Germany Restricts Credit Card Use In Online Casinos

Published: 24/08/2020

no credit cards in german online casinos

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Germany is scheduled to license online gambling by July next year. The country hoped to fully regulate the industry to protect the gambler’s interest, operators, and the state. The head approved the regulations to license online casinos next year of states during a Berlin meeting.

The Glücksspielneuregulierungstaatsvertrag (GlüNeuRStv) expanded the iGaming market by allowing online poker and casinos to operate in the country. Currently, some online betting outlets operate in the country. The Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) said a new regulatory authority would oversee the gambling industry through the GlüNeuRStV located in Sachsen-Anhalt.

The third amended State Treaty on Gambling empowered the Nordrhein-Westfalen, Schleswig-Holstein, Baden-Württemberg, and Hesse to handle the sports betting licensing process and reports circulated that they are interested in hosting the regulating body.

Germany limits online gambling operations before July 2021

Legal sources claimed that there were no significant changes to the rules of the GlüNeuRStV as presented to the public. It suggested that strict restrictions in online poker operation, sports betting, and online casinos will be implemented.

The third State Treaty will remain implemented before the new regulations were implemented. Online casino operators raced to license their operations when the news of the industry’s legalization broke out. The government received 30 applications in February, and more than 20 showed interests to license their operations.

The government believed that the 50 online casinos’ approval would boost the sports betting activity of Germany by 99 percent. Germany will enforce legal action against online operators that continued accepting wagers from German clients before July 1 next year. The government warmed more than 100 companies from serving German gamblers without a license.

Germany Restricts Card Transactions from Online Casinos

Many legitimate international online companies continued operating in the country despite strict government restrictions. Many companies pulled out operations as they wait for the scheduled launch of the industry next year. The government is in the crackdown for online casinos that continued operations in the country.

The German government restricted the use of Visa and Mastercard in transactions from online casinos.

In 2019, PayPal was forced to end its payment service in the German casino market but continued offering services in sports betting. Legislations on gambling changed in the summer of 2020, which mandated online casinos to halt operations in the German market or ban the use of Visa and Mastercard for German players.

Many companies, such as Klarna, handle payments in online casinos in Germany. These companies are waiting for the enforcement of the new guidelines and the legalization of online casinos as they expect a temporary tolerance for all forms of gambling in Germany. Other states such as Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Baden-Württemberg, and the Saarland rejected the idea of allowing online casinos.

German gamblers can continue playing in Germany through the services of new payment providers like OnlineÜberweisen. New emerging companies entered the market and promised safe payment options. Players can use the services of eWallets like Neteller, Skrill, ecoCard, and cryptocurrencies.

People are excited with the legalization of the online gambling industry in Germany.