Ukraine: online gambling for operators

Population: the latest State Statistics Service figure is 41,167,335 people (present population) as of 01.01.2022. As of the check date the service had not published a new estimate: on 28.08.2026 it approved a temporary methodology to estimate the population as of 01.01.2026 (order No. 214). The Demographic Development Strategy (Cabinet of Ministers order No. 922-r of 30.09.2024) cites the estimate of the Institute for Demography of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NAS): 35.8 million in July 2024, of whom 31.1 million were on the territory where the authorities operate in full.

Connectivity: the National Commission for the State Regulation of Electronic Communications (NCEC) counted 47.4 million SIM cards as of 31.12.2025, 36.1 million of which were used to go online (annual report for 2025). The share of internet users was 80.5% in 2022, 81.6% in 2023 and 82.5% in 2024 (ITU database in World Bank data). There is no official share of smartphone users.

Market size: in its report for 2023, KRAIL, the former Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries, wrote that it did not have complete and up-to-date information on operators' key indicators, so GGR for 2021-2024 was never officially published. PlayCity gave the first official snapshot in its report for 2025 (order No. 50-A of 31.03.2026): online operators earned UAH 54,089.9m in revenue from gambling activities, and gambling venues UAH 1,362.2m. The 18% tax is charged on this revenue (see Licence and taxes). The regulator does not use the term GGR.

Online in 2025, totals across all operators: deposits of UAH 160.8bn, bets of UAH 250.2bn and winnings paid out of UAH 16.7bn. Online operators accrued UAH 8.9bn in revenue tax and UAH 3.1bn in tax on players' winnings. In PlayCity's first year of work (June 2025 to May 2026), operators paid more than UAH 14bn in taxes and about UAH 2bn for licences (PlayCity, 01.06.2026).

Taxes: according to State Tax Service data in the Accounting Chamber audit, in 2021-2024 gambling businesses and state lottery operators paid UAH 29.1bn into the consolidated budget; in 2024 they paid 76.2 times as much as in 2021 (UAH 16.8bn against UAH 217.2m). The declared income of gambling businesses grew from UAH 3.3bn to UAH 142.5bn, but this is income from all activities, not GGR.

Licensees: as of 01.01.2023 there were 12 online casino operators, 3 bookmakers and 3 online poker operators (KRAIL report for 2022); as of 01.01.2026 there were 21, 5 and 2, plus 34 licences for B2B services (PlayCity report for 2025). The state online monitoring system (DSOM) has been in test operation since 10.04.2026, and by 20.08.2026, 28 of 31 licensed operators had connected to it (PlayCity).

Illegal market: the Cabinet's strategy to 2035 (order No. 855-r of 26.08.2026), citing studies by Kantar, Gradus and Factum, puts the shadow market at 39-53%. In June-December 2025, PlayCity detected 2,844 unlicensed sites, that is, 113 illegal sites for every legal one. In its first year the agency blocked more than 4,100 sites (PlayCity, 01.06.2026). In its analysis for the tax bill (March 2026), the Ministry of Digital Transformation put the shadow sector at about 50% of the market.

How many players: there is no official number of people, only of accounts. Online, at the end of 2025 there were 11,347,822 player accounts; 4,624,981 accounts topped up their balance and 5,479,035 placed a bet (PlayCity, report for 2025). The Cabinet's strategy to 2035 states plainly that there are no objective and representative data on how far the population of Ukraine is involved in gambling.

Who plays: in a survey of 3,164 adults for the Ministry of Digital Transformation, 5% had gambled in the past year and 2% in the past month (published on 24.06.2026). Among 2,676 online casino players in the SOCIOINFORM survey (19.05-26.06.2026), 73% were men and 27% women, 31% earned UAH 11,000-30,000 a month and 25% UAH 31,000-50,000; 86% prefer licensed casinos (PlayCity, 06.08.2026). The publications give no breakdown by age. Both surveys were conducted by the Responsible Gaming Centre with the support of the Association of Ukrainian Gambling Operators.

VIP: there are no data on the share of big players or on deposit concentration. An indirect indicator, our calculation from the PlayCity report for 2025: in online casino, 4,242,967 accounts topped up their balance with UAH 141.1bn, about UAH 33,000 per account for the year; in betting, 443,918 accounts deposited UAH 22.4bn, about UAH 50,000. The average hides the distribution, so the high roller segment needs the operator's own data.

Casino or sport: online casino bets in 2025 came to UAH 218.1bn, sportsbook bets UAH 31.6bn and poker UAH 0.4bn; 4,874,766 accounts placed a bet in casino, 586,465 in bookmaking and 17,724 in poker. Casino bets include winnings staked again, so casino turnover is always higher; there is no revenue breakdown by vertical, and one operator may hold both licences.

