes (but is not limited to) lawyers, banking services, data hosting centres, payment services and corporate service providers
• The Island has an advanced telecoms infrastructure with first class fixed and mobile networks and highly resilient bandwidth connectivity delivered by excellent data centres with specific and long running experience of the online gambling sector
• Attractive financial benefits; low betting duty (on a sliding scale from 0.1% to 1.5% based on GGY), 0% corporation tax (there are some exceptions to this, but they are not relevant to the online gambling sector), there are no Capital Gains Tax or Inheritance Tax in the Isle of Man. Additionally, the Island offers attractive personal tax rates and allowances also allowing for annual income tax caps for personal taxation aspects
• The Isle of Man is a stable jurisdiction, has been “whitelisted” by the Organisation for Economic Corporation and Development (“OECD”) in recognition with complying with global standards and has been positively marked by the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”) as a leading nation for compliance with international standards of AML/CFT measures
• The GSC was at the forefront in issuing guidance setting out when it will allow its licensed operators to use the use of digital currencies and virtual goods

Challenges

• Use of crypto is limited by the GSC
• All small islands have challenges regarding travel and therefore the Isle of Man is not unique in this regard
• The Isle of Man is not and never has been a part of the EU. Despite there being no EU Directive for gambling services, it is recommended that further review of each member state be carried out to ensure relevant licensing requirements (if any) are clearly understood and relevant
• Work permit issue as noted above