TLDR
- Armenia will bar companies without a gambling licence from using words like “casino” and “lottery” in their branding.
- The rule takes effect on February 8, 2027, with fines of 500,000 AMD, or about $1,400.
- The ban covers company names, trademarks, website domains, and physical signs.
- Telecom operators will be required to block unlicensed gambling sites listed on a daily blacklist.
- Unlicensed gambling firms will also be banned from advertising their services in Armenia.
Armenia has passed new rules that stop companies without a gambling licence from using betting and casino terms in their branding. The law takes effect on February 8, 2027.
Firms that break the rule face fines of 500,000 AMD, or about $1,400. The restrictions apply to several parts of a company’s identity.
Regulators said the ban is not limited to online wording. It also covers company names, trade names, trademarks, website domains, and physical signs.
The law lists specific words that unlicensed firms cannot use. These include “gambling,” “casino,” “gaming hall,” “online gambling,” “lottery,” and “bookmaking activities.”
Officials said the goal is to stop firms from presenting themselves as gambling operators without approval. The law closes gaps that let unlicensed businesses use casino-style branding while avoiding regulation.
More Rules Arrive in February
Armenia is also preparing a second set of measures that start on the same date. These are amendments to the Law “On Regulation of Gaming Activities.”
The changes target online gambling and lottery sites that operate without Armenian licences. The State Revenue Committee said telecommunications operators will be used to block access to these sites.
In July, Deputy Head of the State Revenue Committee Rafael Gevorgyan explained why the changes are needed. He said mobile apps and websites have made betting and online gaming much easier to access in Armenia.
Current law already allows websites to be blocked. However, Gevorgyan said its impact is limited because operators use VPNs and launch new sites faster than regulators can block them.
The amendments will create a three-tiered protection system. They will also set up an online resource within the State Revenue Committee.
“An online resource will be created within the State Revenue Committee, where employees will promptly and daily add websites subject to blocking based on monitoring results,” Gevorgyan said, according to an Arka Telecom report.
Telecom operators must block sites on this “blacklist.” Only licensed and regulated sites on a “whitelist” will be allowed to operate, and companies without Armenian licences will be barred from advertising.
Two Years of Gambling Reforms
Armenia’s gambling reforms have moved forward step by step. Parliament approved a new framework in June 2024, and it came into force on January 1, 2025.
That law created a central digital system to monitor gambling in real time. All licensed online and land-based operators are connected, letting regulators track wagers, deposits, and losses instantly.
Malta-based RegTech firm Random Systems International was awarded a 15-year licence to manage the system.
Licensed operators must now show a visible self-exclusion button on their websites and apps. People receiving social assistance, pensioners, bankrupt individuals, and those in state-funded programs are banned from online gambling.
A personal income cap has also been added. Players cannot gamble more than 20% of their declared annual income.
The branding ban, advertising restrictions, and new site-blocking system will all take effect on February 8, 2027.
