Romania

Romanian market runs on a clear, centralised framework supervised by the National Gambling Office, and it expects real substance from any brand that wants to go live.

2WinPower prepared a detailed overview guide on Romania’s gambling authorisation route. Our experts focus on the legal baseline, the permit structure, the taxes and guarantees, as well as the compliance points that often trigger delays.

Legal Foundation

Romanian gambling is primarily regulated under Emergency Government Ordinance No. 77/2009 and the related implementing norms. Oficiul Național Pentru Jocuri de Noroc (ONJN) acts as the sector authority. The remote segment is not treated as a separate universe because many general organisational duties still apply to online activity. Among other core pillars, operators should keep in mind the taxation updates introduced by Law 141/2025 (an industry-wide shift, including online GGR rates).

Romania uses a two-step approach for remote activity organisers:

• a longer-term licence;
• a shorter-term operational approval.

The permit is valid for 10 years, while the operational approval runs for one year and must be renewed.

The applicant must be either a Romanian legal entity or an EU/EEA/Swiss company with a local permanent establishment for tax purposes. Foreign structures typically use a national authorised representative for interactions with legal officials.

There is also a capital expectation that immediately filters out underfunded applicants. For remote organisers, a minimum subscribed and paid-up share capital of around €200,000.

The entry checklist:

• corporate structure (Romanian company or EU/EEA/Swiss entity with a local permanent establishment, plus national representation where needed);
• technical readiness that ONJN can monitor (server arrangements and auditability of the platform stack);
• approved supply chain (B2B partners must hold a Class II permit when they provide regulated services to the platform).

Romanian law covers common gambling verticals in a licensing context, including betting and casino-style products, and it draws a line between chance and pure skill contests. Activities won exclusively by aptitude, with no random element, do not qualify as gambling under the local definition.

The typical commercial scope includes:

• sports betting (fixed-odds and other bookmaker formats);
• casino games (including poker under the gaming umbrella in many frameworks);
• RNG content certified by approved labs;
• additional remote games that meet the statutory criteria in terms of rules and technical model.

While Romania’s online framework is almost entirely about B2C licences, entities that provide services to the gambling industry (such as software, platform, hosting, audit/certification, and payment processing) must hold a Class II licence.

Nuances for suppliers:

• €20,000 for the annual permit;
• €15,000 as a responsible gambling contribution;
• €10,500 as issuance administrative fee;
• 10-year duration for a licence.

Costs, Taxes, and Finances

Romania is not a cheap stamp jurisdiction, and the price tag is not limited to one fee. Budgeting must cover annual licence taxation, the authorisation levy tied to GGR, multiple sector contributions, and a sizeable guarantee.

Obligatory costs during registration in Romania:

1. Fixed regular licence tax. For online gambling, a €300,000 annual organiser deduction is applied.
2. Annual authorisation tax. The operating registration levy is linked to gross gaming revenue and, under Law 141/2025. The rate for online activity is described as 30% of GGR, with a minimum of €480,000 per year.
3. Responsible gambling contribution. Romania applies a large mandatory deduction to the addiction prevention fund. The current obligation sits at a yearly payment of €500,000 for remote operators.
4. Administrative fees. Even before the annual cycle starts, the application route includes procedural charges of €3,500 for reviewing the online licensing documentation and €10,500 for issuing the licence.
5. Security requirement. From 1 January 2025, fixed guarantee levels for remote operators, independent of GGR, are applied at €5,000,000 for online casino activity and €2,000,000 for other remote gambling games. This buffer is typically structured as a guarantee fund or an insurance product to cover state-budget exposure. 

Several additional obligations can affect unit economics or marketing models.

The most common ones:

• 2% monthly tax on players’ deposits to online platforms;
• 0.5% contribution to the National Cultural Fund;
• 5% advertising tax via TV or out-of-home placements.

Licence Acquisition

The Romanian process is structured, but planning must reflect how ONJN approvals work in practice. Documentation should be complete well before the Supervisory Committee meeting window, as the authority meets twice a month and the file must arrive at least 9 business days in advance.

