Finland’s National Police Board now lists 24 granted gambling licences on its official register. The licences are dated to run from 1 July 2027. Until that day, Veikkaus keeps its monopoly, and a place on the list is not a right to advertise or take bets.
The official list of granted licences, published by Poliisihallitus, the National Police Board, names 24 legal entities and their licence numbers. The authority says the list is updated as new licences are granted, and that the licences are valid from 1 July 2027 to 30 June 2032 unless otherwise specified. A check of that page on 14 November 2026 showed 24 names, matching a dated snapshot of the same list reported the previous morning.
The official register does not itself state the decision date for each grant. Finnish coverage on 13 November, including Voitto.net’s report, said three names had been added that Friday: 711 Finland Limited (RALU/2027/L124), Kimppa Gaming Ltd (RALU/2027/L122) and PulsePlay Gaming Ltd (RALU/2027/L123). All three appear on the police list. Trade coverage has paid most attention to 711, a Belgian-based operator already licensed in Belgium and the Netherlands; Intergame reported that the group said it would use the months until July to localise, fine-tune and test its offer. The police list records only the Finnish legal entity and the licence number, not the brands it may later use.
Twenty-four names, and what the register does not show
The list is a register of licence-holders, not a directory of websites or consumer brands. Among the names already on it are Finnish-incorporated companies such as Hippos ATG Oy (RALU/2027/L108) and SuomiVeto Oy (RALU/2027/L111), and foreign-registered vehicles such as Skill On Net Ltd (RALU/2027/L109) and Atlantic Games Malta Ltd (RALU/2027/L119). The highest number currently shown is L124. That does not mean there have been 124 grants; the numbering simply identifies each licence.
The police also do not, on this page, say which products each holder may offer. A separate overview of licence types explains that a rahapelitoimilupa, the ordinary gambling operating licence, is distinct from an exclusive licence and from a later game-software licence. Software-licence applications are not open until the beginning of July 2027. The granted-licence list should be read with that limit in mind: it is evidence of an operating-licence decision, not of a live casino, a sportsbook, or a start date earlier than 1 July 2027.
A grant is not a right to start this year
That start date is set by the new Gambling Act, not by the licence list. On its page on illegal gambling, the police are explicit that, until the end of June 2027, Veikkaus Oy has the exclusive right to offer and market gambling in mainland Finland. Activity by anyone else that is targeted at Finland remains prohibited, and can be a criminal offence. From the beginning of July 2027, lawful activity will require a supervisory authority’s licence, and legal operators will have to display the licence number, the supervisor’s mark and the age limit.
The same point was made when the first grants were announced. In a 29 October 2026 statement, the police said they had issued the first 18 licences under the new law, and that holders may begin offering and marketing games no earlier than 1 July 2027. The statement also said 63 operating-licence applications were still being processed at that date. Application numbers move, and a later figure should not be inferred from the October announcement alone. What has not changed is the opening date.
How the remaining applications are being handled
Applications have been open since 1 March 2026, and there is no closing date; the process is continuous. The police say the target handling time is six to eight months, and warn that incomplete files take longer. In 2026 the fee for processing an operating-licence or exclusive-licence application is €29,000, charged whether the decision is a grant or a refusal. A modification of an already granted licence, or an international cooperation licence, is charged at €1,120.
The October announcement, quoting senior inspector Juho Puisto of the lottery administration, said most applicants are foreign companies, and that one file can run to several hundred pages, often requiring further documents from overseas authorities. Reliability and suitability are assessed from registers, certificates and other evidence supplied with the application. From the beginning of July 2027, supervision and licensing transfer from the National Police Board to Lupa- ja valvontavirasto, the new licensing and supervisory agency. Until the end of June 2027, the police remain the authority.
That sequence matters for anyone reading the list as a market-entry calendar. A name on the register is a decision already taken, but the holder still has more than seven months of build, testing and compliance work, and no lawful route to market to Finnish customers in the meantime. The contrast with markets that have already opened a licensing window, or that are only now bringing a legal framework into force, is sharp: we described Mozambique’s new online rules, which take effect on 20 November, as a commencement of law rather than a launch date. Finland has set the launch date first and is filling the register ahead of it.
The monopoly Veikkaus will lose in July
On 1 July 2027 Veikkaus will lose its exclusive right to casino games and betting in mainland Finland, and will compete with the licensed operators. The police have already said that, from that date, players should look for a licence number and the supervisor’s mark, and that winnings from unlicensed sites are taxable income the player must declare. Marketing targeted at Finland also requires a licence.
For international groups, the practical test is whether they are prepared to pay Finnish tax and supervision fees, localise an offer, and stay off the market until the opening day. For players, the test will come later: whether the licensed sites are easy to tell from the unlicensed ones, and whether the new supervisor enforces that line. Why a licence matters is the right first question in any newly opened market. Finland is also an EU member state, so licensed operators there will still have to watch separate EU consumer-law proposals, including the Digital Fairness Act plan that would reach gambling sites.
The official list will keep changing as further decisions are issued. The reliable source is the police page, not a private copy of it. A grant today still leaves the holder, and Veikkaus, waiting for 1 July 2027.
Gambling is for adults aged 18 and over. This article is news reporting, not an advertisement. Under Spain’s Royal Decree 958/2020, only operators licensed by the DGOJ may advertise gambling to Spanish residents. Anyone worried about their own or someone else’s gambling should use official national support services.
Related Posts
