Is online gambling legal in Norway?

Legal overview

Norway keeps gambling in state hands. Under the Gambling Act (pengespilloven), in force since 1 January 2023, the right to offer most games of chance is reserved for the state-owned Norsk Tipping, while horse-race betting is reserved for Norsk Rikstoto. Norsk Tipping runs a legal online casino, and the Norwegian Gaming and Foundation Authority (Lotteritilsynet) reported a sharp rise in its online casino players in 2026. Private and foreign companies cannot obtain a Norwegian licence for online casino or betting.

The regulator enforces the monopoly with two main tools. Norwegian banks are subject to a payment-blocking rule that can stop transactions to unlicensed gambling providers. Since 1 January 2025, Section 32a of the Gambling Act has also allowed the authority to order Norwegian internet service providers to block the domain names of websites that offer gambling without Norwegian permission. Visitors to blocked sites are shown an information page, which under rules announced in September 2026 must include contact details for the Hjelpelinjen helpline. By October 2026, 238 sites run by 72 companies had been blocked, and further rounds of notices continue.

The law targets operators rather than players: using a foreign gambling site is not a criminal offence for individuals in Norway. Unlicensed sites, however, fall outside Norwegian player protection, and the authority warns that players may have trouble getting winnings paid out. Norsk Tipping's games require players to be at least 18 and apply mandatory limits and responsible gambling tools.