A workable launch plan:

1. Set the qualifying entity and local presence, including permanent establishment planning and representative selection where required.
2. Prepare the technical pack, with platform certification and a system audit performed by properly licensed laboratories and certifiers.
3. Lock the compliant infrastructure, including safe and mirror servers in Romania, when the main gaming server is outside the country.
4. Submit the full set and pay the procedural fees because incomplete filings can trigger additional requests that extend the real timeline beyond the statutory 30-day target.

Romania’s remote regime expects constant reporting discipline and strict control over the supply chain. Significant corporate changes (shareholding, representatives, headquarters, and similar items) must be notified to the authority within five working days.

The regulator also puts a heavy weight on auditability and certified tooling.

Practical requirements:

• annual technical audit/recertification to support authorisation renewal;
• IT system check-up by specialised testing labs with Class II status;
• certified RNG and RTP parameters for each game;
• only approved Class II suppliers for key services (platform, hosting, payments, testing, affiliates, and related roles).

Romania also builds deterrence into the ecosystem. Individuals who participate in online gambling offered by an unlicensed or unauthorised operator can face administrative fines of roughly €1,000–2,000.

That detail is relevant for operators because it increases reputational exposure around compliance, blocking, and blacklists. It also signals that enforcement pressure is not aimed only at the organiser.

Advertising and Marketing Limits

Gambling promotion is permitted, but constraints are real and easy to breach during scaling. Outdoor advertising is limited to a maximum dimension of 35 square metres per billboard/material. Messaging must visibly include minors’ interdiction symbols, the permit series/number, and the ONJN logo.

Promotions for bonuses also run on a narrower channel list. According to industry guidance, bonus advertising by online operators may be displayed only on the operator’s own site, on licensed affiliate portals, or through e-messages sent to active players who opted in.

Further political and regulatory proposals, including tighter time-slot rules and reduced outdoor formats, are currently under discussion. For example, proposals such as restricted audiovisual advertising between 06:00 and 23:00 and a lowered permitted OOH size to 30 square metres are likely to be implemented soon.

Opportunities and Challenges

Romania can be commercially attractive because it is a regulated EU market with a clear remote pathway and a strong compliance culture. That same structure makes it harder to treat the jurisdiction as a quick test market because the fixed annual costs and the tax load can reshape a business model fast.

Where the Market Can Work Well

Romania fits operators that plan for governance, reporting, and controlled advertising.

Practical advantages that stand out:

• clear legal baseline and regulator oversight, with defined licensing criteria and a central supervisory function;
• structured B2B gating, which can reduce operational risk when the supply chain is curated correctly;
• a predictable guarantee framework from 2025, with fixed security levels that remove scaling surprises on that specific element.

Where Romania Bites Operators

This jurisdiction punishes under-budgeted launches.

The most common friction points:

• high fixed yearly payments (licence tax plus responsible gambling contribution);
• heavy operating levy tied to GGR, with a high annual minimum after the 2025 changes;
• deposit tax and marketing-related taxes that can weaken margins if they are not modelled early;
• advertising restrictions and likely further tightening proposals.

If the goal is a compliant launch with fewer integration risks, 2WinPower can help map the Romanian licensing route, align the platform stack with local technical expectations, and connect the project with the correct supplier model.

The Main Things about Romania

The Central European jurisdiction is a mature, regulated iGaming market. However, it is not a low-cost entry point. The route can work well for serious operators who plan for taxation, guarantees, and strict oversight.

Key aspects about licensing in Romania:

• Online activity typically requires a 10-year organiser licence plus an annual operating authorisation.
• Permit taxation is widely described at €300,000, with an additional €500,000 yearly responsible gambling contribution.
• Since Law 141/2025, the online authorisation levy is described as 30% of GGR with a €480,000 minimum.
• From 1 January 2025, remote guarantees are cited at €5,000,000 for online casino and €2,000,000 for other digital activities.
• Marketing is allowed, but OOH formats are limited, and bonus promotion channels are restricted.

If you plan to enter Romania with a compliant online casino or sportsbook, 2WinPower can support the licensing preparation and provide the software built for regulated markets.