Betting licensing Kenya is administered by the Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB), which regulates all gaming, lottery and bookmaker operations. The Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB) is the statutory regulator for betting, gaming, and lottery activities in Kenya under the Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act (Cap 131 of the Laws of Kenya). Any person seeking to operate a bookmaker’s business, casino, lottery, gaming machine, or online betting platform in Kenya must obtain the appropriate BCLB licence before commencing operations. Kenya’s gambling sector has experienced rapid growth driven by mobile money, online betting platforms, and sports betting, making regulatory compliance more important than ever.
The Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act Framework in Kenya
The Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act provides the foundational legal framework for gambling regulation in Kenya. The Act has been significantly supplemented by subsidiary legislation including the Betting, Gaming and Lotteries (Electronic Communication) Regulations 2019, which brought online and mobile betting within the BCLB’s regulatory scope. The Finance Act 2019 introduced a 20% tax on betting company revenues and a 20% withholding tax on winners’ payouts, which has significantly affected the sector’s economics.
Categories of BCLB Licence
Bookmaker’s Licence
A bookmaker’s licence is required by any person who accepts or negotiates bets or wagers on the result of any race, sporting event, or other contingency for monetary consideration. Bookmaker licences must be renewed annually. Applicants must demonstrate financial soundness, provide a fit-and-proper declaration for all directors and shareholders, and maintain minimum working capital as prescribed by the BCLB.
Casino and Gaming House Licence
A casino licence is required to operate a gaming establishment where persons play for stakes. Casino operators must comply with stringent requirements covering premises standards, gaming equipment approval, staff licensing, anti-money laundering procedures, and responsible gambling policies. Casino licences require significant capital commitments and involve the most intensive ongoing supervision by the BCLB.
Lottery Licence
A lottery licence is required for any scheme whereby persons purchase chances to win prizes through a draw or other random method. Public lotteries for charitable purposes require a separate class of lottery permit. Lottery operators must hold prize money in trust and comply with BCLB prize distribution rules.
Online and Mobile Betting Licence
Following the 2019 Electronic Communication Regulations, all online betting and mobile sports betting platforms operating in Kenya must be licensed by the BCLB. Platform operators must be Kenyan-registered companies, must use KRA-approved betting revenue management systems, and must maintain servers accessible by the BCLB for auditing purposes.
AML Compliance for Betting Operators
Betting and gaming operators in Kenya are Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs) under the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act (POCAMLA) 2009. They are required to maintain customer due diligence records, file suspicious transaction reports with the Financial Reporting Centre, and appoint a Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO). The Financial Reporting Centre conducts regular inspections of BCLB-licensed entities to assess AML compliance.
BCLB Enforcement and Deregistration
The BCLB has broad powers to suspend or revoke licences for non-compliance with the Act or licence conditions. Operating without a BCLB licence is a criminal offence. The BCLB undertook a significant enforcement exercise in 2019, revoking the licences of several major online betting operators pending compliance reviews. This demonstrated the seriousness with which the regulator views licence condition compliance.
Legal advice on BCLB licensing, gambling regulation, and AML compliance for betting operators is available from our regulatory compliance practice. The Betting Control and Licensing Board website provides further information on application procedures. Betting operators should also consult our corporate and commercial practice on structuring gambling businesses in Kenya.
BCLB Licence Application Process
The BCLB licence application requires submission of the following documents: certified Certificate of Incorporation; Memorandum and Articles of Association showing the company’s registered business activities include betting and gaming; a detailed business plan and description of the proposed gambling activities; evidence of financial capacity including audited financial statements or a bank guarantee; fit-and-proper declarations for all directors and beneficial owners; a proposed AML/CFT compliance programme; technical documentation for any electronic gaming systems; and payment of the prescribed application fee. The BCLB evaluates applications against the criteria set out in the Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act and its subsidiary regulations. Processing timelines vary but typically take three to six months from submission of a complete application.
Youth Protection and Responsible Gambling
The BCLB’s regulatory framework includes specific requirements on responsible gambling and youth protection. Operators are required to: display responsible gambling information prominently on all platforms; provide self-exclusion mechanisms for problem gamblers; verify the age of all bettors and refuse access to persons under 18; and cooperate with the BCLB’s responsible gambling programme. The Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act prohibits advertising gambling products in ways that target persons under 18, and the BCLB has taken enforcement action against operators whose advertising has been directed at minors. Operators must also maintain records of customer due diligence including age verification records for BCLB inspection.
Tax Obligations for Betting Operators
Betting operators in Kenya face a significant tax burden that has shaped the sector’s economics. The Finance Act 2019 introduced excise duty of 20% on the gross gaming revenue of betting operators. A 20% withholding tax is also deducted from winnings before payment to successful bettors. Value Added Tax applies to certain gambling-related services. These taxes are collected and remitted to the Kenya Revenue Authority under the Income Tax Act and the Excise Duty Act. Operators must maintain detailed records of all bets placed and all winnings paid to comply with their tax reporting obligations. For gambling regulatory and tax compliance advice, our team provides advisory services to BCLB-licensed operators.
Online Betting Compliance Checklist
Online betting operators in Kenya must comply with a comprehensive regulatory checklist before launching and on an ongoing basis: valid BCLB licence displayed on the platform; KRA betting levy systems integrated; age verification implemented for all user registrations; responsible gambling information prominently displayed; FRC DNFBP registration completed; MLRO appointed and AML/CFT programme operational; data protection compliance with the DPA 2019 including ODPC registration; and Communications Authority compliance if the platform involves telecoms features. Our regulatory compliance team conducts pre-launch compliance reviews for new betting platforms entering the Kenyan market.
Sports Integrity and Match Fixing
Betting operators in Kenya face specific compliance obligations related to sports integrity. The BCLB works with Sports Kenya, the Sports Disputes Tribunal, and international sports integrity bodies to identify and report suspicious betting patterns that may indicate match-fixing or other manipulation of sporting events. Licensed betting operators must cooperate with BCLB investigations into suspicious betting patterns and must maintain records of unusual betting activity for reporting purposes. The Kenyan government has been progressively strengthening sports integrity legislation, and operators who are found to have knowingly facilitated match-fixing face licence revocation in addition to criminal liability under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act. For sports sector clients, see our sports law practice covering both sports integrity compliance and sports dispute resolution.
Problem Gambling and Operator Obligations
The BCLB’s responsible gambling framework requires operators to implement problem gambling identification procedures including spending limit tools, time-out features, and self-exclusion registers accessible across all licensed platforms. Operators who identify customers displaying problem gambling behaviour must refer them to counselling services and must honour self-exclusion requests immediately. A failure to implement adequate responsible gambling controls is a licensing breach. For gambling regulatory compliance advice, our team provides BCLB pre-licence and ongoing compliance advisory services.
