The Finnish Gambling Act will proceed primarily in its original form as presented to the nation’s parliament in March after proposed revisions were rejected. Finland will have competitive, regulated online gambling starting in 2027 according to the legislation.
After the Administrative Committee reviewed the bill last week, opposition parties put forth a number of amendments. A suggestion to increase the minimum gambling age from 18 to 20, mandate two-factor authentication on all licensed gaming platforms, centralize deposit and loss limits across operators, and outlaw bonuses were among them.
Only TV and radio advertising for all licensees—aside from Veikkaus, the present state-owned monopoly operator—would have been covered by the proposed advertising ban. Additionally, it would have prohibited gambling advertisements at public and sporting events.
Additionally, a suggestion was made to raise the gambling tax rate from 22% of gross gaming revenue to 25.5%.
Next week is the anticipated final vote on the Finnish Gambling Act.
When the law is put to a final vote next week, it is likely to pass with just minimal changes due to the overwhelming rejection of these measures by 153 votes to 21 with 25 members not present.
The vote’s outcome was hailed by Antti Koivula, chief compliance officer at Hippos ATG, the new joint venture between Suomen Hippos and Sweden’s ATG.
Koivula said:
This outcome surprised absolutely no one. If anything was surprising, it was how overwhelmingly the proposal was defeated, even within the opposition itself.
Koivula thinks that only a change in government at the next national elections in April 2027 may stop the proposal to open Finland’s online gambling sector, even though it still needs a full parliamentary vote next week. Although it appears improbable, there have been rumors that the elections may cause the new licensing regime’s planned January 2027 launch date to be postponed.
