Foreign casinos in Denmark: how to check the licence

What is a foreign casino?

A foreign casino is run by a company based outside Denmark. The word tells you where the company is, not which rules it follows. The licence decides that, as we explain in our guide to casino licences. In practice, the word covers three very different things:

• A foreign company with a Danish licence. The casino is licensed by the Danish Gambling Authority (Spillemyndigheden) and supervised in Denmark, even though the company is abroad.
• A foreign licence and no Danish licence. The casino holds a licence from Curaçao or Malta, for example, but has no permission to offer gambling in Denmark.
• No licence shown. The casino does not show a licence you can look up.

From here on, we write “casino without a Danish licence” when we mean the last two. They are also the casinos in our selection.

A foreign casino with a Danish licence

Many well-known names on the Danish market are foreign companies. We went through the Danish Gambling Authority’s list on 5 November 2026. Of the companies licensed for online casino, 27 had an address outside Denmark: 24 in Malta, 2 in Gibraltar and 1 in the Isle of Man. They include bet365, Unibet, LeoVegas, Betsson and Mr Green. You can see which companies were added most recently on our page about new casinos.

To see whether a casino has a Danish licence, look it up on the authority’s list of licensed gambling operators. The list also shows which web addresses each licence covers. Bet365, for example, is listed with bet365.dk. Licensed companies must show the authority’s mark on their site, but a logo proves nothing by itself, so always check the list.

International casinos and foreign gambling sites

You will come across several names for the same thing: international casinos, foreign casino sites, foreign gambling sites, offshore casinos and casinos without a Danish licence. None of these words tells you which licence a casino holds. What matters under the Danish Gambling Act is whether the game is licensed. So look at the licence, not the label.

Can you play at an online casino abroad?

The Danish Gambling Act covers gambling offered in Denmark. If you are in another country, that country’s rules and the casino’s terms decide whether you can play there. A Danish licence covers gambling in Denmark, so check the terms before you count on using your account while travelling. Greenland and the Faroe Islands are not covered by the Act.

The Act also applies to tourists gambling in Denmark. What matters is where the game is offered, not where you live.

Are foreign casinos legal in Denmark?

A casino may offer gambling in Denmark only with a licence from the Danish Gambling Authority, and a foreign licence is not enough. Under the Gambling Act, anyone who offers gambling in Denmark without a licence can be fined or sent to prison. Anyone who helps people take part in such gambling or advertises unlicensed operators can be fined.

When does a casino target Denmark?

A game is offered illegally if it has no licence and the operator also targets the Danish market. The authority looks at signs like these, and one of them can be enough:

• The site is in Danish or has Danish customer service.
• You can pay in Danish kroner or with a payment method that normally works only in Denmark, such as Dankort.
• The sign-up form is already filled in with Denmark or +45.
• The casino’s marketing is aimed at players in Denmark.

The authority assesses each site separately. It is an assessment of the casino, not of you as a player.

Can people in Denmark play at foreign casinos?

We have found no rule in the Gambling Act that punishes a player for simply playing online on a foreign site. Trying to make a living from unlicensed gambling, on the other hand, can lead to a fine. And not being punished for playing does not mean the casino will accept you. Some casinos list Denmark among the excluded countries in their terms, and if you open an account anyway, the casino may close it.

When a foreign casino gets blocked

Gambling sites without a licence can be blocked in Denmark. The Danish Gambling Authority first asks the company to stop. If it does not, the case can go to the Frederiksberg court, and after a ruling, telecoms providers block the site. According to the authority, 870 sites had been blocked since 2012 as of August 2026. If you see a message saying a site is blocked, do not try to get round the block.

Casinos without a Danish licence: which licences can they hold?

The licence decides who supervises the casino and where you can complain. These are the licences we cover on this site. In our selection, four casinos hold a licence from Curaçao and two from Anjouan, while three show no licence. None holds a licence from Malta, Estonia, Gibraltar or Kahnawake.

MGA casinos from Malta

The licence comes from the Malta Gaming Authority in Malta, an EU country, and runs for ten years at a time. You can search the authority’s public register by company or web address.

Curaçao casinos

Licences are issued directly by the Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA) under a law in force since 24 December 2024. A full licence has no expiry date, while a provisional one runs for up to six months and can be extended by up to six months. The four casinos in our selection share one licence, which the CGA’s register shows with the status “Assessment in progress”. That means the assessment is still under way.

Anjouan casinos

The licence comes from Anjouan Gaming on the island of Anjouan in the Comoros. The public register shows each casino’s domains and the licence’s expiry date.

EMTA casinos from Estonia

In Estonia, the Tax and Customs Board (EMTA) issues gambling licences, and the country has been in the EU since 2004. EMTA publishes a list of legal gambling operators.

Gibraltar casinos

Gibraltar is a British territory outside the EU. The Minister responsible for gambling issues the licences, and the Gambling Commissioner supervises licence holders.

Kahnawake casinos

Kahnawake is a Mohawk territory in Canada, outside the EU. Licences are granted by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, and its list of licence holders shows the company and web address.

Casinos with no licence shown

At some casinos we cannot find a licence, and their cards say “No licence shown”. That means you cannot look up the licence, and you do not know which authority you might be able to turn to.

Are foreign casinos safe?

There is no simple yes or no, because the word “foreign” says nothing about safety. A licence shows who supervises the casino, but not that you will always get your money or that the casino will treat you well. That is why we do not call a casino safe just because it has a licence. A casino can be as reputable as you like, but you set the limit on your gambling yourself. Read our tips on responsible gambling, and call StopSpillet if gambling is taking up too much of your life.