Games and providers: as of the check date there are no open rankings of games or providers for Ukraine from official or verifiable industry sources. Since 01.04.2025, gambling software may be supplied only by legal entities resident in Ukraine with a licence for services in the gambling sector (Law 768-IX, art. 2, part 2), so international studios work through Ukrainian companies. PlayCity's open data contain no register of certified equipment.

Bonuses: there are no surveys on favourite bonus types. In a Kantar survey for the operators' association (March-May 2026, 2,500 people), players chose illegal casinos for payout speed (49%), no restrictions on play (44%) and better bonuses (37%) (Interfax-Ukraine, 15.05.2026). 9% of players know about the ban on bonuses for losses and at the moment a gaming session is ended (SOCIOINFORM, PlayCity, 06.08.2026). For what is allowed, see Bonuses and promotions.

In force. Since 01.04.2025, settlements with players have been made only in money, and cashless ones only through current accounts at Ukrainian banks; the operator informs the bank that the account is used for gaming settlements. The operator may not use the services of non-bank payment providers: electronic money institutions, payment institutions, postal operators and commercial agents, and the operator's bank may not engage other providers (Law 768-IX, art. 15-1). The fine for a breach is 1,000 minimum wages, UAH 8.6m in 2026 (art. 58).

The player deposits and withdraws only through their own account, one for all settlements; payouts to third parties are banned (art. 16, part 2). Bets on deferred payment and loans to players are banned (art. 15, part 4). Banks must refuse payments in favour of anyone who runs gambling without a licence (art. 25, part 7).

Credit: since 22.06.2024, payment providers have been barred from processing payments to the accounts of online gambling operators using credit funds (National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) resolution No. 18, item 20-5, added by resolution No. 72 of 21.06.2024).

Cryptocurrency and the e-wallets of non-bank providers cannot be used for settlements with the operator: the law requires money and a bank account, and the law on virtual assets (2074-IX) has not entered into force.

Banks: in letter No. 25-0005/42076 of 30.05.2024, the NBU recommended that banks look for atypical card activity and check whether the recipient is in the regulator's registers. The UAH 150,000 monthly limit on card-to-card transfers applied from 01.10.2024 to 31.03.2025 and was not extended (NBU, 01.04.2025). Draft: on 17.07.2026 the NBU put out for discussion a procedure for monitoring payment transactions under which winnings with MCC 7995 and no deposits count as atypical behaviour; it had not been adopted as of the check date.

Payment data: in the first half of 2026, 96% of card transactions were cashless by number and 67% by value, there were 21.1 million tokenised cards (34.5% of active cards), and the average online payment was UAH 666 (NBU, 18.08.2026). Instant transfers in the NBU's System of Electronic Payments (SEP) have worked since 01.12.2024, taking up to 10 seconds, for up to UAH 100,000 per transaction; in 2025 there were 35.9 million transfers worth UAH 163.1bn (NBU, 14.01.2026). The regulator does not publish the shares of payment methods in gambling specifically. 32% of players name safe payments as an advantage of the legal market (SOCIOINFORM, 2026).

Payouts: the law sets no general deadline for online casinos; payouts are made within the time set by law or by the operator's rules (art. 15, part 1, item 11), and the payout procedure and deadlines must be published on the site (art. 24, part 5). A bookmaker pays within the time set by its rules, but no later than 10 working days, and may extend this by no more than 10 more working days, notifying the player (art. 34). A player on the restrictions register gets their winnings and remaining balance back within 5 days of a request (art. 16, part 2).

Language: the language of customer service in Ukraine is the state language; information may be duplicated in other languages, and personal service at the customer's request may be provided in another language acceptable to both parties (Law 2704-VIII, art. 30, in force since 16.01.2021). The website and social media pages of a company registered in Ukraine are in Ukrainian, no smaller in volume than other versions, and open in Ukrainian by default (art. 27, part 6, since 16.07.2022); apps have a Ukrainian interface (art. 27, part 7). The law does not use the words "chat" or "phone", but the customer service rule covers any channel.

The gambling law separately requires information on the site in the state language, with other languages at the operator's discretion: rules, payout procedure and deadlines, details of service and technical support, responsible gambling materials and contacts of medical centres (Law 768-IX, art. 24, part 5). The Cabinet's requirements in Resolution 1370 oblige operators to advise players on the signs of addiction via an online form or the support phone line (in force since 31.10.2025).

