Nevis Gambling License
cost, requirements & application
Obtain a B2C or B2B online gaming license from the Nevis Online Gaming Authority. Fixed €28,000 government fee, 8–12 week approval, 0% tax on foreign GGR — and a jurisdiction that banks and PSPs actually accept.
€28,000
Annual government fee — application + Year 1 included
8-12 Weeks
Approval timeline for complete dossiers
0%
Corporate tax on foreign-sourced GGR
B2C & B2B
Both license classes under one framework
2 domains
Included in base fee — extras from €750
FATF
Accepted by tier-1 EMIs & PSPs
Nevis License – Key Facts
| License Type | B2C and B2B |
| Issuing Authority | NOGA |
| Governing Law | Nevis Online Gaming Ordinance 2025 |
| Application Fee | €28,000 license fee |
| Annual Renewal | €28,000 |
| Tax on GGR | 0% |
| License Validity | 1 year, renewed annually |
| Typical Timeline | 8–12 weeks |
| Eligible Applicants | Nevis IBC or NBCO |
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Nevis license in ninety seconds
The Nevis Online Gaming Authority (NOGA) licenses online gambling under the Nevis Online Gaming Ordinance 2025. Two classes: B2C operator and B2B supplier.
Government fee is a flat €28,000/year, non-refundable, payable on application. It covers processing, Year 1, up to 2 URLs, the NOGA site seal, and public registry listing.
Realistic all-in Year 1 budget: €34,000–€35,900 once you add incorporation, the mandatory local Reporting Officer, and key-person due diligence. The full breakdown is published below.
Approval takes 8–12 weeks. Final issuance is signed by the Minister of Finance and the license appears in NOGA’s public registry.
St Kitts & Nevis is not on the FATF whitelist — the single biggest practical difference from Anjouan or legacy Curaçao structures when you sit in front of an EMI onboarding team.
Not a fit for anyone targeting the US or UK: NOGA requires geo-blocking of restricted markets and of Nevis residents.
WHO WE ARE
Szilaghi Consulting has structured gambling licenses and gaming companies since 2004 — from ONJN Class 2 approvals in Romania to offshore frameworks.
We handle the Nevis process end to end: IBC formation, dossier drafting, AML/CFT policy packs, Reporting Officer appointment, and all NOGA correspondence.
We can help you incorporate and obtain the Nevis Gaming License
What a Nevis license actually costs in year one
Government fees are fixed and public. Everything else varies with structure and product. Below is the full picture, including the two line items most published totals leave out.
| LINE ITEM | YEAR 1 | YEAR 2 ONWARD | PAID TO |
|---|---|---|---|
| NOGA License Fee Application, due diligence, Year 1, 2 domains, site seal, registry listing | €28,000 | €28,000 | NOGA |
| Nevis IBC or LLC formation Government registration, incorporation documents, apostille | €2,500 – €3,500 | – | Registered agent |
| Registered agent & registered office Mandatory. Annual | €500 – €1,200 | €500 – €1,200 | Registered agent |
| Local Reporting Officer FSRC-registered. Mandatory. Annual | ≈ €4,200 | ≈ €4,200 | Local service provider |
| Key-person due diligence Per director, manager or responsible officer vetted by NOGA | ≈ $500 / person | On new appointments | NOGA |
| RNG & platform certification (B2C only) GLI, iTech Labs, BMM or equivalent. Priced per game set and platform scope | Lab-quoted | On material change | Testing laboratory |
| Policy pack & dossier preparation AML/CFT manual, RG policy, data protection, application drafting, NOGA correspondence | Fixed fee | Renewal fee | Szilaghi Consulting |
| Additional domains (optional) Beyond the 2 included. Sub-domains €15–€35 | €750 each | €750 each | NOGA |
| Indicative Year 1, B2B supplier Excludes certification and our fee | €34,200 – €35,900 | €32,700 – €33,400 | |
| Indicative Year 1, B2C operator Add lab-quoted certification | €34,200 – €35,900 + certification | €32,700 – €33,400 |
Government and third-party costs. Last verified: 11 September 2026.
WHAT THE PUBLISHED TOTALS LEAVE OUT
Most Nevis cost pages quote a Year 1 total around €34,400 and stop there. Two things are missing from that number. RNG and platform certification is quoted by the testing lab against your game set and can move the B2C total materially. And the €28,000 is non-refundable and payable on application — see the refusal note below. Neither is a reason to avoid Nevis. Both are reasons to model the number properly before you file.
