Mozambique approves dedicated framework for online games of chance

Mozambique has approved a dedicated legal framework for online gambling, creating a separate concession regime for games of chance offered through electronic platforms, computer systems and other digital means.

The Council of Ministers approved the Regulation on the Operation and Practice of Games of Chance or Fortune through Electronic or Computerised Means in mid-July.

The measure distinguishes online gambling from the concession system governing Mozambique’s land-based casinos.

Casino revenue declines

Mozambique already licenses online sports betting and other products under its existing social and entertainment-games framework, which covers activities including lotteries, raffles, mutual betting and virtual games.

The new regulation instead concerns online games of chance or fortune, a separate legal category that includes casino-style gambling and will operate under its own concession framework, distinct from land-based casinos.

The government’s move comes as tax revenue from physical casinos has declined.

Casino gaming-tax collection fell to MZN359.5m ($5.6 million) in 2025, against a budgeted MZN666.1m – 54% of the government’s target – according to Ministry of Finance budget execution data reported by Portuguese news agency Lusa. The total was 7.3% lower than the MZN387.7m collected in 2024, when the government budgeted MZN1.235bn and collected 34% of that target.

The government attributed the underperformance to a significant increase in online gambling, which it said had reduced visits to physical casinos, according to RTP’s report on the ministry’s 2025 budget-execution data.

Government targets illegal gambling

Economy Minister Basílio Muhate placed enforcement and transparency at the centre of the government’s messaging after the approval.

Speaking after a 31 July meeting with the Mozambican Association of Online Games and Betting, Muhate said the government would continue to combat illegal gambling and called for stronger oversight and transparency. He said the General Inspectorate of Games (IGJ) was responsible for that supervision.

“We continue to defend the fight against illegal gambling,” Muhate told O País. “Regarding all forms of illegality arising from gambling, we affirm and reaffirm our commitment to tackling it. We also reaffirm the need for greater inspection and greater transparency. That is why we have a General Inspectorate of Games with that responsibility.”

Muhate also called on operators to help address the social effects of irresponsible gambling, particularly among young people.

Meanwhile, economist Júlio Saramala told STV Notícias that the IGJ should publish its inspection criteria, annual reports and supporting evidence. He said high unemployment and “easy money” messaging could draw young people into gambling. He argued that the social harms could outweigh additional tax revenue, and called for more coordinated legislation, clearer risk information in advertising and stronger monitoring of transactions involving mobile wallets and banks.

Offshore sites in focus

Danilo Mussá, president of the Mozambican Association of Online Games and Betting, said the new framework could give authorities a clearer basis to address foreign betting sites serving Mozambican consumers without generating local tax revenue.

“This approval is important because it gives us a legal instrument that will also enable us to combat foreign betting sites that enter our cyberspace,” Mussá told O País. “People bet on them without using credit or debit cards, which represents a loss to the Mozambican state because taxes are not paid.”

Mussá said the association would press Mozambique’s National Institute of Information and Communication Technologies (INTIC) to block offshore sites. However, publicly available reporting does not establish whether the new regulation itself gives INTIC a specific additional site-blocking power.

Licensing details remain unclear

Mozambique’s approval of a dedicated online-gambling framework is a significant regulatory development, but it has not yet produced a publicly visible route to market.

Neither the government nor the IGJ has publicly set out the cost of an online-gambling concession, the applicable gaming-tax rate, minimum-capital requirements, application process or technical standards prospective operators will have to meet.

Publicly available material reviewed by iGaming Business did not set out an application timetable or a published route for prospective operators to apply.

The IGJ did not respond to questions from iGaming Business on when those terms would be published, how it planned to license and supervise operators, or what the regime would mean in practice for the sector.

It remains unclear when the government or the IGJ will publish the remaining commercial, technical and procedural terms. For now, the approval establishes the legal basis for a dedicated online gambling market, but the framework’s practical impact will depend on how the government translates it into a functioning licensing and enforcement regime.