Language sanctions: the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language first issues a warning and gives 30 days, and a repeat breach within a year brings a fine of 300-400 tax-free minimum incomes (Law 2704-VIII, art. 57). In the annual report for 2025, the Commissioner recorded advertising mailings in Russian as an identified breach.

Channels: there are no surveys on which support channels players expect. In a Gradus survey (12-13.08.2026, 1,000 residents aged 18-60 of cities with 50,000 or more people), 74% use Telegram, 59% Viber and 54% a social network's messenger, and 42% spend more than 3 hours a day in messaging apps (Detector Media, 25.09.2026).

Salary: at least twice a month, at intervals of no more than 16 calendar days and no later than 7 days after the end of the period; if the payday falls on a day off or a public holiday, salary is paid the day before (Labour Code, art. 115; Law "On Remuneration of Labour", art. 24). The State Labour Service explains that if the month is split into the periods 1-15 and 16-31, the first half is paid no later than the 22nd and the second no later than the 7th of the following month. The exact dates are set by the collective agreement.

Pensions: the Pension Fund pays on an individual date from the 4th to the 25th of each month.

Public holidays: the public holidays under the Labour Code (art. 73) include 01.01, 08.03, 01.05, 28.06, 15.07 and 24.08, with Easter, Trinity Sunday and 25.12 as religious days off; 07.01 was removed by Law 3258-IX of 14.07.2023. Article 73 does not currently apply (Law 2136-IX, art. 6, part 6), so public holidays are working days. Easter on 02.05.2027 and Trinity Sunday on 20.06.2027 follow the traditional paschal calendar, which the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) and the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) kept after moving to the new calendar (our calculation).

Other dates: Unity Day on 22.01 (Presidential Decree 871/2014). Black Friday on 27.11.2026, the Friday after Thanksgiving in the US (our calculation).

Sport: UPL 2026/27, with the autumn part until 12.12.2026 and the spring part from 27.02 to 04.06.2027; Shakhtar v Dynamo on 08.11.2026 and Dynamo v Shakhtar on 15.05.2027 (upl.ua). Finals: Europa League on 26.05.2027 in Frankfurt, Conference League on 02.06.2027 in Istanbul, Champions League on 05.06.2027 in Madrid (UEFA). Ukraine national team: Nations League on 14.11 and 17.11.2026 (Ukrainian Association of Football, UAF), Euro 2028 qualifying draw on 06.12.2026 in Belfast, group stage from March to November 2027 (UEFA). The team did not qualify for the 2026 World Cup: on 26.03.2026 it lost 1-3 to Sweden in the play-off semi-final (UAF). Biathlon World Championships 10-21.02.2027 in Otepää (IBU). Australian Open 17-31.01.2027 (main draw), Roland-Garros 23.05-06.06.2027, Wimbledon 28.06-11.07.2027. CS2 Major 24.11-13.12.2026.

The basis: article 22-1 of the Law "On Advertising" as amended by Law 4116-IX, in force since 01.04.2025 (version of the law of 31.07.2026). Advertising of gambling and of the brands under which it is run is banned, except: in linear audiovisual and audio media from 23:00 to 06:00; in specialised publications on gambling or sport for people over 21; on the premises of gambling venues; on the operator's sites, apps and pages on platforms; in registered 21+ online media; and in non-linear media, on platforms and in search engines when targeted at people over 21. Placing an app in an app store does not count as advertising.

Warning: "Participation in gambling may cause gambling addiction. Follow the rules (principles) of responsible gambling" (in Ukrainian on the ad), covering at least 15% of the space, black text on a white background, and in audio at least once per spot and once a minute (part 5). Only a licensee can commission advertising, and another operator's brand may not be advertised (parts 6, 7, 10). The same requirements apply to charity messages carrying the operator's brand.

Enforcement and fines: PlayCity is responsible for gambling advertising (Law 768-IX, art. 8), and the fine for an advertiser, producer or distributor is 600 minimum wages (art. 59). In case No. 320/33758/24, the Supreme Court sided with the regulator: mentioning an operator's brand on outdoor advertising counts as gambling advertising (PlayCity, 03.03.2026). Since May 2026, the PlayCity site has had a form for complaints about advertising: more than 250 complaints in two weeks, with a fine of almost UAH 5.2m per breach (PlayCity, 14.05.2026).

The language of advertising is the state language (Law 2704-VIII, art. 32), and the annual report of the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language for 2025 names advertising mailings in Russian as a breach.

