Barbados publishes no list of who holds a gambling licence, and the body that grants them has no website. That body is the Betting and Gaming Committee, made up of up to 7 public officers named by a minister[1]. It speaks through notices in the Official Gazette[8].
Here is the answer by product:
- Online casino — unregulated. No law licenses or bans it, and none mentions the internet[2].
- Online poker — unregulated, in the same gap. In 2019 the government said card tables were not operating on land either[11].
- Sports betting — licensed. Pool betting and racing businesses register with the Comptroller and name the countries whose sport they take bets on[3].
- Land-based gambling — licensed for gaming machines on approved premises. A 2012 Act also allows casinos on cruise ships in port[5].
- Lottery — licensed to national sports bodies that a minister approves. The consolidated order lists 38 of them[4].
Map status
Scored on online casino, and Barbados has not answered the question.
No Barbadian law licenses an online casino, and none bans one. The Gambling Act of 1917 punishes common gaming houses, which are places, and public lotteries managed in Barbados[2]. The Betting and Gaming Duties Act of 1977 licenses machines with a slot for cash or tokens[1]. Neither Act mentions the internet.
The 2019 budget statement points the same way. Online betting was one of two areas not operating, and it promised a regime for online gambling[11]. We found no bill that followed[7].
The answer depends on who is asking:
- For a player in Barbados, no law we read reaches a foreign website, and there is no Barbadian licence to look for.
- For an operator based in Barbados, there is no licence to apply for. A game run from Barbados may count as a lottery managed there, which the Gambling Act punishes. We found no court decision on it.
We mark this unregulated rather than prohibited, because the state has not said no. What it does license is gaming machines, betting and sports-body lotteries, through the Betting and Gaming Committee[1].
The detail, section by section
Licensing rests on the Betting and Gaming Duties Act of 1977. Its Committee decides charitable lottery licences and approves licences to import and use gaming machines[1]. It also sets how many machines a venue may run, and hears complaints against licence-holders.
The Comptroller issues the licences and registrations. The Barbados Revenue Authority administers the gaming duties and publishes the Act[10].
Political responsibility sat with the Prime Minister in 2018. The assignment of ministers' duties that year lists betting and gaming, and the Committee, under that office[9].
The Committee approves venues one notice at a time. The Gazette search on Parliament's site returns 3 notices approving premises for gaming machines, from 2014 to 2018[8]. Each capped the venue at 50 machines.
That search only reaches issues up to early 2020. There is no list of current licences, no lookup by name and nothing to check a website against.
On the government sites we could open, we also found no blocklist, no enforcement record and no self-exclusion scheme.
The Gambling Act dates from 1917. Its offences turn on a common gaming house, which is a place, and on a lottery held, drawn or managed in Barbados[2].
The duties Act was written for machines with a slot for cash or tokens. Neither Act mentions the internet.
In March 2019 the budget statement said online betting was not operating, and promised a regulatory regime for online gambling[11]. It also said the government lacked the capacity to regulate the sector.
We found no bill that followed. Parliament's bills archive returns nothing for gaming, gambling, betting, lottery or casino[7].
One old rule does look abroad. No one may send money out of Barbados for a pool bet, unless registered for pool betting[1]. A pool bet taken for a promoter abroad is taxed at 60% of the stake, against 30% at home.
Gaming machines may run only on premises licensed for liquor and approved by the Committee[1]. The Act's fee table sets a gaming machine licence at BDS$15,000 a year, and an amusement arcade licence at BDS$300,000.
The 2019 budget announced a 20% withholding tax on winnings and a 17.5% tax on the net drop of gaming venues[11]. We could not find the law that carries them.
Table casinos are a narrow case. A 2012 Act lets the minister for shipping license a casino on a cruise ship berthed in Bridgetown[5]. It may serve only the ship's passengers, from 6 pm to 6 am. The Act starts by proclamation, which we could not find.