At a company with a Danish licence, the Danish Gambling Authority says games must be offered in a fair, responsible and transparent way and in line with Danish law. At a casino without a Danish licence, you mainly have to look at the foreign licence, if there is one, and the casino’s terms.

Are there approved foreign casinos?

Yes, if you mean approved by the Danish authorities. Those are the foreign companies on the Danish Gambling Authority’s list. A licence from Malta or Curaçao, for example, is an approval from the authority there, but it does not in itself give permission to offer gambling in Denmark. If a comparison site just says “approved”, find out who approved what.

Pros and cons of foreign casinos

These are the differences we can see in our own selection and in the Danish rules. What counts as a pro depends on what you are looking for, and a big bonus is not in itself a good offer.

Pros

• Bonuses can be bigger. Several offers on our cards are far above the 1,000 kr. that a bonus may be worth at most at a Danish casino.
• You can pay in more ways. All nine casinos in our selection list both payment cards and cryptocurrency.

Cons

• The Danish Gambling Authority does not supervise the casino, because it has no Danish licence.
• Wagering requirements can be higher than the limit of 10 times at a Danish casino.
• The complaint route depends on the licence, and without a licence there may be none.
• The site can be blocked in Denmark.

Foreign casino or Danish casino: the difference

By a Danish casino, we mean here a casino licensed by the Danish Gambling Authority, wherever the company is based.

• Supervision. The Danish Gambling Authority supervises a Danish casino. For a casino without a Danish licence, it is the licence’s regulator, if there is one.
• Bonuses. At a Danish casino, a bonus may be worth at most 1,000 kr., and the wagering requirement may be at most 10 times. Otherwise, look at the licence’s rules and the casino’s terms.
• Mark. A Danish casino must use the Danish Gambling Authority’s mark. A casino without a Danish licence can show its licence in many ways.
• Complaints. A Danish casino must deal with your complaint, and if you meet the requirements, you can go on to the public mediation team for consumer complaints (Mæglingsteamet for Forbrugerklager) and then the Consumer Complaints Board. For a casino without a Danish licence, the licence decides where you can complain.

Which foreign casinos are best? How to compare them

It depends on what you want, and we cannot name one casino that is best for everyone. Lists of the best foreign online casinos follow each site’s own criteria, so look at what was measured and whether the site earns commission. You can weigh the licences themselves against each other in our casino licence comparison. We earn commission ourselves when you open an account and deposit through our links.

The score on each of our cards is our own rating of the casino, and the cards are sorted by score. It does not mean the casino is safe or that it accepts players from Denmark. So compare these yourself:

• The licence, and whether you can find it in the register.
• Whether Denmark is on the list of excluded countries.
• Wagering requirements and other bonus terms.
• Minimum deposit, payment methods and withdrawal limits.

Bonuses at foreign casinos

The welcome bonus is often the first thing you see at a foreign casino. At a Danish casino, a required deposit must match the value of the bonus. Several offers on our cards go higher, such as several hundred per cent of the deposit. The casinos set these offers and they may not apply in Denmark, so read the terms for your country.

Free spins and no deposit bonuses

Free spins and no deposit bonuses sound free, but they often come with conditions. Winnings can carry a wagering requirement, a limit on how much you can withdraw, and a deadline. At a Danish casino, a prize you have won may not carry a wagering requirement, so check this in the terms at a casino without a Danish licence.

Wagering requirements: what to check

A wagering requirement means you must play through the bonus a set number of times before you can withdraw the money. The Danish Gambling Authority gives this example: with a 100 kr. bonus and a requirement of 10 times, you must wager 1,000 kr. If the requirement also covers your 100 kr. deposit, it becomes 2,000 kr.

So read how many times you must wager and whether the requirement covers both deposit and bonus. Also check which games count, how long you have, and whether there is a limit on your stake while the bonus is active.

Payment methods at foreign online casinos

According to our information, all nine casinos in the selection take Visa, Mastercard, Bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin. Some also take Apple Pay, Google Pay, Skrill, Neteller or Paysafecard. Dankort, MobilePay and Trustly are not on the list at any of them. The cards show amounts in euros, and the minimum deposit is €10 or €20, so a low deposit may be possible.

Methods can vary from country to country, so check the casino’s cashier. The Gambling Act also bans payment services for stakes and winnings to and from an illegal operator, so your bank or payment service may refuse the payment.

Fast payouts at foreign casinos: what can slow them down

We have not measured payout times ourselves, so we cannot say which casino is fastest. Check what can delay a withdrawal instead. Have you met the wagering requirement? Does the casino need to see proof of your identity? Which method are you withdrawing with, and is there a daily or weekly limit?

Complaints about foreign casinos

Your first complaint goes to the casino. Keep screenshots, dates, amounts and messages, and check the complaint deadlines straight away. Where you can go next depends on the licence:

• Malta. You can go to an independent dispute body in the EU or EEA. The MGA does not decide the case itself.
• Curaçao. You must complain to the casino within six months, and you can then go to a dispute body the casino pays for. The CGA does not decide the case itself.
• Anjouan. The deadline is 14 days for complaints about a game and 30 days for complaints about your account. You can then go to a dispute body the casino pays for. According to Anjouan Gaming, this does not cover complaints from “excluded territories”, a term it does not explain further.
• Gibraltar. You can complain to the Gambling Commissioner once you have been through the casino’s complaints procedure. The Commissioner cannot order the casino to pay you.
• Estonia. You can write to EMTA if the company is on EMTA’s list.
• Kahnawake. The casino has 45 days to reach its final decision. After that, you can complain to KGC.
• No licence shown. There may be no complaint route other than the casino itself.

The Danish Gambling Authority is not a complaints body and cannot decide a case between you and a casino, even when the casino has a Danish licence.