🇬🇶For operators · Tax, marketing & compliance
Equatorial Guinea for operators: no online regime
Land-based casinos operate, but the online sector is legally unsettled. An online framework announced in August 2025 was almost immediately refuted by an official government communiqué, which leaves the market uncertain and high-risk.
OverviewOverview built from public sources. An in-depth review of Equatorial Guinea is available on request. Request it
Product by product
| Product | Status |
|---|---|
| Online betting · Online casino · Online poker | Unregulated |
| Lottery | Licensed |
Regulator and player protection in Equatorial Guinea
Regulator
Application authority and enforcement body
Mandatory RG controls
No limit imposed on players
Deposit limits or reality checks the law requires operators to offer
Advertising stance
Limited
Whether you can run TV / sponsorship / paid-social campaigns
Heads-up for operators
Changes coming in Equatorial Guinea
The online gambling framework and master license announced in August 2025 are heavily contested. An official government communiqué reportedly declared the license invalid, which leaves the regulatory position uncertain.
Not yet in force: drafts, laws adopted without a start date, and sections of the law still to be commenced. An item moves to the timeline below on the day it takes effect.
Licence Types in Equatorial Guinea
2 licence types are listed for Equatorial Guinea; each says who issues it and what it covers.
| Licence | Regulator | Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Casino Licence (Land-Based) | Ministry of Finance, Economy and Planning | Variable | Concessions for physical casino operations. |
| Online Sub-Licence (Disputed) | Ministry of Tourism and Tourism Infrastructure (via Mascott Capital Partners) | Variable | Part of a disputed master license model announced in August 2025. The framework's legality has been officially contested, so its status is highly uncertain. |
Licensing model
The online model announced in August 2025 is a 'Master License / Sub-Licence Chain' that outsources licensing to a private foreign company, Mascott Capital Partners. The government reportedly issued a statement declaring this master license invalid, which leaves the entire framework's legal status highly precarious.
Gambling tax and fees in Equatorial Guinea
Detail
Land-based casinos pay concession fees. The standard corporate income tax rate is cited ambiguously as either 25% or 35% in various sources.
No specific GGR tax rate for the disputed online framework has been published.
Year-1 cost: fee schedule not yet published
Due to the disputed and undeveloped nature of the online gambling framework announced in August 2025, no official fee schedule for licensing or compliance has been published.
| Line item | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Online Casino / Sports Betting Application Fee | no published fee schedule | The disputed framework did not release details on application fees before being refuted. |
| Annual Online Licence Fee | no published fee schedule | No annual fees or GGR tax rates were published as part of the disputed 2025 framework. |
| Land-Based Casino Concession | no published fee schedule | Fees are determined by concession agreements and are not publicly listed. |
| Corporate Income Tax | 25% or 35% Source1 | The standard corporate tax rate is inconsistently reported across different sources. |
| Technical Certification | no published fee schedule | No technical standards or certification requirements have been established. |
Year 1 estimate
Year 1 cannot be totalled: gov fee schedule not published
The complete absence of a published fee schedule for the disputed online framework makes a valid year-one estimate impossible.
Which foreign licences Equatorial Guinea accepts
Equatorial Guinea recognises none of these 8 foreign licences.
BlockedMalta (MGA) · United Kingdom (UKGC) · Gibraltar (GRA) · Isle of Man (GSC) · Curaçao · Kahnawake (KGC) · Anjouan (AGB) · Alderney (AGCC)
Under the disputed 2025 framework, operators would need a local sub-license; foreign licenses are not directly recognized. The market is otherwise a grey/black area.
Bonus rules: welcome bonuses allowed
Inducement ads: Allowed
The online gaming market lacks a specific regulatory framework for bonuses and promotions. The primary legislation, Law No. 2/1995, is outdated and focuses on land-based operations, while the brief August 2025 licensing initiative's rules were never formally codified before its suspension.
What the player can claim
- Welcome bonus
- Allowed
- VIP schemes
- Allowed
- Loyalty schemes
- Allowed
- Cashback
- Allowed
Due to the absence of a specific online gambling authority or detailed regulations, there are no explicit rules governing what consumers can claim.
What the operator can advertise
Operators function in a grey market and are generally guided by international best practices, as no formal advertising codes or restrictions for iGaming exist.
Sources2
How Equatorial Guinea enforces against unlicensed operators
Enforcement is virtually non-existent because of the legal uncertainty surrounding online gambling. The main regulatory action has been the government's own refutation of a licensing framework it had just announced, which created a legal vacuum rather than an environment for active enforcement.
- August 2025: The government issued an official communiqué refuting the legality of the master license granted to Mascott Capital Partners, effectively halting the regulatory process before it began.
Enforcement cases in Equatorial Guinea: 1 recent
Material regulator actions, court rulings, and high-profile fines from 2016–2026 against operators serving Equatorial Guinea. Each entry includes the technical failure and a one-line read-across for other operators in the market.
- August 2025
Mascott Capital Partners
LicensingLicence revokedThe government declared the master license invalid as the existing legal framework did not authorize its issuance.
