GRAI opens consultations on three gambling regulations

The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland is asking for views on three draft regulations under the Gambling Regulation Act 2024. Responses are due by 3pm on 20 August 2026.

What each consultation covers

Section 86 deals with prescribed games.

The regulations made under this section will determine which games may be authorised under an Irish gaming licence. A licence will then specify which of those prescribed games the individual licensee is permitted to provide.

GRAI previously ran an industry survey on prescribed games in April, giving participants an early opportunity to comment on game definitions and categorisation. The consultation now gives operators and other respondents the chance to comment on the draft wording itself.

Operators also need to look closely at how each game is defined. Definitions need to accommodate the way games are actually designed, supplied and modified. Any ambiguity around hybrids, new formats or products combining features from several categories could affect an operator’s licence scope and how easily it can introduce new content.

The Section 152 consultation focuses on records and accounts.

Record-keeping obligations rarely sit within the finance function alone. Depending on the final wording, operators may need to draw information from payments, customer accounts, safer gambling systems, compliance records, game data and third-party suppliers.

Operators need to check what information their systems already hold and how easily it can be retrieved. Some records may need to be produced in a particular format or drawn together from systems that do not currently speak to one another.

That can create a substantial amount of implementation work, especially where information sits across several platforms or depends on data from an external supplier.

Section 173 sets out the information remote gambling licensees must provide to account holders.

The Act allows GRAI to prescribe information relating to the characteristics and effects of excessive or compulsive gambling, the facilities available to help customers control their gambling, blocking tools and gambling support services. It also provides for alerts showing an account holder’s winnings, losses and time spent gambling.

The practical impact may therefore extend beyond revising terms and conditions or adding information to a website. Operators may need to update how information appears across customer accounts, responsible gambling pages and automated messages. They should also test whether winnings, losses and time spent can be calculated accurately and presented consistently across different products, channels and account histories.

Each regulation requires a separate submission through GRAI’s SurveyMonkey process. Operators responding to more than one consultation must submit each response separately, and GRAI has asked respondents to confine their comments to the content of the relevant regulation.

Why these consultations are worth the time

These remain draft regulations. Operators have an opportunity to put practical concerns, evidence and proposed alternatives before the regulator while the detailed requirements are still being developed.

Taken together, the consultations show GRAI moving from the broad obligations contained in the Gambling Regulation Act towards the operational rules that licensees will have to implement.

They also demonstrate why operators cannot prepare for the Irish regime solely by reading the Act. Important operational detail will sit in secondary regulations, licence conditions and regulatory guidance.

Businesses should read the drafts closely enough to identify unclear definitions, unavailable data, conflicting system requirements and obligations that may produce unintended consequences. In our experience, the strongest consultation responses do more than object to a proposal. They explain the operational problem and back it up with evidence. Where possible, they also suggest a workable alternative.

SolutionsHub Ireland is reviewing all three consultations and preparing formal responses.

Businesses assessing what the proposed regulations may mean for their operations, or preparing their own submissions, can contact our team for support.