Is online gambling legal in El Salvador?

Two brands that are on the list, Betpro and Ganaplay, show a Curaçao or an Anjouan licence, and no LNB licence, on their own pages. Whoever pays your prize withholds income tax: 15% if you are domiciled in El Salvador, 25% if you are not; only LNB and public-benefit prizes of 30 monthly minimum wages or less paid to a winner domiciled here are tax-free. The law bars minors without stating an age in years. If a licensed site does not pay a prize, you can complain to the LNB.

1. 1Ley Orgánica de la Lotería Nacional de Beneficencia, Decreto Legislativo N.° 251 de 21 de diciembre de 2021 (D.O. N.° 244, Tomo 433, 22 de diciembre de 2021), Asamblea Legislativa
2. 2Reglamento de la Ley Orgánica de la LNB, Decreto Ejecutivo N.° 16 de 29 de junio de 2022 (D.O. N.° 139, Tomo 436, 22 de julio de 2022), con las reformas del D.E. N.° 31 de 18 de julio de 2023 (D.O. N.° 150, Tomo 440, 16 de agosto de 2023); consolidated copy on the Portal de Transparencia
3. 3Código Tributario, Decreto Legislativo N.° 230 de 14 de diciembre de 2000, texto consolidado, Asamblea Legislativa
4. 4Lotería Nacional de Beneficencia, Operadores Autorizados
5. 5LNB, Quejas o denuncias (Formulario de Denuncia para Jugadores)

Gambling with crypto: Not regulated.

The minimum age on record for gambling in El Salvador is Minors barred. The gambling law sets no age in years: it bars minors from games and sports betting, and letting a barred person play is a very serious infringement. The LNB says it limits its own promotion to over-18s, and licensed sites such as gana777.sv ask you to be over 18.

Whoever pays or credits your prize withholds income tax: 15% if you are domiciled in El Salvador, 25% if you are not, whatever the amount. For a domiciled individual the withholding is the final tax and you do not declare the prize. Prizes paid by the LNB and by public-benefit foundations to a domiciled recipient are tax-free up to 30 monthly minimum wages; prizes from a private licensed site have no such threshold. As of 22 October 2026.

Always verify a casino holds a valid Lotería Nacional de Beneficencia (LNB) licence before depositing.

Lotería Nacional de Beneficencia (LNB)'s website

If a site isn't on the regulator's licensee register, ask the regulator before you play: an unlisted site is usually not licensed here (a register can lag behind a new licence). An unlicensed site is outside the regulator's supervision, so you cannot complain to the regulator about it.

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  Check the LNB’s list

  The LNB’s "Operadores Autorizados" page shows 13 authorised brands as of 22 October 2026, with links to their sites; a licensed site uses a .sv address. The page gives no licence numbers.

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  Unlicensed sites are illegal here

  A site without LNB authorisation is illegal in El Salvador even if it runs from abroad, and the LNB’s complaint route covers authorised games. Foreign sites such as Stake, BC.Game and 1xBet still open from El Salvador with no block page (22 October 2026), so being able to reach a site tells you nothing about its licence.

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  Tax comes off your prize

  The site withholds 15% of a prize if you are domiciled in El Salvador, 25% if not; the tax-free amount applies only to LNB and public-benefit prizes paid to someone domiciled here.

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   1. Contact the licensed site

   Raise the problem with the site first and keep a record of every message. The law does not require sites to run their own complaints procedure, so keep screenshots of the bet, the balance and the refusal.

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   2. Complain to the LNB

   Send the LNB’s signed complaint form, a copy of your DUI and your evidence to [email protected] or its central office. For an unpaid prize the LNB admits or rejects the claim within 20 business days; once it admits the claim, the site has 10 business days from notification to pay or prove payment, or the LNB enforces the site’s guarantee.

   LNB complaint form
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   3. Refund after proven fraud

   If fraud by the site is proven, you have the right to a refund or another compensation the LNB approves, through the LNB’s dispute procedure. No independent ADR body is named.

• Myth

  Online gambling is illegal in El Salvador.
  Reality

  False. Online casino games and sports betting are legal on sites licensed by the LNB under the 2021 Ley Orgánica, and the LNB lists 13 authorised brands as of 22 October 2026. What is illegal is a site without LNB authorisation, even one run from abroad. Such sites still reach players here: Stake, BC.Game, 1xBet, 22Bet and Melbet opened from a San Salvador connection on 22 October 2026 with no block page.

• Myth

  Small wins are never taxed.
  Reality

  Only prizes paid by the LNB or public-benefit foundations to a domiciled recipient are tax-free up to 30 monthly minimum wages. A prize from a licensed private site is withheld at 15% if you are domiciled in El Salvador and 25% if not, whatever the amount.

• Myth

  You can pay any gambling site in Bitcoin because it is legal tender.
  Reality

  Since January 2025 Bitcoin acceptance is voluntary for private businesses (D.L. 199/2025). The gambling law admits legal tender in cash or electronic form, or other means the LNB approves, and the LNB had published no approval of Bitcoin for gaming as of 22 October 2026.