Since September 2026, anyone who operates a gaming institution is covered by the anti-money-laundering law[6].
Barbados has a promotion offence, but it is written for gaming houses and lotteries in Barbados. The Gambling Act punishes publishing announcements about a public lottery[2]. It also punishes announcing a common gaming house, or inviting anyone to play in one.
The penalty is a fine of BDS$960 or 12 months in prison.
On its words, the offence follows the lottery or the house, and both must be in Barbados. Nothing we found addresses advertising for an online casino. Nothing reaches a publisher outside Barbados either.
We could read the Gambling Act only from scanned pages, so we do not quote it. Until it can be quoted, we record the promotion question as unclear.
Promotion rules are unclear
Three places that have answered the online question, each in its own way:
- Curaçao licenses online casino, sports betting, poker, land-based gambling and lottery. Promotion there needs a licence, and the rule does not reach operators abroad.
- Dominican Republic licenses all five products too. Promoting gambling there is an offence, though the rule does not reach operators abroad.
- United Kingdom licenses online casino, sports betting, poker and land-based gambling, and runs its lottery as a state monopoly. Its promotion offence reaches operators abroad.
Barbados licenses the oldest forms of gambling and is silent on the newest.
- No Barbadian licence for online gambling exists. A site that claims one is wrong.
- A licensed gaming machine must have its licence on show at the main entrance of the venue[1].
- Complaints against a licence-holder go to the Betting and Gaming Committee. We found no published address for it.
- There is no self-exclusion scheme to join.
Betting and Gaming Committee - set up by section 15 of the Betting and Gaming Duties Act, Cap. 60, and made up of up to 7 public officers appointed by the Minister. It licenses charitable lotteries, approves gaming machine licences and the premises that hold them, sets how many machines a venue may run, and hears complaints against licence-holders. The Comptroller issues the licences and registrations, and the Barbados Revenue Authority administers the gaming duties. The Committee has no website of its own and speaks through notices in the Official Gazette. No body licenses or supervises online gambling.
- [1]The law Betting & Gaming Duties Act - Barbados Revenue Authority ↗ open the document ↗
The Act that runs licensed gambling in Barbados, as the Revenue Authority publishes it beside its 2010 amendment and the 1979 regulations. It sets up the Betting and Gaming Committee, the registration of pool betting, racing service businesses and sports-body lotteries, gaming machine licences on approved premises, the offences and the fee and duty tables. It says nothing about online gambling.
A short web page with three PDF links. The Act itself is a 35-page PDF: 14 of its pages are scanned images that cannot be searched, while the pages revised in 1997, 2007 and 2008 carry real text. It still names the Comptroller of Customs as the officer who issues licences, and nothing on the page says who issues them today.
- [2]The law Cap. 134 Gambling - the Gambling Act, in the Barbados judiciary's copy of the revised laws ↗
The Gambling Act of 1917 as printed in the 1979 revised edition: what a common gaming house and a public lottery are, the offences of keeping one, playing in one, buying a lottery ticket and publishing lottery announcements, police search powers, and the exemptions for pool betting and certain lotteries. It licenses nothing, and it never mentions the internet.
A 13-page PDF linked from the judiciary's Statutes of Barbados page. The pages are scanned images under a machine-read text layer that has visible errors, so we read the page images and quote none of it. It is the 1979 edition, and any later change to the Act is not printed in it.
- [3]The law Betting and Gaming Duties Regulations, 1979 ↗
The regulations made under the duties Act. They set what an application to register a pool betting or racing service business must contain, including the countries whose racing or other sport the applicant will take bets on, how applications are advertised for objections, the appeal to the Minister, and the opening hours in the schedule.
A 4-page PDF linked from the Revenue Authority's page on the Act, with real text that can be searched and copied. It is the consolidated version of 2007, and the newest amendment it records dates from 1996.