Law No. 768-IX "On State Regulation of Activities Related to the Organisation and Conduct of Gambling" was adopted on 14.07.2020, entered into force on 13.08.2020 and lifted the 2009 ban. The current version is dated 12.09.2025, and the next version, under Law 4840-IX, will take effect later. Law 4116-IX of 04.12.2024 replaced the commission with an authorised body and introduced requirements for B2B, for settlements through banks and new advertising rules; most of it has applied since 01.04.2025.

Regulator: KRAIL was created by Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine resolution No. 891 of 23.09.2020. Resolution No. 314 of 21.03.2025 created PlayCity, a State Agency of Ukraine whose work is coordinated by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation; resolution No. 336 of 25.03.2025 liquidated KRAIL from 01.04.2025, with PlayCity as its legal successor. The agency started work as the regulator in June 2025 (PlayCity, 01.06.2026).

Planned. Law 4840-IX of 08.04.2026 "On the Basic Principles of State Supervision (Control)" was published on 23.04.2026, and its effective date had not yet arrived as of the check date. Supervision of the gambling market is to follow this law, taking into account the specifics of Law 768-IX (art. 9, part 5): a scheduled inspection lasts no more than 10 working days for high risk, 7 for medium and 5 for low risk, and all scheduled inspections in a year no more than 30 working days in total (Law 4840-IX, art. 6). For now, the previous supervision law applies.

Draft. On 06.05.2026, the Verkhovna Rada's tax committee backed an amendment to bill 15111-d that would transfer gambling and lottery policy-making from the Ministry of Digital Transformation to the Ministry of Finance (Ekonomichna Pravda, 06.05.2026). The law was adopted on 09.06.2026, but as of 26.08.2026 the President had not signed it (Suspilne); whether the amendment made it into the final text had not been confirmed as of the check date.

In force. The Cabinet's strategy for the gambling market to 2035 (order No. 855-r of 26.08.2026) sets the tasks of reviewing the advertising model, monitoring hidden marketing and regularly measuring how far the population is involved in gambling; it is a work plan, not new rules for operators.

In force. Licence types for online: internet casino, bookmaking (covering both betting shops and the internet) and internet poker; software suppliers need a licence for services in the gambling sector (B2B). All are issued for 5 years (Law 768-IX, arts. 44, 53, 54, 56, 57). The fee is calculated from the minimum wage on 1 January of the year in which the licence decision is made and is paid annually in equal instalments; the first year is paid within 10 working days of notification of the decision, the following years no later than 30 days before the year begins, and nothing already paid is refunded if the licence ends (art. 49).

Calculation at a minimum wage of UAH 8,647 as of 01.01.2026 (Law 4695-IX on the State Budget for 2026, art. 8): online casino UAH 56.2m for 5 years, UAH 11.2m a year, tripled UAH 33.7m a year; bookmaking UAH 259.4m for 5 years, UAH 51.9m a year, tripled UAH 155.6m a year; online poker UAH 43.2m for 5 years; B2B UAH 2.6m for 5 years. The tripled fee applies until DSOM is put into operation (Section XI, item 3), and the system has been in test mode since 10.04.2026.

Operator requirements: a legal entity resident in Ukraine whose main activity is gambling, with share capital of at least UAH 30m in cash and managers and beneficial owners of impeccable reputation; a dedicated contribution or bank guarantee for the payment of winnings of 7,200 minimum wages, UAH 62.3m in 2026 (art. 14). The operator's employees must also be at least 21.

Brand and site: a licence gives the right to only one brand (art. 44, part 2); online, the operator works through a site in the UA domain zone and through apps, and reports the domain to the regulator (art. 24). Gambling software is supplied only by Ukrainian legal entities with a B2B licence (art. 2, part 2), and using the services of an unlicensed supplier carries a fine of 50 minimum wages (art. 58).

Taxes: when organising gambling, alongside the 18% corporate profit tax, the operator pays an 18% tax on gambling revenue reduced by payouts to players, or 10% for slot machine halls (Tax Code of Ukraine, clause 136.4, as amended by Law 3325-IX of 10.08.2023); this tax does not reduce the financial result (clause 141.5). Player tax: winnings are subject to 18% personal income tax (clause 167.1) and a 5% levy (Law 4015-IX), 23% in total, withheld by the operator as tax agent at payout (clause 170.6). In practice licensed operators calculate it on net winnings: only the withdrawal amount above the player's deposits is taxed, and players withdraw their own money tax-free. The Code has no explicit rule on deducting stakes, which is why the ministry proposes to set the net-winnings base in law. Draft: in March 2026 the Ministry of Digital Transformation put out for discussion bills with a single 18% rate without double taxation and with tax only on the player's net winnings (Forbes Ukraine, 11.03.2026).

