Curaçao-Licensed Casinos Under the LOK: How to Check a CGA Licence

A Curaçao casino today is one licensed directly by the Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA) under the National Ordinance on Games of Chance, known by its Dutch initials LOK, which came into force on 24 December 2024. The old system, in which four private master licence holders handed out sub-licences, has ended. Every genuine Curaçao licence now carries a number in the form OGL/year/number/number and a certificate on the CGA’s own website that names the exact domain it covers.

For players, a Curaçao licence means real but lighter protection than an EU licence: the operator must follow responsible-gambling rules and settle complaints, yet the regulator does not decide individual disputes. This hub explains the new system, how to check a certificate, what went wrong with the CGA portal in September 2026, and which brands we matched to their certificates.

1. 1
   BI

   BitStarz

   100% bonus + 180 free spins on the 1st deposit, then up to EUR 400 or 4 BTC over the next 3 deposits

   • Gareton B.V., licence OGL/2024/165/0185
   • Crypto and fiat in one account
   • Running since 2014

   Licence: Curaçao Gaming Authority OGL/2024/165/0185 (Gareton B.V.)

   Visit siteRead review18+. New players. 40x bonus wagering, bonuses valid 7 days. 180 free spins: 20 on deposit, then 20 a day for 8 days. Offer shown to EU visitors in October 2026; offers vary by country. T&Cs apply.
2. 2
   MB

   mBit Casino

   Up to 4 BTC + 325 free spins over 3 deposits

   • Scores55 Tech B.V., licence OGL/2024/1307/0748
   • Crypto-only cashier
   • Free spins on every welcome deposit

   Licence: Curaçao Gaming Authority OGL/2024/1307/0748 (Scores55 Tech B.V.)

   Visit site18+. New players. Min deposit 30 USDT or the crypto equivalent. 40x wagering on each bonus. Offer shown to EU visitors in October 2026; offers vary by country. T&Cs apply.
3. 3
   ST

   Stake

   No fixed welcome match; rewards through the VIP programme, rakeback and promotions

   • Medium Rare N.V., licence OGL/2024/1451/0918
   • Casino and sportsbook on one crypto balance
   • Provably fair in-house games

   Licence: Curaçao Gaming Authority OGL/2024/1451/0918 (Medium Rare N.V.)

   Visit site18+. T&Cs apply.

All three brands are crypto-friendly casinos for international players. None accepts players from the United States or the United Kingdom, and Stake also excludes Australia and most of the EU. Read the restricted list in each card before you sign up.

What changed in Curaçao in December 2024?

Before the LOK, online casinos in Curaçao operated under sub-licences from four master licence holders: Antillephone, Curaçao eGaming (Cyberluck), Gaming Curaçao and Curaçao Interactive Licensing. Players could rarely tell who was responsible for what, and a single master licence could cover hundreds of brands. The LOK replaced that structure with direct licences issued by a single public regulator, the Curaçao Gaming Authority.

Old seals that mention Curaçao eGaming or the 8048/JAZ number belong to the pre-LOK era. If a casino still shows one in late 2026, treat it as outdated until you find a current CGA certificate for the same domain.

How do you check a Curaçao licence?

Check a Curaçao licence on the CGA’s certificate service at cert.cga.cw, normally by clicking the seal in the casino footer. The certificate should show an active status, the licensed company, the licence type (B2C for a casino), the licence number and the exact domain you are on. The CGA itself warns that its general register is an overview, so the live certificate is the record to trust.

1. Read the terms. Under CGA policy, a B2C operator’s terms must name the licensee, its registered address, registration number and licence number. BitStarz’s terms name Gareton B.V.; Stake’s name Medium Rare N.V.
2. Click the seal. It should open a page on cert.cga.cw. A seal that opens only an image or a page on another domain is not a CGA certificate.
3. Compare five fields. Status, company, licence type, number and domain must all match what the casino shows.
4. Note the date. Licences can be suspended or still be under assessment. If the certificate reads “assessment in progress”, the company has applied but the review is not finished.

The September 2026 portal breach

In September 2026 the CGA confirmed unauthorised access to its licensing portal, on 17 and 22 September. The portal was still offline on 2 October 2026. The authority said that existing licences remain valid. For players, the practical effect is that some certificate and register look-ups may fail or show stale data for a while. When that happens, record what the casino shows, try the certificate link again later, and treat any new licence claim made during the outage with extra caution.

