How to Check a Gibraltar Gambling License

Where to check a license: the Gambling Commissioner's public register

The starting point is the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner's published register of approved brands and licensees. This is not a single searchable database in the way some regulators run one. Gibraltar publishes lists and documents that name the licensed company and the brands or domains it is allowed to operate.

A typical entry names the licensed entity and the website it covers. BV (Gibraltar) Limited, for example, is listed with www.betvictor.com¹. Another entry covers LC International Limited's betting license, naming Ladbrokes, Coral, Gala Bingo, Gala Casino and Gala Spins as its brands². When you are checking a site, you are looking for that same pattern: a named company, a license reference, and the exact domain you are on.

The practical steps are simple:

1. Find the license claim on the site. It is usually in the footer, sometimes on an "about us" or "licensing" page.
2. Note the exact licensed company name, the license number if shown, and the exact domain you are visiting.
3. Open the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner's register and search for the company name.
4. Check that the domain in the register matches the domain in your browser, character for character.
5. If the register names a brand but not the domain you are on, treat the claim as unverified.

That last point matters more than it sounds. Regulators elsewhere give the same instruction: check whether the details of the license, including activities and website domain names, match the public register³. A license that covers "casino" does not automatically cover a sportsbook, and a license that names one domain does not cover a lookalike.

If you want the wider picture of how registers work across the region, see Public Gambling License Registers: Where Each Regulator Lists Its Licensees. For the Gibraltar regulator itself, the background is in The Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner and Gibraltar Licenses.

What the register tells you

The register confirms that a company holds a Gibraltar license and which brands or domains sit under it. That is genuinely useful. It tells you the operator is regulated in Gibraltar, that it has met the entry requirements, and that it answers to the Commissioner rather than to nobody.

It also tells you something about the shape of the market. Gibraltar licenses both remote operators and land-based gambling. Gaming machines are permitted in various locations such as bars, restaurants, pubs and clubs, and also in betting shops⁴. So a Gibraltar license is not only an online thing, though for readers in Asia the remote side is what usually matters.

The register is also a moving target. Licenses are added, brands change hands, and companies restructure. A brand you checked last year may sit under a different licensed entity now. Check again before you deposit, not once and forever.

One more thing the register does well: it lets you spot a mismatch between what a site claims and what is actually recorded. If a site says "licensed in Gibraltar" but the register has no entry for that company or that domain, you have your answer.

Warning signs: cloned sites and misused brands

The most common problem is not a site with no license at all. It is a site borrowing a real brand's reputation. The Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner has issued consumer warnings about URLs that attempt to mislead the public into thinking they are using a named brand's services⁵. That is the pattern to watch for.

Cloned sites copy the look of a well-known operator, sometimes down to the logo and color scheme, and then use a domain that is close to but not identical to the real one. The register is your defense: the real brand's domain is listed, the clone's is not.

Regulators in Asia run the same playbook. PAGCOR urges the public to check its list of licensees before accessing offshore gaming sites⁶, and it publishes the registered domain names attached to each licensee, for example www.ggpoker.ph under one accredited provider⁷. The principle is identical to Gibraltar's: the domain is the thing you verify, not the logo.

Other warning signs worth knowing:

• The license claim is vague. "Licensed and regulated" with no company name, no number and no jurisdiction is not a claim you can check.
• The footer names a regulator but the register has no matching entry.
• The domain in the footer text differs from the domain in your address bar.
• The site pushes you to deposit before you can see any licensing detail.
• Customer support cannot tell you the licensed company name.

If a site fails these checks, the safer move is to walk away. Independent guidance is blunt about this: gamble only on sites that offer pre-commitment tools to set time and money limits, and sites carrying the RG Check accreditation mark have such features⁸. A site that hides its licensing is unlikely to offer you those controls.

For more on this specific problem, see Fake Gambling License Claims: Cloned Seals and False License Numbers and Websites That Falsely Claim an MGA Licence, which covers the same tactic under a different regulator.

What the register does not tell you

A verified Gibraltar license is a real signal, but it is a narrow one. It does not tell you that the site is legal for you to use where you live, and it does not tell you the site will treat you well.

It does not override your local law. A Gibraltar license regulates the operator. It says nothing about whether you, sitting in Singapore, Japan or Vietnam, are allowed to gamble on that site. That question is answered by your own country's rules, not by Gibraltar's.

It does not mean the site accepts players from your country. Operators restrict markets, and sometimes they restrict their own. 888casino's terms state that neither Gibraltarians nor residents of Gibraltar are permitted to download the software or use the services⁹, and 888poker's user agreement carries the same restriction¹⁰. If an operator excludes players from its own jurisdiction, it can certainly exclude yours.

It does not guarantee the brand you see is the brand you get. As above, the domain match is the check that matters.

It does not tell you about player protection tools. Whether a site offers self-exclusion, deposit limits or time limits is a separate question. Schemes like GAMSTOP prevent setting up gambling accounts with businesses licensed in Great Britain¹¹, which is a different jurisdiction again. If you want to self-exclude, check what the specific operator and your local support services offer.

The license number and what it means

Gibraltar license numbers are short and specific. WHG (International) Limited illustrates how the same operator can hold a Gibraltar license and a separate license from another regulator: two regulators, two numbers, two sets of rules.

Those numbers cover customers in Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Jersey and Gibraltar.

When you check a site, look for the number and the jurisdiction together. A number with no jurisdiction is not checkable. A jurisdiction with no number is weaker still. If you want to get better at reading these, see How to Read a Gambling License Number.

What changed under Gibraltar's new Gambling Act

For a player checking a license, the practical effect is that a current Gibraltar license reflects a newer and stricter regime than the one that applied before April 2026. If you are looking at an old review or an old license claim, it may describe the previous framework.

The Commissioner also publishes a sector risk assessment. The 2026 update maintains existing sector risk ratings, keeping remote B2C and land-based casino at higher risk. That is a regulator's own view of where the risks sit, and it is a reminder that a license does not make a sector risk-free.

If something goes wrong

If you have a problem with a Gibraltar-licensed operator, the Commissioner has a complaints route. The practical steps are the same as with any regulator: keep your account records, your deposit and withdrawal history, and any correspondence with support, then approach the operator formally before escalating.

If the site is not actually licensed, the complaint goes elsewhere. Report the false claim to the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner through its consumer warning channels⁵, and if the site targets your country, report it to your local regulator as well. PAGCOR's approach is a good model: it warns the public against fake online gaming sites and points them to its licensee list⁶.

For the full process, see How to Complain to the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner. If you are dealing with a site that has lost its license rather than never had one, What Happens When a Gambling License Is Suspended or Revoked covers what that means for your money.

A quick checklist

Before you deposit on a site claiming a Gibraltar license:

• Find the licensed company name and license number in the footer.
• Match the exact domain against the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner's register¹.
• Check the license covers the activity you are using, not just "gambling" in general³.
• Confirm the site accepts players from your country, and that your country permits it.
• Look for player protection tools such as deposit and time limits⁸.
• If anything does not match, do not deposit.

If you want the broader method that works for any regulator, not just Gibraltar, start with How to Check if a Casino, Betting Site or Lottery Is Licensed.