Portugal – Online Casinos & Gambling Regulations

Finding the best Portuguese casino online

Now that online casinos are regulated and licensed by authorities in Portugal, you can find plenty of safe and secure sites at which to play your favorite slots, table games, live dealer titles, progressive jackpots, and more. Here at GoodLuckMate, we’ve reviewed all of the reputable Portuguese online casinos so that you can get all of the important information about welcome bonuses (some of which include plenty of fabulous free spins), the significant terms and conditions to be aware of before signing up and full details on all the different types of games.

Additionally, you will find every payment method available to you, whether you want to deposit or withdraw via credit or debit cards, direct bank transfers, eWallets, prepaid vouchers, or cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. We give you all the transaction times, limits, and whether you can do everything in euros. Furthermore, we always get in touch with the customer support team at various hours of the day and night to test the level of service you will receive. In short, then, we’ve got you covered every step of the way. So, before you sign on the dotted line, be sure to:

• Read through a few GoodLuckMate reviews
• Confirm your payment method is available
• See that the site in question accepts euros
• Check the site is translated into Portuguese
• Go over all of the welcome bonus T&Cs

Once you’ve done all of that and you’ve found a place at which to register a new account, head back to the GLM casino review and click on the welcome bonus banner to get the best deal.

Gambling regulation – Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos (SRIJ)

As mentioned above, the Portuguese gambling laws were changed in 2017 so that the market became fully regulated. This was passed through parliament as law under the Online Gambling and Betting Legal Regime. Following on from this all powers of regulation, licensing and taxation were handed over to the, wait for it, the Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos, to give the full title, which falls under Turismo de Portugal (Portuguese Tourism). Essentially, it means the Gambling Regulatory and Inspection Authority. This is often, thankfully shorted to SRIJ.

Because of these changes to the law, all gambling activity including games of chance such as slots, jackpots, and table games, as well as games of skill such as poker are now officially legal. The same thing goes for sports betting, with football being the most popular choice in Portugal. So, whether playing at a Portuguese online or land-based casino, or putting a wager on Benfica, Sporting, or Porto at your local sports betting shop, the law is there to protect you. The only downside was that the taxes were too high for some brands, who decided to exit the market.

Localized online casinos

With more than 200 million speakers in Brazil, as well as the more than 10 million in Portugal itself and many more who speak the language in parts of Africa, you can be sure of finding plenty of online casinos in the Portuguese. All of the fully SRIJ-licensed sites will feature everything in Portuguese (including customer support) and may even offer a few live casino games in the language. So, you can be sure of having the best experience possible. And, of course, with Portugal being part of the EU, using euros won’t be a problem at hundreds of sites.

Casinos in Portugal

There are plenty of casino resorts and hotels located all over Portugal, with the major ones located in the most populated cities of Lisbon, Sintra, Vila Nova de Gaia, Porto, and Loures, as well as in some of the popular tourist towns along the coast. If you ever get the chance, we recommend visiting some of the oldest and most famous Portuguese land-based casinos such as Hotel Casino Chaves, Casino da Povoa, Casino Figueira, Casino Lisboa, and Casino Estoril. Remember that there are strict dress codes in place and the minimum table bets may be high!