Ireland’s Gambling Regulation Act 2024 Explained

Ireland is in the middle of the biggest change to its gambling law in generations. The Gambling Regulation Act 2024 replaces older legislation with one framework and creates a single national regulator. Because the rollout is phased, it is easy to confuse what the Act promises with what is in force. This guide separates the two, for readers in Ireland and for those in the UK, US, Canada and Australia who want to compare.

Dates and commencement details have changed more than once, so check official sources for the current position.

What the Act does

The Act sets up a licensing system covering betting, casinos, bingo, lotteries and online services, bringing online and land-based gambling into one system with consumer protection and public health as stated aims. It creates a regulator, sets out licence types, adds rules on advertising and inducements, restricts credit and provides for a national exclusion register. Commencement orders switch on different sections at different times, which is why the rollout is phased.

The regulator: GRAI

The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, known as the GRAI, is the independent body that regulates gambling under the Act. It was established in 2025 through the first commencement steps. Its functions include running the licensing system, setting and enforcing rules and operating the planned national exclusion register. It can suspend or revoke licences and take cases to the courts, and it administers a social impact fund meant to finance research and initiatives that reduce gambling harm.

Licensing and the rollout

The licensing framework includes business-to-consumer licences for companies that deal with players, business-to-business licences for suppliers and a licence type for charitable and philanthropic gambling. The rollout is phased, with betting first. Three different steps are easy to confuse:

• Statutory commencement: A commencement order (S.I. 31 of 2026) switched on many sections of the Act on 5 February 2026.
• Portal opening: The GRAI says it began accepting applications for in-person betting, remote betting and remote betting intermediary licences on 9 February 2026.
• Operator licence transition: According to the Irish government, the GRAI can licence existing remote betting operators from 1 July 2026 and in-person betting operators from 1 December 2026, when their older licences issued by the Revenue Commissioners expire.

Online casino licensing had not opened at the last check. Because the duties in the Act fall on licensees, they do not all apply to every operator at the same moment, so a site that says it is “licensed in Ireland” deserves a closer look. Check the GRAI’s register of licensees, not a logo. Read how to spot unlicensed gambling sites and scams.

Age and credit: what was switched on

Two duties commenced on 5 February 2026. Section 158 says a licensee covered by that chapter shall not permit a child to take part in a relevant gambling activity, and the Act defines a child as a person under 18. Section 165 says a business-to-consumer licensee, other than one holding a once-off lottery licence, shall not accept payment by credit card, extend a credit facility or knowingly facilitate credit for gambling. It covers electronic payments using money loaded from a credit card, and lets the GRAI prohibit other payment forms.

These are duties on licensees. They apply to an operator as a licence under the Act is held, so the phased licence transition above still matters. The UK took a similar step for credit cards in April 2020, and Australia did so for licensed online wagering in 2024. A comparison is in credit card gambling bans by country.

The exclusion register

The Act provides for a National Gambling Exclusion Register, run by the GRAI. When it is live, it is meant to let a person exclude from licensed online gambling in one step, and licensed operators will have to refuse payments from, and avoid contacting, anyone on it.

For illustration, with invented figures: a person with accounts at four betting companies must today make four separate exclusion requests, each protecting them at only one company. Under a national register, one request would cover all licensed operators, which matters when even simple admin feels hard.

Do not assume the register exists yet. Self-exclusion in Ireland is done operator by operator, and GAMSTOP does not cover Irish-licensed operators. See self-exclusion explained.

The Act also deals with advertising. Section 149 bars a licensee from arranging advertising on broadcasters, on-demand video and on-demand sound services between 5:30 am and 9:00 pm, with an exception for charitable or philanthropic licences whose advertising carries no operator name or logo. The commencement order of February 2026 did not include sections 143 to 151, so treat the watershed as enacted. Check the commencement table on the Irish Statute Book, and the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, for whether a later order has brought it into force. For comparisons see gambling advertising rules by country.

What is still pending

Parts of the Act remain uncommenced, including the advertising sections above, the exclusion register, wider licensing categories such as online casino and some detailed codes and standards. Check the GRAI website for its most recent announcements. If you are worried about your own gambling, speak to your GP or the HSE, and use a budget and the spend tracker to see what you spend.

Rules by country

• Ireland: Gambling Regulation Act 2024, the GRAI as regulator, phased rollout with betting first, age (s158) and credit (s165) duties commenced on 5 February 2026 for covered licensees, and an exclusion register planned.
• United Kingdom: The UK Gambling Commission licenses operators for Great Britain. The age is 18 for nearly all products, and GAMSTOP is the online self-exclusion scheme for most licensed online operators.
• United States: Regulation is state by state. Sports betting is legal in most states, and online casino in only a handful.
• Canada: Provinces regulate. Ages are 19 in most provinces and 18 in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec.
• Australia: Online casino games are prohibited for people in Australia. BetStop is the national register for licensed online and phone wagering.

The bottom line

Ireland’s Gambling Regulation Act 2024 creates a single regulator and a licensing system, and its age and credit duties for covered licensees commenced on 5 February 2026, while advertising limits and a national exclusion register are still to come. Commencement, portal opening and an operator’s licence transition are separate steps, so check what applies to a given site and keep limits in place whichever site you use.

Sources

• Gambling Regulation Act 2024, revised Act with commencement annotations (revisedacts.lawreform.ie)
• Gambling Regulation Act 2024: commencement table (irishstatutebook.ie)
• GRAI news update, issue 6 (grai.ie)
• Minister signs order allowing the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland to begin issuing licences (gov.ie)
• Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland: licensing news (grai.ie)

18+ only (21 in most US states, 19 in most Canadian provinces for casino and betting). Gambling can be addictive. Free, confidential help is available: Great Britain: England and Scotland 0808 8020 133, Wales 0808 2819 265 (free, 24 hours), and GAMSTOP (gamstop.co.uk); US: National Problem Gambling Helpline 1-800-MY-RESET (the older 1-800-522-4700 also works); Australia: Gambling Help Online 1800 858 858 and BetStop (betstop.gov.au); Ontario, Canada: ConnexOntario 1-866-531-2600; Ireland: speak to your GP or the HSE. Never gamble money you need for living costs.