What a Curaçao licence obliges a casino to do

Under the LOK and the CGA’s licence conditions, a B2C licensee must provide a safe gambling environment, comply with the CGA’s responsible-gambling requirements, protect players’ personal and payment data, run tested and secure gaming systems, and report to the regulator. Its terms must also state that Curaçao law governs the player agreement.

Where does a complaint against a Curaçao casino go?

The CGA does not mediate individual disputes between players and casinos. Complain to the casino first, in writing, and keep its answer. If the casino does not resolve it, take the case to one of the alternative dispute resolution bodies the CGA has certified; the CGA’s list dated 31 August 2026 named seven. You can still report conduct that breaks licence conditions to the CGA at [email protected], which uses such reports in supervision, but it will not settle your dispute.

Our complaint routes by licence page includes a short template and the evidence to keep for every regulator in this directory.

The Curaçao brands we list

We list three Curaçao brands, all of which publish their licensee and number in their terms and have a matching certificate. They are crypto-first casinos, so the payment section below matters more than it would at an EU brand.

BitStarz

BitStarz has run since 2014 and is one of the few Curaçao casinos that mix crypto and fiat in the same account. Its bonuses page advertises a 100% bonus plus 180 free spins on the first deposit, then up to EUR 400 or 4 BTC over the next three deposits, with 40 times wagering on bonuses and seven days to use them; the free spins arrive 20 at a time over several days. Our BitStarz profile covers the restricted list and payment details.

mBit Casino

mBit is crypto-only and pays a three-stage package of up to 4 BTC and 325 free spins, with a minimum deposit of 30 USDT or the equivalent and 40 times wagering on each bonus. Its footer referred to the “Curaçao Gaming Control Board”, the regulator’s pre-LOK name, when our colleagues checked it in October 2026; the licence number itself is in the current CGA format.

Stake

Stake does not offer a fixed welcome match. It runs a VIP programme with rakeback and frequent promotions instead, which suits players who dislike wagering requirements but offers no up-front bonus. Clause 14.3 of its terms excludes 44 countries and Ontario; Brazil, Colombia and Peru are served through separately licensed local sites, and Stake.us is a different, sweepstakes-model business.

Paying at Curaçao casinos

Crypto is the main rail at Curaçao casinos, because EU banks and card schemes are cautious about gambling merchants outside the EEA. Expect Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Dogecoin and stablecoins such as USDT, each on specific networks. Sending a coin on the wrong network can lose it, so copy the deposit address and network together from the cashier.

Our crypto casinos guide explains networks, fees and the EU travel rule, and the payment methods hub compares crypto with cards and bank transfers.

Is a Curaçao casino legal where you live?

A CGA licence allows the operator to offer gambling from Curaçao. It does not make the casino lawful in countries that require their own licence. The Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal and many others do, which is why those countries appear on the restricted lists above. A casino that accepts you despite listing your country as restricted, or that suggests a VPN, is a casino to avoid: its own terms allow it to void your winnings. Our guide to restricted countries explains the reasons behind these lists.

Tax is a separate question. Several EU countries exempt winnings from EEA-licensed gambling but not from Curaçao, so a Finnish or Swedish resident can owe tax on winnings that would be exempt at a Malta casino. See tax-free casino winnings.

Red flags at Curaçao casinos

• The seal shows an old master licence (Curaçao eGaming, Antillephone, 8048/JAZ) and no CGA certificate.
• The certificate’s domain is not the domain you are on.
• The terms do not name a company and registration number, which CGA policy requires.
• Withdrawal rules allow “pending” periods with no end, or caps that change at the casino’s discretion without notice.
• Support cannot tell you which ADR body handles complaints.

Curaçao compared with the other offshore licences

Curaçao, Anjouan and Tobique are the three non-EEA licences you will meet most often at international casinos. Since the LOK, Curaçao has the most developed public verification system of the three.

Each has its own hub: Anjouan-licensed casinos and Tobique Gaming Commission casinos. The directory front page lists every brand by licence.

A ten-minute check before your first deposit

Most problems players bring to complaint forums would have shown up in a short check before the first deposit. This is the routine we use for every Curaçao brand, in order.

If any line fails, wait. A casino that cannot pass this in ten minutes will be harder to deal with when real money is at stake.

What happened to casinos that did not move to a CGA licence?

