Online gambling regulation in Namibia

Not confirmed.

Unauthorised online gaming is prohibited; promotion of unlicensed sites likely treated as facilitation of illegal online games, but no clear, cited advertising clause was located.

Gambling Board of Namibia (GBN), established by the Gaming and Entertainment Control Act 2018 — www.gbn.com.na

Gaming and Entertainment Control Act 13 of 2018, in force since 1 December 2021.

Online casino: Licensed. Online sports betting: Licensed.

We could not confirm a public register. Act requires the Gambling Board to maintain internal registries, but no clearly public online licence register could be identified.

• Criminal offence for unauthorised online games under Gaming and Entertainment Control Act 13 of 2018
• Administrative sanctions and licence suspension or withdrawal for non‑compliant licensees
• Regulator monitoring via central monitoring system for all operators
• Requirement to maintain restricted‑players registry to control access and harm

• Licensed operators may offer online games only as authorised by an online game licence; all other online gaming is prohibited
• Only locally licensed online gambling sites are legal; offshore sites remain unauthorised under the Act
• Minister prescribes which online games are permitted and related licence conditions, limiting product offering
• Regulator policies determine events that may be wagered on, constraining betting content

• Gaming and Entertainment Control Act 13 of 2018 and regulations commenced 1 December 2021, replacing earlier casino framework
• Full enforcement phase for online gambling licensing and compliance reported from 2024 onwards
• Ongoing implementation of central monitoring system and restricted‑players registry under the Gambling Board’s mandate

• Exact statutory section number prohibiting advertising or promoting unauthorised online gambling could not be confirmed from accessible extracts
• Whether specific ISP blocking or payment‑blocking powers exist in the Act or regulations remains unclear from available summaries
• No explicit, detailed advertising code for licensed operators (beyond licensing and authorisation conditions) was found in publicly available materials
• Unclear whether any formal prohibition on advertising unlicensed online gambling is framed expressly as an offence or only as facilitation of unauthorised gaming
• Whether Namibia currently issues active online gambling licences in practice
• Whether online poker is explicitly included in the 2018 Act’s licensed online offerings
• Whether sweepstakes/social casinos or loot boxes have been addressed by Namibian regulators
• Whether prediction markets are treated as gambling, securities, or financial derivatives in Namibia

1. lac.org.na/laws/annoSTAT/Gaming%20and%20Entertainment%20Control%20Act%2013%20of%202018.pdf
2. lac.org.na/laws/2018/6793.pdf
3. namiblii.org/akn/na/act/2018/13/eng@2021-12-01
4. gbn.com.na/
5. gamblingmaps.org/map/regulations/namibia
6. npc.gov.na/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Gambling-Act.pdf
7. lac.org.na/laws/annoREG/Gaming%20and%20Entertainment%20Control%20Act%2013%20of%202018-Regulations%202021-254.pdf
8. lac.org.na/namlex/Gambling.pdf
9. softswiss.com/gambling-regulation-map/namibia/
10. gamingzion.com/namibia/poker/poker-reviews/
11. gamblingafrica.com/namibia/
12. gamingzion.com/namibia/poker/poker-sites/
13. casinosonline.africa/go/namibia-en/article/legal-info/
14. casinosblockchain.io/crypto-gambling-regulations-in-africa/
15. worldpokerdeals.com/blog/pokerstars-countries-guide
16. gamblingmaps.org/map/regulations/namibia/for-operators

Researched 2026-09-21 from public sources and summarised by the Brandfense team. Not legal advice — confirm with the regulator or your counsel before acting.