- [4]The law Gambling (Approved National Organisations) Order, 1974 ↗
The ministerial order naming the national sports bodies that may run lotteries outside the Gambling Act's ban: 38 of them in this version, from athletics and boxing associations to a national sports council. It does not say which of them runs a lottery today, or how the main national draw is organised.
A 2-page PDF linked from the judiciary's Subsidiary Legislation of Barbados page, with real text that can be searched. It is the consolidated version of 2007, and the newest amendment it records dates from 2004, so a body added or removed since then would not show here.
- [5]The law Cruise Ships (Opening of Facilities) Act, 2012-20 ↗
The Act that lets a casino, a shop and a bar open on a cruise ship berthed in Bridgetown, under a licence from the minister responsible for shipping; a casino licence is granted after consulting the Betting and Gaming Committee. Licensed facilities may open from 6 pm to 6 am, to the ship's passengers only. It says nothing about casinos on land.
A 21-page PDF listed as Act 2012-020 on the judiciary's Acts 2012 page. It is a scan under a machine-read text layer, so we quote none of it. The Act comes into force on a date fixed by proclamation, and we found no proclamation.
- [6]The law Barbados Parliament Bills Archive | Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (Prevention and Control) (Amendment) Act, 2026 ↗ open the document ↗
Parliament's record of the 2026 amendment to the anti-money-laundering law, with its stages: passed by the House of Assembly on 15 September 2026 and by the Senate on 23 September 2026. Its text adds anyone who operates a gaming institution to the list of designated non-financial businesses. It does not define a gaming institution.
A page of dates and stages with a link to a 12-page PDF of the bill, which carries real text. The page records the votes in both Houses; we did not see the Act as assented to or as published in the Gazette.
- [7]The law View Bills - the Parliament of Barbados archive of bills and resolutions ↗
The searchable archive of bills and resolutions laid before the House of Assembly and the Senate, each with its stages and a PDF of the text. We used it to look for any gambling bill: gaming, gambling, betting, lottery, casino and wagering all return no data, while a control search for liquor finds the 2021 liquor licensing bill.
A keyword search over bill titles, not their full text. The results have no web address of their own, so a reader has to type the word into the form. The site also points visitors to a newer Parliament site, whose lists of statutes and bills load only through a script.
- [8]The regulator The Official Gazette - 30 July 2018 - with a Betting and Gaming Committee notice of premises approved for gaming ↗
A Gazette issue carrying a notice signed for the Betting and Gaming Committee that approves one venue for gaming machines under the duties Act and caps it at 50 machines. It is the newest of the 3 such approvals that the Gazette search on Parliament's site returns. It is not a register, and it says nothing about any other venue or licence.
A 6-page PDF with real text, found through the Gazette search on Parliament's site. That search reads issues only up to early 2020, so newer approvals may exist that it cannot find. The notice names the venue and the company behind it.
- [9]The regulator The Official Gazette - 20 August 2018 - with the assignment of responsibilities to ministers ↗
The Governor-General's assignment of government business to ministers with effect from 28 May 2018. Betting and gaming, and the Betting and Gaming Committee, are listed under the Prime Minister. It does not show who has held the subject since, and it says nothing about what the Committee decides.
A 30-page PDF with real text; the assignment of responsibilities runs over several pages near the end of the issue. Parliament's Gazette search does not reach later issues, so we could not check a newer assignment.
- [10]The regulator Legislation & Regulations - Barbados Revenue Authority ↗
The tax authority's list of the 17 revenue laws it administers, the Betting and Gaming Duties Act among them, with its own statement that gaming duties are part of its remit. It publishes no list of licence holders, no gaming guidance and no gambling contact, and it is not a gambling regulator.
An ordinary web page that loads without a login, behind a cookie notice. Each law opens a short page with the PDFs. The page shows what the authority collects, not who may operate.