DUE DILIGENCE SURCHARGES
NOGA runs fit-and-proper checks on every director, shareholder and UBO. Multi-layer holding structures, nominee arrangements, or UBOs from high-risk jurisdictions extend the review and add per-person vetting costs. If your structure is complex, tell your advisor before filing — not during the due diligence phase.
NOGA and the Online Gaming Ordinance 2025
Nevis regulated online gambling through the Nevis Online Gaming Ordinance 2025, which created the Nevis Online Gaming Authority as the licensing and supervisory body. The framework went live in May 2025, making it one of the newest offshore regimes — and one drafted to meet FATF standards rather than retrofit them.
LICENSE CLASS 1
B2C Operator License
For platforms offering games directly to players: online casino, sportsbook, poker, bingo, lotteries, esports betting, fantasy sports, and crash / instant games.
LICENSE CLASS 2
B2B Supplier License
For game studios, platform providers, aggregators, and API-based content distributors supplying licensed operators. Same €28,000 fee, lighter technical file.
Both classes are valid for one year, renew on the anniversary of issuance, and are published in NOGA’s public registry — the verification point your payment partners and B2B counterparties will actually check.
Core ongoing obligations
- Local Reporting Officer registered with the FSRC
- NOGA site seal in the footer of each licensed domain
- Annual financial statements within 3 months of fiscal year-end
- Notify material changes and ownership changes at 5%+
- FATF-compliant AML/CFT and responsible gaming programs
- Geo-blocking of Nevis residents and restricted markets (USA, UK)
THE 5% RULE
Any transfer that takes a shareholder across the 5% ownership threshold must be reported to NOGA. If you are raising capital or restructuring UBOs post-licensing, plan the notification before the transaction, not after. This is the most commonly missed obligation we see.
Application to registry listing in four phases
Total: 8–12 weeks for a complete, well-prepared dossier. Incomplete UBO documentation is the number-one cause of delay.
Weeks 1-2
Phase 1 — Incorporation & document preparation
Register the Nevis IBC or LLC through a licensed corporate service provider, appoint the registered agent and office, and assemble the KYC/UBO file. Incorporation itself completes in 24–48 hours; the document collection is what takes time. In parallel we draft the AML/CFT, responsible gaming, and data protection policy pack.
Week 3
Phase 2 — Application submission to NOGA
Submit the dossier and application forms, specifying license class (B2C or B2B) and the domains to be covered. NOGA verifies the corporate file and issues a secure payment link for the €28,000 fee.
Weeks 4-9
Phase 3 — Due diligence & platform review
NOGA conducts fit-and-proper checks on all directors, shareholders and UBOs, reviews the AML/CFT framework, and examines the technical setup: RNG certification and platform security for B2C, or content supply agreements for B2B suppliers. Expect follow-up questions — response speed here directly determines your timeline.
Weeks 10-12
Phase 4 — Approval, registry listing & seal integration
Final approval is signed by the Minister of Finance. The license is issued, the company appears in the NOGA public registry, and the site seal is integrated into the footer of each licensed domain. You are authorized to go live and begin PSP integrations.
The complete compliance checklist
Score your file against this before engaging any provider. Gaps here become weeks in due diligence.
FILE / 01 KYC & UBO documentation
Required per director, shareholder, and ultimate beneficial owner:
- Certified passport copy
- Proof of residential address (under 3 months old)
- Bank reference letter
- Source of wealth / source of funds declaration with supporting evidence
- CV and professional references for key persons
- Clean criminal record certificate
FILE / 02 Corporate file
- Articles of Incorporation / Memorandum & Articles
- Certificate of Incorporation
- Registered agent agreement and registered office confirmation
- Shareholder registry and ownership chart down to natural-person UBOs
- Board resolution authorizing the license application
FILE / 03 Technical & Software
- B2C: RNG certification from a recognized testing lab, platform architecture diagram, IT security and data protection documentation, hosting details
- B2B: content supply / distribution agreements with licensed operators, game certification files, integration (API) documentation
- Geo-blocking implementation covering Nevis and restricted markets
FILE / 04 AML/CFT & Responsible Gaming
- AML/CFT manual aligned with FATF recommendations
- KYC onboarding flow (identity, age, sanctions / PEP screening)
- Suspicious transaction reporting procedure
- Responsible gaming policy: self-exclusion, deposit / session limits, reality checks
- Reporting Officer appointment letter and FSRC registration
- Data protection and privacy policy
FOR B2B SUPPLIERS
If you supply games or platform technology rather than operate a casino, NOGA does not force you through a full B2C-style RNG audit of an operator platform. Your technical file is built on game certifications and executed supply agreements. This is the fastest path through due diligence — and the reason B2B studios increasingly pick Nevis over Curaçao’s transitional regime.
