Online gambling in Romania
Background
Romania’s journey with online gambling regulations began in earnest in the early 2000s. Initially, the industry was largely unregulated, leading to a surge in unlicensed operators. In 2009, the government introduced its first significant set of regulations with Emergency Ordinance 77/2009, aiming to control and tax gambling activities.
However, it wasn’t until 2015 that comprehensive legislation came into effect with the passing of Government Emergency Ordinance (GEO) 92/2014. It established the Oficiul Național pentru Jocuri de Noroc, or National Gambling Office (ONJN) as the regulator responsible for licensing and oversight of online gambling operators and software providers.
Licensing rules required that operators be based in Romania or an EU/EEA member country and controversially were required to pay retrospective back taxes on activity (dating back to 2009) in the Romanian market preceding the new laws. This regulation led to some notable brands initially opting out of the newly regulated market (William Hill and bet365 among them).
Bet365 Live are now licensed in Romania and offer tables with Romanian dealers like All Bets Blackjack
Today, many global online gambling brands are operating under license from ONJN, bet365 included.
Current Regulations
Oversight of Romania’s online gambling industry remains the responsibility of the ONJN. Key aspects of the regime are as follows:
- Licensing: ONJN awards remote gambling licenses to successful applicants for a period of 10 years with 2 classes of license available:
– Class 1 license to offer gambling services and
– Class 2 license for those providing ancillary services, such as software providers and payment processors. - Permitted gambling: A broad range of online gambling categories can be offered Romanian players under a Class 1 license, including:
– Sports betting: both fixed-odds betting and exchange betting on various sports events.
– Casino games: a variety of online casino games, including slots, table games (e.g., blackjack, roulette, baccarat), and other RNG (Random Number Generator) games.
– Live dealer games: are permitted
– Poker: online poker games and tournaments.
– Bingo and lottery: online bingo games and lottery-style games. - Enforcement and blocking: The ONJN maintains and updates a blacklist of unlicensed operators and works with ISPs to block Romanian access to these sites. They also work with financial institutions, taking measures to block transactions with unlicensed operators.
Live Dealer Studios
Romania has become a significant hub for live dealer studios, leveraging its strategic location and skilled workforce. The world’s leading live games providers all maintain dealer studios located in Romania, under a Class 2 license from ONJN, namely:
- Evolution, who launched their Bucharest dealer studio in 2016
- Playtech, who launched their Bucharest dealer studio in 2017
- Ezugi, who launched their Bucharest dealer studio in 2017
- Pragmatic Play, who launched their Bucharest dealer studio in 2019
- OnAir Entertainment who launched their Bucharest dealer studio in 2023
Major Operators
Some of the biggest names in the world of online gambling have joined local operators to participate in Romania’s regulated iGaming market from their ‘.ro’ websites.
Romanian Roulette from Pragmatic Play, played at 888
Among first round Class 1 licence recipients were Unibet, 888, Betfair, PokerStars and local Romanian operator Superbet. After initially opting out, bet365 have now also joined.
Best live casinos for Romanian players
Romanian players are spoilt for choice with most licensed operators offering live dealer games. What’s more, because many of the tables are streamed from within Romania, localised tables are in abundance.
Our favourite live casinos available to players in Romania are:
