Romainia Gambling Law Updates

Posted 1/6/11 : BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD FOR ROMANIA
 
New draft submitted following adverse EC opinion
 
Proposed new gambling legalization in Romania is at a standstill until at least March 1st following the submission of a fresh draft addressing European Commission complaints that the original was non-compliant with EU law.
 
In October last year the Commission issued a detailed opinion against Romanian draft legalization dating from July 2010 and seeking to regulate online gaming and betting. The adverse nature of the opinion meant Romania could not adopt the draft and had to address specific issues in a fresh notification.
 
Analysts at the time said that the draft had failed due to:
 
* the discriminatory prohibition of marketing and advertising activities for EU licensed companies which are not authorised in Romania
* the requirement for EU licensed online betting companies to have their servers in Romania
* the requirement for EU licensed online companies to be established in Romania
* the unjustified exclusion of online pool betting while all other forms of online gambling would be allowed.