What you cannot do, and what happens if NOGA says no
GEO BLOCKING
Markets you must block
- Nevis and St Kitts residents
- United States
- United Kingdom
- Any market requiring a local licence you do not hold
- Sanctioned jurisdictions under the AML/CFT programme
Confirm the current restricted list with NOGA before launch — it is set by the Authority and can change between renewals.
REFUSAL
If the application is refused
- The €28,000 is non-refundable and already paid
- Incorporation and agent costs are also sunk
- A refusal is on record with the regulator
This is why the fit-and-proper file is assessed before filing, not after. A UBO with an unexplained source-of-funds gap or an undisclosed prior refusal in another jurisdiction is worth surfacing while the money is still in your account.
SUBSTANCE AND TAX · THE PART 0% DOES NOT ANSWER
Nevis taxes on a territorial basis, so foreign-sourced gaming revenue is not taxed in Nevis. That says nothing about where the company is tax resident. If management and control sit in a jurisdiction with a place-of-effective-management test, or if your operating team creates a permanent establishment somewhere, that jurisdiction taxes the profit regardless of what Nevis does. CFC rules in the shareholders’ home countries are a separate exposure again. A 0% jurisdiction is only 0% if the structure around it holds up.
Nevis vs Curaçao vs Anjouan vs Malta
| METRIC | NEVIS (NOGA) | CURACAO (GCB) | ANJOUAN (AOFA) | MALTA (MGA) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| REGULATOR | Nevis Online Gaming Authority | Curaçao Gaming Control Board | Anjouan Offshore Finance Authority | Malta Gaming Authority |
| FRAMEWORK | 2025 ordinance, built to FATF spec | LOK reform, transitional friction ongoing | Legacy offshore regime | Mature EU regime |
| APPROVAL TIME | 8–12 weeks | 3–6 months (post-LOK backlog) | 2–4 weeks | 6–12 months |
| ANNUAL GOV. FEE | €28,000 flat | ~€24,000+ plus per-application fees | ~€18,000 | €25,000+ plus compliance contribution & gaming tax |
| TAX ON FOREIGN GGR | 0% (territorial) | 0% GGR tax; corporate tax rules apply | 0% | 5% on Malta-sourced revenue; EU corporate tax |
| BANKING/PSP ACCESS | High — FATF whitelist opens tier-1 EMIs | Moderate — improving post-reform | Low–moderate — budget PSPs, higher fees | Highest — full EU passporting |
| FATF STATUS | Whitelisted | Whitelisted (monitored history) | Weak standing; frequent EDD flags | Whitelisted (exited grey list 2022) |
| BEST FOR | Operators & B2B suppliers wanting credibility without EU cost | Established operators mid-migration | Speed-to-market MVPs | EU-market operators with compliance budgets |
Where Nevis sits: above Anjouan and transitional Curaçao on credibility and banking access, at roughly one-third of the real cost and complexity of an MGA licence. Operators commonly launch on Anjouan for speed, then add Nevis once revenue justifies the €28,000 — or skip the intermediate step entirely if payment quality matters from day one.
What the license actually buys: onboarding outcomes
The licence fee is not what you are really buying. You are buying outcomes with banks and PSPs — and this is where jurisdictions separate. Every EMI and acquirer scores merchant applications against the risk profile of the licensing jurisdiction. A licence from a FATF-whitelisted country with a written ordinance, a public registry, and a mandatory FSRC-registered compliance officer scores materially better than one from a jurisdiction under enhanced monitoring. That score determines whether you get a tier-1 EMI at reasonable rates or a budget processor at 8–12% with rolling reserves.
UNLOCKED / 01
EU & UK EMIs
Operational banking. The corporate file — Nevis IBC, NOGA license, registry extract, AML manual — matches what onboarding teams expect to see.
UNLOCKED / 02
Merchant acquiring
Card processing in accepted markets, subject to the acquirer’s own territory list.
UNLOCKED / 03
Crypto-fiat gateways
The ordinance is crypto-tolerant, and processors treat NOGA’s AML framework as sufficient for fiat off-ramping.
UNLOCKED / 04
B2B contracting
Platform providers and aggregators verify counterparty licenses; a public NOGA registry entry clears vendor due diligence quickly.
