The Belgium Authorities are reducing the online deposit limit to increase responsible gambling and player protection.
In recent years, various regions have put a lot of effort into tightening the reigns on online casino spending. There is a larger focus on responsible gambling as more players are turning towards playing online.
Belgium is one such region that is becoming more strict, encouraging players to practice responsible gameplay in every way possible.
New restrictions for Belgium players
The Belgium Gaming Commission is dedicated to keeping players safe and has been finding ways to curb player spending since the Coronavirus struck last year.
It started with the mandatory weekly deposit limit of €500 (£442/$543) for players across all legal websites in the country .
Furthermore, there is also a rule that players can reduce the deposit limit through their individual operators. The latter has to grant this reduced deposit limit request limit immediately. If a player wants to raise the limit back up to the max amount again, the request can take up to 3 days.
There were plans to revise and lift the deposit limits in place. These plans seem to have to take a turn as the Belgium authorities made an announcement that instead of lifting the deposit limits, they plan to tighten the reigns.
Vincent Van Quickenborne, the Belgium Minister of Justice, is drawing up a blueprint for the law. According to the Minister, reducing the limit will increase the level of player protection within the country. On top of that, Van Quickenborne is also proposing a modernisation of the state's self-exclusion system, EPIS, which currently only applies to land-based casinos.
Players will now have a mandatory weekly deposit limit of €200 instead of the €500 they have grown accustomed to.
Belgium Authorities upholding the laws
The authorities are also continuing to focus on blacklisting all sites without the relevant licensing operating within the country. Since 2012, Belgium has been dedicating efforts to blocking all illegally operating sites from providing their services to Belgium citizens.
Any operators that choose to run their sites illegally in the region without the necessary licensing in place will face a fine of up to €100,000.
For players, the rules are just as strict as for operators who choose to operate illegally. If a player chooses to play at these illegally operating sites, there are severe punishments in place. Players that go against the laws and are found playing at illegal sites can face criminal charges and fines of up to €25,000.
It is recommended to play at sites that carry licensing and stick to the deposit limits. Players who do not wish to follow these rules have found alternate loopholes such as playing at Bitcoin Casinos . These cryptocurrency online casinos are still relatively new and not yet written into the laws.
They are still in the grey areas of the legislation and can thus still be explored without the fines and legal consequences.
More players are focusing on cryptocurrency gameplay at Bitcoin Casinos where they can bet without the harsh restrictions.
Play Responsibly
If you are playing at regular online casinos, it is highly recommended to play responsibly at a casino with Belgium licensing. And also, to follow the deposit limits in place to avoid any unnecessary problems from the Belgium authorities.
Belgium is extremely strict in terms of laws and punishment is in place for both operators and players who fail to follow the laws and restrictions.