The LOK set a transition: operators that had worked under a master licence had to apply for a direct licence, and the old sub-licences lapsed. Some brands applied and appear on the CGA register with a status such as “assessment in progress”. Others closed, moved to another licence such as Anjouan or Tobique, or kept trading with an outdated seal. A register search on a former Curaçao brand can therefore return one of four answers: an active certificate, an application still under assessment, no entry at all, or an entry for a different domain.

An application under assessment is not the same as a licence. The Famagousta B.V. entry for Jupi, for example, showed “assessment in progress” on 2 October 2026 for a period that had already ended on 4 June 2026. We do not list a brand in that state until the certificate shows an active licence.

Limits and self-exclusion at Curaçao casinos

Responsible-gambling tools at Curaçao casinos are less standardised than in Malta, so check them yourself before you need them. Look for four things in the account settings or the responsible-gambling page: a deposit limit you can set without contacting support, a session or loss limit, a cooling-off period and self-exclusion. Stake, for example, groups its tools under a “Stake Smart” section. If a tool is only available by emailing support, send the email before you start playing, not after a losing session.

National self-exclusion registers in Europe do not reach Curaçao casinos. If you have excluded yourself through your country’s scheme and an offshore casino lets you register, that is a sign the scheme does not cover it, not that the exclusion has ended. Our responsible gambling page lists free help that works across borders.

Who should, and should not, choose a Curaçao casino?

A Curaçao-licensed brand makes sense if you want to pay in cryptocurrency, your country does not require a local licence for the casino you choose, and you accept that disputes will go to an ADR body rather than to an EU-style regulator. It makes less sense if you live in a country that taxes winnings from non-EEA gambling and exempts EEA gambling, or if you value the stricter limit rules of an EU licence. In that case, compare the brands in our MGA casinos hub first.

It is never the right choice if your country appears on the casino’s restricted list. Getting in through a VPN does not change the terms, and those terms let the casino void winnings and close the account.

Bonuses at Curaçao casinos

Bonus rules at Curaçao casinos are set by each operator rather than by a regulator template, so the spread is wide. Among our three brands you will find a classic matched package with 40 times wagering (BitStarz), a crypto match with free spins on every stage (mBit) and no welcome match at all (Stake). Two numbers decide whether a bonus is worth taking: the wagering multiple and the time limit.

Whether wagering applies to the bonus alone or to the deposit plus bonus changes the burden a great deal, and casinos phrase this differently. Find the exact sentence in the bonus terms before you opt in.

Frequently asked questions

Is a Curaçao gaming licence still valid in 2026?

Yes, if it is a licence issued by the Curaçao Gaming Authority under the LOK, which took effect on 24 December 2024. Old master licence sub-licences, such as those under Curaçao eGaming, no longer count. Check the certificate at cert.cga.cw.

How do I verify a Curaçao casino licence?

Click the seal in the casino footer, which should open a certificate on cert.cga.cw. Confirm the status is active and the company, licence type, OGL number and exact domain match the casino you are using.

Will the Curaçao Gaming Authority resolve my complaint?

No. The CGA does not mediate individual disputes. Complain to the casino first, then use one of the CGA-certified ADR bodies. You can report licence breaches to [email protected], which the CGA uses for supervision.

What happened to the CGA portal in September 2026?

The CGA confirmed unauthorised access to its licensing portal on 17 and 22 September 2026, and the portal was still offline on 2 October. The authority said existing licences remain valid.

Do Curaçao casinos accept cryptocurrency?

Most of the Curaçao casinos we list do. BitStarz takes crypto and fiat, mBit is crypto-only and Stake is built around crypto balances. Always choose the correct network for each coin in the cashier.

What does OGL mean in a Curaçao licence number?

OGL numbers are the format the Curaçao Gaming Authority uses for online gaming licences issued under the LOK, followed by the year and two reference numbers, for example OGL/2024/165/0185 for Gareton B.V., the company behind BitStarz.

Can a Curaçao casino refuse to pay if I used a VPN?

Yes, if its terms say so, and most do. Using a VPN or false location to get around a restricted-country list breaks the terms, which typically allow the casino to void bets, keep winnings and close the account.

Are Curaçao casinos safe?

A CGA licence means the operator is supervised and must follow responsible-gambling and data-protection rules, but protection is lighter than under an EU licence and disputes go to ADR rather than the regulator. Check the certificate, terms and withdrawal limits before you deposit.