What it does not unlock: US-facing processing, UK-facing processing, or any market on your geo-block list. No offshore license does — and any provider implying otherwise is selling you a chargeback problem.
PRACTICAL NOTE FROM OUR FILES
Payment onboarding fails on documentation quality more often than on jurisdiction. We prepare the exact pack EMIs request — licence certificate, registry extract, AML/CFT manual, flow-of-funds diagram, and processing history where available — as part of the licensing engagement.
Running a crypto casino under NOGA
Nevis permits crypto deposits and withdrawals under the licence. That is the easy part, and it is where most providers stop explaining. What matters operationally is the four things underneath it.
01
Your AML programme has to cover chain analytics
Wallet screening, source-of-funds for crypto deposits, and a written procedure for handling flagged addresses. NOGA’s framework is FATF-aligned, which means the Travel Rule expectations apply to your policy set even where enforcement is light.
02
Fiat off-ramping is the real constraint
Gateways underwrite the licence and the AML file, not the token. A NOGA licence with a documented crypto policy clears that review considerably faster than a jurisdiction under enhanced monitoring.
03
Provably fair is not a substitute for RNG certification
If you run crash, dice or instant games on a provably-fair model, you still need the underlying RNG certified by a recognised lab for the B2C technical file.
04
Where a separate authorization may bite
The gaming license covers gambling. If your model includes token issuance, an exchange function, or custody for anything beyond player balances, that is a different regulatory question and needs answering before you build it.
Alex Szilaghi · Founder, Szilaghi Consulting
24+ years in online gambling licensing and corporate structuring. Has taken operators and B2B suppliers through ONJN Class 1 and Class 2 authorisation in Romania, and through offshore regimes including Curaçao, Anjouan and Nevis.
This page is maintained against the Nevis Online Gaming Ordinance 2025 and NOGA’s published fee schedule. Figures are checked at each review.
Frequently asked questions
8–12 weeks with a complete dossier. The two delay drivers are incomplete UBO documentation and slow responses to NOGA’s Phase 3 follow-up questions. Incorporation itself takes 24–48 hours.
No. NOGA requires geo-blocking of restricted markets, which include the USA and UK, as well as Nevis residents. The license authorizes international operations in markets that do not require a local license.
Application processing, fit-and-proper due diligence, the first year of operation, coverage for up to 2 domains, the NOGA site seal, and public registry listing. It is a government fee, paid to NOGA, and it is non-refundable.
Government and third-party costs run approximately €34,200–€35,900: the €28,000 NOGA fee, €1,500–€2,500 for IBC or LLC formation, €500–€1,200 for the registered agent and office, and around €4,200 for the mandatory FSRC-registered Reporting Officer. B2C applicants add RNG and platform certification quoted by the testing laboratory. Professional fees are separate.
Additional domains cost €750 each; sub-domains cost €15–€35. Additions are filed with NOGA and the site seal is extended to each new property.
No relocation is required. You must maintain a registered agent, a registered office, and a local Reporting Officer registered with the FSRC (~€4,200/year). Directors and UBOs can be non-resident.
Nevis applies a territorial approach: foreign-sourced gaming revenue is not taxed in Nevis, so the effective rate on international GGR is 0%. Your personal tax residence and any permanent-establishment exposure in operating markets are separate questions — we review both before structuring, because a 0% jurisdiction does nothing for you if management and control sit somewhere taxable.
The €28,000 fee is non-refundable and is paid on application, and incorporation and agent costs are also sunk. This is why we assess the fit-and-proper file before filing rather than after.
The license renews annually on its issuance anniversary. File the renewal application at least 30 days before expiry with the €28,000 fee and compliance confirmations. Late renewal triggers penalties and can interrupt PSP relationships.
Different tools. Anjouan is less expensive (~€18,000/year) and faster, but its weak FATF standing limits you to budget PSPs at higher rates. Nevis costs more and takes longer, but the payment and banking outcomes usually recover the difference within the first year of processing volume.
Yes. Crypto deposits and withdrawals are permitted, provided the AML programme covers wallet screening and source of funds for crypto deposits. Provably fair mechanics do not replace RNG certification for the B2C technical file, and token issuance, exchange or custody functions raise separate regulatory questions.
Get the complete cost picture before NOGA does its due diligence
Szilaghi Consulting manages the full engagement: Nevis IBC formation, policy drafting, Reporting Officer appointment, NOGA filing and correspondence, and your post-licensing compliance calendar. We assess your structure, flag due-diligence risks before the regulator does, and give you a fixed-fee proposal.