- [11]The regulator Budgetary Proposals - 2019 - the budget statement to Parliament of 20 March 2019 ↗
The government's budget statement for 2019. Its section on gaming tax describes what Barbados allows, says online betting and table games were not operating, promises a regime for online gambling and a public-private regulator, and announces a 20% withholding tax on winnings and a 17.5% tax on the net drop of gaming venues from 1 May 2019.
A 95-page PDF with real text, listed as Budgetary Proposals - 2019 on Parliament's page of budget speeches. The gaming section is on pages 66 and 67. It is a statement of policy, not law, and we found no Act that carried its gaming measures.
Each statement below is what the official source says, with the date we last opened it.
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In its budget statement of March 2019 the government told Parliament that Barbados allows slot machines, video lottery terminals, sports betting and lotteries. It named online betting and table games such as poker and blackjack as the two areas not operating.
Budgetary Proposals and Financial Statement, 2019 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
Barbados has had gambling since the 1970s under the Betting and Gaming Act. It allows for slot machines, VLTs, sports betting and lotteries. The two areas that have not been operating in Barbados have been on-line betting and gaming tables — poker, blackjack etc.
Budgetary Proposals and Financial Statement, 2019 · English -
The same statement promised a regulatory regime for online gambling. It also said the government lacked the capacity to regulate betting and gaming itself, and would seek a private partner to do it on a revenue-sharing model.
Budgetary Proposals and Financial Statement, 2019 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
Equally we will introduce a regulatory regime for on line gambling as we do live in a digital world.
Budgetary Proposals and Financial Statement, 2019 · English -
We found no bill that delivered that regime. Searching the Parliament of Barbados archive of bills for gaming returns no data, and so do gambling, betting, lottery, casino and wagering; a control search for liquor finds one bill.
View Bills ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
Search term "gaming" No data to display.
View Bills · English -
Barbados has no gambling regulator with a website. The nearest thing is the Barbados Revenue Authority, a tax body, which counts gaming duties among the revenue laws it administers and publishes the Betting and Gaming Duties Act.
Legislation & Regulations - Barbados Revenue Authority ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
The Barbados Revenue Authority is responsible for the administration of a comprehensive array of Acts pertaining to taxation and government revenues. This encompasses laws that govern income tax, value added tax, land tax, excise duties, tourism levies, gaming duties, and various specific charges or fees related to sectors such as transport, petroleum and public entertainment.
Legislation & Regulations - Barbados Revenue Authority · English -
The Revenue Authority describes the Act as a framework for collecting duties from lotteries, casinos and betting. The Act itself never uses the word casino: what it licenses is gaming machines on approved premises, pool betting and racing businesses, and lotteries.
Betting & Gaming Duties Act - Barbados Revenue Authority ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
It establishes a clear framework for the collection of duties across various gaming sectors, including lotteries, casinos, and betting operations.
Betting & Gaming Duties Act - Barbados Revenue Authority · English -
Licensing decisions sit with the Betting and Gaming Committee. Section 16 gives it charitable lottery licences, approval of licences to import and use gaming machines, the suitability of premises, how many machines they may hold, and complaints against licence-holders.
Cap. 60 Betting and Gaming Duties, section 16 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
16. The functions of the Committee shall be (a) to hear and determine all applications for licences to hold lotteries, as defined by section 2 of the Gambling Act, for a charitable object; (b) to consider all applications and grant or refuse to grant approval for the issue by the Comptroller of licences in respect of the importation and use of machines in Barbados; (c) to determine the suitability of certain premises licensed under the Liquor Licences Act for the purpose of a declaration under this Act; (d) to prescribe the number of machines that may be made available for gaming on approved premises; (e) to inquire into complaints made against licence-holders;
Cap. 60 Betting and Gaming Duties, section 16 · English -
The one rule in the duties Act that looks abroad is about pool betting. Since July 1977 no person may send or try to send money out of Barbados in connection with a pool bet; a business registered with the Comptroller for pool betting is exempt.
