Online Gambling in the UK
Pursuant to the UK’s Gambling Act 2005 (‘the Act’), online casinos licensed in the UK or jurisdictions deemed by the UK Gambling Commission (“the Commission”) as having ‘White Listing’ status, are free to offer their product to UK residents and advertise via mainstream media within Great Britain. The United Kingdom’s open market approach to online gambling has seen it become the centre of the net casino universe…for the time being at least as well as the headquarters for the online operations for some of the biggest brand names in the gambling industry. For a more detailed discussion of the current legal position, visit our legal issues page.
From a practical standpoint what all this means is that UK players will encounter no restrictions in accessing live dealer online casinos, and can pretty much choose where they want to play. It also means there are a bunch of big brand operators with offerings tailored to the UK playing market.
A study released by the Commission in September 2009 revealed that UK residents had been making the most of their unfettered access to remote gambling services. Some interesting facts brought to light in the study included a remote gambling yield of £896 million in the 2006/07 financial year from an estimated 6.2 million active UK remote gambling account holders.
[Update August 2014]
Significant amendments to the Act are due to come into effect December 1 2014, requiring all operators wishing to accept bets from UK residents to:
- obtain a local license to do so from the UK Gambling Commission, irrespective of any foreign held licenses; and
- pay a point of consumption tax (15% of gross profits) on all UK player source income.
More details on the UK’s new iGaming regulation may be read here. The changes will be felt more by operators than punters, the latter perhaps being a little more restricted in the number or online casinos they can access. You may also notice the number of operators advertising in the UK decreases, with some opting not to seek a UK license, and therefore unable to market their product.
Best live casinos for British players
Here are some of the best known UK betting shops, all offering live dealer casinos, all now licensed by the UK Gambling Commission to accept UK players, and catering specifically to UK player account preferences, as follows:
 Casinos |  Player access |  Banking | Toll free support | Local language | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Read review | Visit | No restrictions | No deposit restrictions Maintain account in pound sterling | Toll free phone numbers for all UK players | YES | European based dealer room with Euro centric games, very large dedicated live room, prolific promos |
Read review | Visit | No restrictions | No deposit restrictions Maintain account in pound sterling | Yes | Yes | European based dealer room with Euro centric games, large dedicated live room, many promos |
Read review | Visit | No restrictions | No deposit restrictions Maintain account in pound sterling | Toll free phone numbers for all UK players | YES | Euro and Asian based dealer rooms with Euro centric games and Asian favourite variations |
Read review | Visit | No restrictions | No deposit restrictions Maintain account in pound sterling | Toll free phone numbers for all UK players | YES | Five distinct casinos to choose from. Euro and Asian flavoured games |