Netherlands opens KOA market
The Netherlands opened its regulated online gambling market under the KOA Act.
On 1 October 2021 the Netherlands' online gambling market went live under the Remote Gambling Act (Wet Kansspelen op afstand, 'KOA'), which had entered into force on 1 April 2021. The regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) issued the first ten licences, letting operators legally offer online casino and sports betting for the first time. Players were routed through the national self-exclusion register CRUKS.
The KOA regime ended years of prohibition during which the KSA pursued offshore operators. Licensees had to meet strict duty-of-care, know-your-customer and anti-money-laundering obligations and integrate with CRUKS, the central exclusion database. A 'cooling-off' policy sought to bar operators that had previously targeted Dutch players without a licence, and the Netherlands later tightened advertising rules, including curbs on untargeted online gambling ads.
It converted a large, previously offshore market into a licensed system with mandatory central self-exclusion.
A teaching summary, not legal advice. Dates and figures are simplified for learning; confirm against the primary sources before relying on them.