Cap. 60 Betting and Gaming Duties, section 5 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
5. (1) From and after the 1st July, 1977, no person shall send or attempt to send out of Barbados any money or valuable thing in connection with any bet made or to be made or attempted to be made by way of pool betting.
Cap. 60 Betting and Gaming Duties, section 5 · English -
Betting is not limited to horse racing. The 1979 regulations make anyone applying to run a pool betting or racing service business name the countries whose racing or other sporting events it intends to take bets on.
Betting and Gaming Duties Regulations, 1979, regulation 2 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
(b) names of the countries on whose racing or other sporting activities, as the case may be, the applicant intends to take bets;
Betting and Gaming Duties Regulations, 1979, regulation 2 · English -
The Committee publishes approvals one notice at a time in the Official Gazette, not as a list. The Gazette search on Parliament's site returns 3 notices approving premises for gaming machines, from 2014 to 2018, and each caps the venue at 50 machines.
The Official Gazette - 30 July 2018 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
Notice is hereby given that the undermentioned premises have been approved for gaming under Section 17 of the Betting and Gaming Duties Act, Cap. 60 of the Laws of Barbados. The number of gaming machines which may be used or kept for gaming on the premises shall not exceed the number set out opposite thereto:
The Official Gazette - 30 July 2018 · English -
Political responsibility for gambling sat with the head of government. In the assignment of ministers' duties published in August 2018, betting and gaming and the Betting and Gaming Committee are listed under the Prime Minister.
The Official Gazette - 20 August 2018, Assignment of Responsibilities to Ministers ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
Assignment of Responsibility for the Business of Government Under Section 72 (1) of the Constitution PRIME MINISTER (a) Prime Minister’s Office CARICOM Single Market and Economy Defence Government House Prime Minister’s Official Residence Security, including Airport and Seaport Security Town Planning Commonwealth Matters The Town Planning Department The Private Investigators and Security Guards Licensing and Advisory Board The Town and Country Planning Advisory Committee The Ombudsman Betting and Gaming The Betting and Gaming Committee
The Official Gazette - 20 August 2018, Assignment of Responsibilities to Ministers · English -
Lotteries are open to national sports bodies that the Minister approves by order. The consolidated order lists 38 of them, from athletics and boxing associations to a national sports council, and its newest amendment dates from 2004.
Gambling (Approved National Organisations) Order, 1974 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
2. The national organisations specified in the Schedule are declared to be approved national organisations for the purposes of section 2 of the Act.
Gambling (Approved National Organisations) Order, 1974 · English -
The Gambling Act of 1917 is aimed at places and at lotteries run in Barbados. A common gaming house is a place kept for gambling, and a lottery counts only if it is held, drawn or managed in Barbados. The Act never mentions the internet.
Cap. 134 Gambling, section 2 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
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Section 8 of the Gambling Act punishes keeping a common gaming house or helping to run a public lottery. It also punishes publishing announcements about a public lottery, or inviting anyone to play in a gaming house. The penalty is a fine of BDS$960 or 12 months in prison.
Cap. 134 Gambling, section 8 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
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A 2012 Act lets the minister responsible for shipping license a casino on a cruise ship berthed in Bridgetown, after consulting the Committee. It may open from 6 pm to 6 am, to the ship's passengers only. The Act starts by proclamation, which we could not find.
Cruise Ships (Opening of Facilities) Act, 2012-20 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
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Anyone who operates a gaming institution is now a designated business under the anti-money-laundering law. The amending Act passed the House of Assembly on 15 September 2026 and the Senate on 23 September 2026.
Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (Prevention and Control) (Amendment) Act, 2026 ↗ (English) checked Nov 5, 2026
(c) by deleting paragraph 5 and substituting the following: “5. A person who operates a gaming institution.”.
Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (Prevention and Control) (Amendment) Act, 2026 · English
Oldest source check on this page: Nov 5, 2026