Gambling Inspection of Sweeden

Gambling Inspection of Sweeden (Spelinspektionen) was established on 1 January 2019. Earlier, the organization was called the Inspection of Lotteries. Currently, the Commission is engaged in the issuance of gambling licenses, exploring the market for gambling services in the country and the world, and informing the government about it. It protects the interests of consumers and reduces the social harm from gambling. The organization's main objective is to create a safe and controlled gambling market.

Regulator licensed casinos

On the official website, in the section "Spelbolag med spellicens," players can see the entire list of casinos licensed by the Commission of Sweden. Also, this section provides information about violations of the operator and penalties applied. Currently, gambling licenses in Sweden have the following websites: karamba, vikingslots, bethard, betsson, bwin, and others.

Spelinspektionen review

In Sweden, as in many other European countries, gambling has existed for a long time, and its regulation control has a rich history. It all began around the 1930s when the gambling industry in the country began to develop rapidly, which required state control. Several Inspections have been established. Since 1940, the game for money and lotteries were completely nationalized, that is, came under the control of the state.

In 1983, a single gambling control body, the Swedish Lottery Board, was established. With the development of the market, it was necessary to develop legislation, thus, with several changes in 1995, a new organization – the inspection of lotteries.

It is worth noting that the state regulation in the country has always existed perfectly changes in the industry, which led to the emergence of new standards of Inspection.

After numerous studies, a bill to amend the legislation was presented in 2017, which in 2019 led to the creation of the modern organization—the Gambling Inspection of Sweeden (Spelinspektionen).

Almost immediately, the organization was presented with a service, Spelpaus.se, through which players can self-exclude from gambling at online casinos. The licensed operator is required to verify the player in this service; otherwise, the player will be required to return all his deposits in the event of a complaint against the operator.

The company may also be fined 10% of its monthly turnover. As of the beginning of 2019, more than 10,000 players are registered in this registry.

Objectives of the Swedish Gaming Commission:

• Creation of a safe and regulated gambling market in the country
• Combating illegal gambling
• Social protection of citizens

The organization's activities are extensive. It recently joined the Committee to combat match-fixing. The Commission severely punishes operators for the slightest violations. For example, in July 2019, eight companies, including Bet365, PokerStars, Rizk, and others, were fined more than 1 million US dollars. The reason was the bets on sports events with underaged players. In fact, the law describes it quite vaguely.

In general, the Commission regulates and licenses all possible gambling activities, starting with sports betting and poker and ending with the placement of slot machines. Moreover, even slot machines, such as paintball, required licensing.

License types of Spelinspektionen

The Gaming Commission issues several licenses allowing to organize casinos and other gambling legally:

For casino organization:

• Kasinon med internationella spelregler (high-stakes casinos): This category implies licensing of land-based casinos. The agreement with the operator clearly states the number of gaming tables, the permitted size of bets, and the minimum percentage of payments to players.
• Kasinospel på restaurang med lägre (casino in bars, restaurants): Unlike the first type of licensing, in the category of this institution only roulette, cards, and dice games are allowed. The amount of bets at the gaming tables is significantly lower than that of the first type of license.
• Kasinospel online (online casino): any gambling conducted on the Internet.

Slot machines:

• Spelautomater: This category includes all slot machines (even entertainment machines, such as paintball) located in all places.

Bingo:

• Bingo: Issued on the ground of varieties bingo.

Card games within the tournament

• Kortspel i turneringsform: Mostly licensed poker tournaments.

Lotteries

• Lotterier: All types of lotteries

Sports betting

• Vadhållning: Any kind of sports betting 

To obtain a gambling license, you need to fill out an application and pay a fee from 100 to 5000 Euros, depending on the license type. If the application is rejected, the fee is not refundable. The monthly tax rate paid by licensed operators is 18% of the amount of bets made in the casino, net of winnings paid.

Dispute resolution

Paradoxically, the Swedish Gaming Commission does not consider player complaints about gambling establishments, although it makes sense to assume the opposite.

But players are still allowed to defend their rights and get, for example, their winnings (if the casino refuses to pay) by contacting Allmänna reklamationsnämnden (General Complaints Commission). On the official website, www.arn.se, you must go to your account and fill out the appropriate form, after which the appeal will be considered. Applying via email or visiting the organization in person is also possible. The Commission considers complaints if the claim amount is not less than SEK 1000.

It should be remembered that you can make out your claim only after contacting the operator and receiving a response from him.

The average time for complaints is six months. Please note that when filling out the application, you must briefly and maximally describe the essence of the claim and attach all the necessary evidence, such as screenshots of electronic correspondence.

Although the Commission does not consider player complaints, it recommends that players still report violations by online operators. To do this, you can send an email or fill out the feedback form on the company's official website.

Conclusion

Spelinspektionen is a fairly young organization designed to make the market of gambling services in Sweden transparent, safe, and regulated. It should be noted that after analyzing almost a year of the organization's work, it is safe to say that the licensee has established itself as a strict regulator. Casinoz does not fully understand the position of the Inspectorate in relation to the protection of the rights of players, namely working with customer complaints against online operators. Why redirect these requests to other organizations, it would make sense to deal with them yourself.