Isle of Man Casinos

Features of the Isle of Man Licence

The Isle of Man casino licence is becoming popular as more casinos and providers acquire it. They do this because the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission is transparent in all dealings, constantly reviews its procedures with public consultations and is affordable for operators.

Players can expect somewhat rigorous checks and the constant presence of watchdogs monitoring the licensees.

Responsibility of the Isle of Man Gambling Commission

As a regulatory body, it is expected to do its utmost to ensure that gambling is conducted honestly and fairly, remains free from criminal influence and exploitation and does not cause harm to the public interest, individuals and families. Its duties and responsibilities to both operators and individuals include:

• Anti-money laundering practices
• Application forms and guidance
• Approved Software Registration
• Commission meetings and events
• Disaster recovery providers
• Legislation
• Licence holder information
• Memorandums of Understanding
• Problem gambling support
• Player protection
• Society lotteries
• Testing companies

How to Know if You Are Playing at an Isle of Man Licensed Casino

Players can avoid hassle and financial losses by correctly identifying false Isle of Man casinos. This can be easily done by checking the footer of the casino site; look for the Isle of Man coat of arms and make sure it takes you to the regulator’s list of casino licence holders.

The Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission also offers a list of fraudulent casinos they were able to identify or that were reported by users.

Benefits of the Isle of Man Licence

This licence has gained popularity recently for its affordability and strict security checks and is quite promising in the long run.

Independent Testing

All operators under an Isle of Man casino licence must have the games they offer all independently tested by an external testing facility approved by the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission to ensure their mechanisms are fully random and, therefore, fair to players at all times.

Ongoing Reviews

The Commission’s functions concerning the interests of the players also include reviewing the ongoing marketing and advertising activities of licensees and continually monitoring all policies with respect to player protection and underage gambling to protect the community against unfair practices.

Risks of the Isle of Man Licence

The main risk for any player registered at the Isle of Man licensed online casino will be if the site closes its operations because any other issue, such as payments, etc, can be dealt with by the Commission once other options are exhausted. It also has several civil society watchdogs constantly monitoring any potential rogue sites.

The cost of a licence is fairly cheap, taxes are fair, and the licensing procedure is somewhat quick compared to other licences. It is not as affordable or fast as a Curacao licence, but since not many operators are licensed in the Isle of Man yet, the fees are very competitive.

This, however, does not seem to attract the so-called ‘rogue’ casinos to the island, which is good for players. Besides this fact, the Gambling Commission works hard to do background checks and offers a dispute resolution body that can intervene on behalf of players in more serious cases.

Recent Legislative Changes

During the first period of lockdown in 2020, the Gambling Commission identified areas of improvement and also clamped down on unlicensed social gambling sites. They also have modified their policy in a few areas.

• Revised policy on the restriction of directorships in the sector;
• Revised policy on the addition of live dealer studios.

On top of that, public consultation and further review introduced price controls for products in the licensed betting offices for fixed-odds betting terminals. A £2 cap on the stake was imposed to align the parameters of these machines with those in the UK.

Complaints the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission

Complaints about licensees can be made to the Isle of Man GSC’s inspectorate once no resolution to an issue was reached with the involved parties, after that, it is escalated and dealt with by the appropriate courts and legislation. However, no such procedures have been triggered today, rendering the Isle of Man licence reliable and concerned with players’ wellbeing.