Read-across: This abrupt reversal creates significant regulatory uncertainty and is likely to deter foreign investment from operators seeking stable and legally robust environments.
Market size: 0.02B USD (2025)
Gross gaming revenue in Equatorial Guinea is approximately 20 million USD annually. The most popular form of gambling is Casino. Online gambling represents 5% of total GGR. A culturally distinctive product in this market is Casino at Sofitel Sipopo.
Market breakdown by vertical
- Land-based0B USD0.0%
- Sports betting0.016B USD80.0%
- Casino0B USD0.0%
- Lottery0.004B USD20.0%
Proxy estimate using the Chad/Niger baseline. Top-tier data firms pool lower-income Sub-Saharan markets into a generic "Rest of Africa" bucket rather than tracking each country separately. This placeholder ($0.02B GGR, 80% sports / 20% lottery) keeps the map complete; verify against local sources before quoting.
GGR figure5
Licensed operators: ~3
As of 18 Jun 2026, approximately 3 operators hold an active licence in Equatorial Guinea. Size your entry against this base before committing capital.
Notable licensed operators
El Barco Casino
Traps operators hit in Equatorial Guinea
Specific operational risks that have caught new entrants in this market. Each item is country-specific. Generic gambling-ops issues (KYC, RG tools) are not included unless they have a local twist.
Navigating the Disputed Master License
Any engagement with Mascott Capital Partners regarding a sub-license is extremely high-risk. The government has reportedly declared the master license invalid, so any sub-license derived from it would have no legal standing and offer no protection from future legal or political challenges.
Sources3
Operating in a Legal Vacuum
With the 2025 online framework disputed, there is no clear legal basis for online gambling operations. Operators targeting the market work in a grey/black area without legal recourse, player protection standards, or a clear path to regulatory compliance. This exposes them to significant business and legal risks.
Sources6
Ambiguous Corporate Tax Liability
The standard corporate income tax rate is inconsistently reported as either 25% or 35%. This ambiguity creates uncertainty for financial planning and compliance for any corporate entity, including potential gambling operators, should a legal framework ever be established.
Timeline: rules in force
- August 2025
Government Refutes its Own Online Gambling Framework
The government reportedly reversed itself with an official communiqué stating the newly announced master license for online gaming 'lacks all legal effect'. The sector fell into chaos.
Source: 3
- August 2025
New Online Gambling Framework Announced
The Ministry of Tourism announced the launch of a new online gambling framework, awarding a 'master license' to Cyprus-based Mascott Capital Partners to sub-license international operators.
Source: 4
- 2017
Law 10/2017 on the General State Budget
Referenced in some analyses as a foundational law impacting the financial and tax environment, though its specific impact on gambling is not detailed.
- 1995
Law 2/1995 Regulating Games of Chance
The foundational, albeit dated, legislation governing land-based games of chance in the country. This law does not contemplate online gambling.
Operator myths vs reality in Equatorial Guinea
Common assumptions about gambling licensing that turn out to be wrong in practice.
- MythWe can get a license for Equatorial Guinea from Mascott Capital Partners.Reality
This is incorrect and high-risk. The government of Equatorial Guinea has reportedly declared the master license granted to Mascott Capital invalid and without legal effect. Any sub-license obtained through them would likely be considered void.
Sources3
- MythEquatorial Guinea has established a clear regulatory framework for iGaming.Reality
The opposite is true. The events of August 2025, where a framework was announced and then immediately refuted by the government, have created a state of profound legal uncertainty and regulatory chaos, not clarity.
Sources4
- MythSince the market is unregulated, there are no rules to follow.Reality
While there is no specific online gambling regulator, operators are still subject to the country's general commercial, financial, and criminal laws. Operating in this grey/black market carries significant legal and reputational risks that should not be underestimated.
Sources1
Markets that work like Equatorial Guinea
Compared on what our records hold for each country: whether online casino, betting, poker and lottery are licensed, state-run or banned, the licensing model, what the operator tax is levied on and its band, how most advertising channels are treated, and how foreign licences are treated. A point we hold for only one of the two countries counts for nothing.
- São Tomé and PríncipeAI overviewChadAI overviewAndorraAI overviewGuyanaAI overviewSaint LuciaAI overview
Online casino, betting and poker unregulated; lottery licensed; most ad channels banned.
Methodology & sources
This page is a Quick AI overview: a summary of public information, not yet checked against the law or the regulator. Treat it as a starting point. It has not yet been through our Deep AI Scan.
How we researchAsk us to run the Deep AI Scan for Equatorial Guinea
Documents cited on this page
Looking for the player guide?
For consumer-facing information about gambling in Equatorial Guinea (tax on winnings, where to play legally, self-exclusion options), see the Equatorial Guinea player guide.
Disclaimer. This page reflects the law as we understood it on 18 Jun 2026. Rules change: always check the current position with Ministry of Finance, Economy and Planning (Land-Based); Ministry of Tourism and Tourism Infrastructure (Online - Disputed). We are not a legal adviser.