Register: the regulator keeps open registers of internet casino, bookmaking and internet poker operators (art. 5), and the register shows the address of the site through which the operator works (art. 24, part 2). A licence is an entry in the state register, while anyone can put a logo and a number in a site footer. The link to the register is on the home page of playcity.gov.ua.

In force. The operator must not allow any bonus payments, gifts, goods, services or other rewards whose provision depends directly or indirectly on the player's losses (Law 768-IX, art. 16, part 2, item 5); breaching the obligations of this part costs 500 minimum wages, UAH 4.3m in 2026 (art. 58). The same ban is repeated in the Responsible Gambling Principles (Ministry of Digital Transformation order No. 150 of 26.08.2025, in force since 03.10.2025). That is why classic cashback on net losses is not run in Ukraine.

The Principles also ban encouraging a player to keep playing after they decide to stop, take a break, log out or close their account, and giving alcohol and tobacco free of charge or as a reward for play. For CRM this means no offers when a session ends or after a pause is switched on.

Advertising: article 22-1 of the Law "On Advertising" bans offering free bonuses and other rewards instead of a bet and any reimbursement of gambling spending, so no-deposit bonuses and free bets are not shown in advertising. The law and the Cabinet resolutions have no separate rules for welcome bonuses, wagering or free spins.

In force. Popular people in the sense of the law are figures from culture and the media, public figures and anyone who regularly distributes information through their accounts on platforms for profit; their participation in gambling advertising and any encouragement of gambling by them are banned, except for athletes (Law "On Advertising", art. 22-1, part 2). Sponsorship is allowed only in sport, except children's and youth sport, and without outdoor advertising or advertising on transport and inside buildings, other than gambling venues and sports arenas during competitions (part 4).

The law bans calls and messages about gambling to an unspecified range of people by post, mobile and electronic communications (part 1). The rule says nothing directly about messages to the operator's own registered players, but their tone is set by the same advertising rules, the Responsible Gambling Principles and the language requirements: an e-commerce business registered in Ukraine provides mandatory information, including in commercial electronic messages, in the state language (Law 2704-VIII, art. 30, part 4).

Advertising for an unlicensed operator and any activity to promote it are banned (part 7). PlayCity works with major platforms to block illegal advertising, and by 22.06.2026 access had been restricted to 785 profiles (PlayCity).

In force. Players must be at least 21 (Law 768-IX, art. 18), and the operator may raise the minimum age. Not admitted: people lacking legal capacity, intoxicated people and people on the Register of Persons Restricted from Access to Gambling. If an operator admits a barred player, at the request of the player or their family it reimburses gambling spending at ten times the amount lost (art. 16, part 2), and breaching the obligations of article 16 carries a fine of 500 minimum wages (art. 58).

Identification: full name, age and a check against the restrictions register, online using an electronic signature, a SIM card with MobileID, NBU BankID or other lawful methods; the operator may request a photo of the player holding a document or a video call (art. 17). A player has one player account and one bank account of their own (art. 16, part 2).

Limits: the player sets spending and time limits before starting play (art. 16, part 2, item 9), no higher than the maximum limits of the Ministry of Digital Transformation (order No. 207 of 26.12.2025, in force since 16.01.2026): for online casino, poker and betting, no more than 15% of the average monthly income stated by the player per day, 25% per week and 40% per month, and no more than 6 hours of play per day, 21 hours per week and 100 hours per month. Limits are set for a day, a week and a month at once, the spending limit can be changed no more than once a month, and continuous play lasts up to 2 hours, followed by a break of at least 15 minutes. If the player has not set limits, the operator sets them within these bounds (Cabinet Resolution 1370 requirements, item 3).

Self-exclusion: an application for a period of 6 months to 3 years is submitted to the operator, to PlayCity or via Diia, the state e-services portal; it cannot be withdrawn, and an application made with one operator applies to all (art. 16, parts 7, 9). At the request of first-degree relatives, the regulator restricts a player for up to 6 months, for example if they have debts of more than 100 subsistence minimums or receive a subsidy, and by court decision for 6 months to 3 years. The person is entered in the register no later than the next working day, and winnings and the remaining balance are paid out within 5 days of a request. The register grew from 3,361 people in 2023 to 13,332 at the end of 2025 (Cabinet strategy No. 855-r).

Responsible gambling: the Cabinet's requirements on combating severe gambling addiction (resolution No. 1370 of 29.10.2025) oblige operators to monitor gaming behaviour and, if there are signs of gambling addiction, to end the player's participation after paying out what has already been won; to show a clock on every page; to notify players regularly about time and spending, with a choice to stop or continue; to show play statistics for the day, week and month; and to advise on the signs of addiction.