The coronavirus pandemic has caused another two-month delay in the implementation of the Remote Gambling Act (RGA) in the Netherlands, which means the nation will have to wait until September 1, 2021, to see the launch of its regulated online gambling market.
The RGA has been facing constant delays since it was passed in the Dutch Senate in February 2019. In the latest event, it was deferred to take effect on March 1, 2021.
As per the government’s clarification, the launch was earlier scheduled to occur on July 1, 2021, 6 months after the RGA’s previous schedule of taking effect on January 1, 2021.
The matter, however, was conveyed to the lower house of the Dutch parliament on September 4, 2020, by Dutch Minister for Legal Protection Sander Dekker, who had already hinted about the delay in June 2020.
Speaking about the delay, Dekker said that it would give Dutch gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) more time to examine online gambling license applications as well as allow casinos to prepare a blueprint before entering the online gambling market.
Meanwhile, the government is moving further with regulatory requirements. In July 2020, it had submitted its plan for online gambling to the European Commission for its review. Also, the KSA has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Malta Gaming Authority to propose stricter regulations for online gambling.