Online Casino Licensing in Brazil: What the SPA Actually Requires

Brazil’s fixed-odds betting framework covers both sports betting and online games. Law No. 14,790/2023 brought online games into the fixed-odds framework, allowing regulated operators to offer qualifying online gaming products under SPA authorisation. Land-based gambling remains a separate matter: Decree-Law No. 9.215 of 30 April 1946 restored the nationwide prohibition on games of chance, so the modern federal framework for fixed-odds betting and online games should not be confused with legalisation of physical casinos.

Brazil has a federal authorisation system administered by the SPA and separate state-level lottery arrangements. A state authorisation does not automatically give an operator national authority. The Ministry of Finance states that states and the Federal District may operate the lottery modalities permitted by federal law within their territories, while only operators authorised by the SPA may operate nationally under the federal fixed-odds framework.

The safest way to check whether an operator is authorised is to use the Ministry of Finance’s current official list of authorised companies. The list identifies the legal entity, CNPJ, authorised brands, domains and the relevant SPA authorisation order. It is updated as the regulatory position changes, so readers should use the current government list rather than relying on a static number published in an article.

Federal authorisations apply to the fixed-odds betting framework and the authorised online-game market. The Ministry states that federally authorised betting sites use the Brazilian .bet.br domain, in force since 1 January 2025. A website operating under another domain should therefore not be assumed to be federally authorised merely because it displays a Brazilian-looking brand or claims to hold an overseas gambling licence.

Brazil has developed several mechanisms for attacking unauthorised betting activity, including URL blocking, restrictions on financial transfers and cooperation with technology and financial-sector participants. The SPA has also supported police and other authorities in investigations involving suspected illegal betting operations, including 2026 operations by the Federal Police and Federal Revenue Service investigating suspected tax evasion, foreign-exchange evasion and money laundering connected with betting activity, with substantial assets subject to seizure. These cases demonstrate the breadth of enforcement, but they should not be interpreted as evidence that every offshore betting website is itself criminally operated.

Licensed operators must use financial institutions and payment institutions authorised by the Central Bank of Brazil and approved within the operator’s regulatory framework. Player payments must be made through an account registered to the bettor, and the Ministry states that transfers from an unregistered account must be returned. The regulated framework also prohibits operators from offering credit for gambling and prohibits the use of credit cards for betting.

Accordingly, the presence of an unusual payment method or an overseas financial arrangement can be an important warning sign when assessing whether a website actually operates inside Brazil’s regulated framework, but payment method alone should not be treated as conclusive proof of illegality.

Brazil’s regulated system includes detailed player controls. The Ministry states that bettors must authenticate when accessing an authorised betting site, using a username and password or biometric recognition, and that the bettor’s location must be verified before the first bet and subsequently at prescribed intervals.

Brazil also operates a centralised self-exclusion platform that can block a person from all SPA-authorised betting sites at once. The system uses CPF information and can prevent new registrations and block existing accounts according to the applicable self-exclusion rules.

Participation restrictions also apply to certain beneficiaries of Brazilian social and debt-restructuring programmes. Following STF-ordered protective measures and SPA/MF Portaria 2.217/25 and IN SPA/MF 22/25 (published 1 October 2025), beneficiaries of Bolsa Família and the Benefício de Prestação Continuada (BPC) cannot open or maintain accounts with licensed betting operators. The SIGAP system’s “Módulo de Impedidos” cross-checks CPF records and enables operators to block affected users under the applicable rules — this is an operational part of Brazil’s regulated betting-control framework, not an unresolved question.

Online games offered within the regulated fixed-odds framework must comply with Brazil’s certification requirements. The SPA states that, from 1 January 2025, operators may only offer online games certified by laboratories authorised by the Ministry of Finance and submitted through the SIGAP system. Certification is part of the regulated operator and game-control framework and is separate from simply holding an overseas gambling licence.

This page is a licensing and regulatory explainer rather than a casino ranking. Brazil’s regulated market depends on a specific SPA authorisation, an identified legal entity, authorised domains, approved financial arrangements and compliance with player-protection and technical requirements. Readers should verify those elements against the current official government records before treating an operator as federally authorised.