Is online gambling legal in Belarus?

Legal overview

Belarus regulates gambling through presidential decrees. Online casinos, which the law calls virtual gaming establishments, were legalised by a decree signed in August 2018 and have been licensed since 2019. The Ministry of Taxes and Duties issues gambling licences under the Law on Licensing, in force since 2023. A licence can cover five activities: casinos, slot-machine halls, totalisators, bookmaker offices and virtual gaming establishments. A new framework, Presidential Decree No. 226 of 6 June 2025, applies in its main parts from 11 March 2026.

A licensed online operator must keep a guarantee fund on a special account and connect to the special computer cash system that records gambling turnover. Under the 2026 rules the fund is 90,000 base units, or 20,000 for operators that offer only online betting and totalisator games. Every player must be identified, either by video session or by an in-person visit. Each person may hold only one account per virtual establishment. Using someone else's ID, bank card or e-wallet is banned, and such transactions can be declared void, with the money going to the state. From 1 July 2027 an online casino also needs a test protocol from the state-designated monitoring centre. The minimum age for all gambling, online included, is 21.

Since March 2026 Belarusian banks may not transfer individuals' payments to foreign gambling operators. The 2018 decree had already confined residents to sites in the national segment of the internet. Players can exclude themselves for six months to three years with a written application to an operator, and relatives can ask a court for a restriction of the same length.