Anjouan Gaming, which licenses online operators from the island of Anjouan, says it had issued more than 1,650 Internet Gaming Licences by 14 July 2026, with close to 1,500 still active. The figure is the issuer’s own, not a count by a third party. It shows how widely the licence is used. It does not make any of them an Australian licence.

A Curaçao licence on a casino site, like an Anjouan one, is issued under that place’s own law and is not an Australian licence. The ACMA lists online casinos and pokies among the services providers must not offer to people in Australia, and neither overseas licensing body says it resolves individual player disputes. This guide explains what a Curaçao licence means for a casino in Australia and what each issuer says about its own reach. It gives general information and is not legal advice.

If gambling is affecting you or someone close to you, the National Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858 is free and confidential.

What an offshore licence is and what it is not

An offshore licence is a permission granted under the law of the place that issued it. It tells you which body regulates the operator at home. It does not tell you what an Australian authority makes of the service, and the two questions are easy to run together on a casino’s footer badge.

What the Act prohibits – and for whom

According to the ACMA, the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (the Act) makes it illegal for gambling providers to offer some online services to people in Australia (ACMA, accessed 5 October 2026). Its guidance for consumers lists them: pokies, casino-style games such as poker, blackjack and roulette, scratchies, in-play betting on sporting events, and betting and lottery services that are not licensed in Australia (ACMA, accessed 5 October 2026).

Two different rules sit inside that list. For online casino games and pokies, the service itself is on the banned list, whoever offers it. For sports betting, the test is mainly the provider’s licence. The ACMA names sports betting services that do not hold an Australian licence, lists in-play betting on sporting events as banned too, and says a provider must be on the register of licensed interactive gambling providers to operate here (ACMA, accessed 5 October 2026). A licence from Curaçao or Anjouan changes neither answer. The Australian side of that picture is set out in which gambling services are licensed in Australia.

The ban is written for providers. It limits what a provider may offer, not what a person may click on. For you, the practical point is narrower and easier to hold on to: the seal of an overseas authority says nothing about the protection you would have in Australia. This guide describes what the Act stops providers offering and what the ACMA says players risk. It does not tell you what you may or may not do.

Why a legitimate-looking site is not a protected one

The ACMA is plain about the problem. Some online gambling services ‘look like they’re legal in Australia and some even target Australian players’. You might be able to reach them, but they will not give you the same customer protection as a licensed service (ACMA, accessed 5 October 2026).

A licence badge is one of the things that makes a site look established. A badge, a licence number in the footer and a polished registration page all take seconds to read, and none of them shows who a player could complain to if a withdrawal stalls.

The ACMA also says what follows if something goes wrong. If you use an illegal service, Australian regulators will not be able to help you if you believe the provider has treated you or another player poorly, or if the provider withholds your winnings. How to spot such a site is covered in how to recognise an illegal gambling site.

What the ACMA actually checks

The ACMA does not grade foreign licences. Its question is whether a provider is offering a banned or unlicensed service to people in Australia. In May 2026 it issued a formal warning to a company with an address in Curaçao. The warning cites subsections 15(2A) and 15AA(3) of the Act and states that the company is not licensed by an Australian state or territory to provide regulated interactive gambling services to Australians (ACMA formal warning dated 21 May 2026). The warning does not say what licence the company holds elsewhere, and this guide draws no conclusion about it.

One document is an example, not a statistic. The wider record is the ACMA’s published list of blocked illegal gambling websites. The ACMA can ask internet service providers to block access to websites providing prohibited interactive gambling services to customers in Australia (ACMA, accessed 6 October 2026). A blocked site is one the ACMA has already acted on. A site that is not blocked has not been approved.

The limit of that work matters as much as the work. The ACMA pages cited here describe action against providers and websites. They do not describe recovering a player’s money, and the regulator warns that you are unlikely to see your money again if an illegal service keeps it.

Curaçao licence casino in Australia: who issues it and what it covers

On Curaçao the issuer is the Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA). It says the National Ordinance on Games of Chance, known by its Dutch initials LOK, has been in force since 24 December 2024, and that the authority was formerly called the Gaming Control Board. The CGA adds that the earlier ordinance on offshore games of hazard remains relevant under transitional provisions (CGA, as at 5 October 2026).

The CGA describes its main role as regulating and supervising gaming activities conducted within or from Curaçao. Read that sentence for what it leaves out. The pages checked on 5 October 2026 do not say whether a Curaçao licence obliges its holder to follow the laws of the countries it serves.

The point that matters most to a player is what the CGA does with a complaint. Its answer is direct: ‘the CGA does not handle individual complaints against gaming providers. Resolving disputes between players and gaming operators is not within our mandate.’ It also says: ‘The CGA is not a civil court and cannot order gaming operators to compensate players or issue judgments.’ Players are pointed to the provider and to the appropriate legal channels.

A complaint is not ignored altogether. The authority says a complaint, or a pattern of complaints, that points to a possible breach of the law may lead to action against the operator, but it will not disclose the status of any investigation. A report to the CGA is therefore a way to flag an operator. It is not a route to your money.

The CGA also publishes a licence register with separate lists for land-based casinos, online gaming licences, certificates and enforcement. It carries a caution: the overviews do not guarantee the current validity of the licences, and ‘no rights can be derived from these overviews’.

An Anjouan licence: the same questions, a disputed issuer

Anjouan is an autonomous island of the Union of the Comoros. Anjouan Gaming describes itself as the designated regulatory authority for licensing and supervising internet gaming operations under the laws of the island. It names the Anjouan Offshore Financial Authority (AOFA) as the body above it, Anjouan Licensing Services Inc. as the sole authorised licence administrator and the Anjouan Computer Gaming Licensing Act 2005 as the legal basis (Anjouan Gaming, as at 5 October 2026). Everything in this section about the licence is the issuer’s own description.

On reach, Anjouan Gaming is explicit. Licence holders ‘must comply with all applicable laws in the jurisdictions in which they operate’, it says, and its licences ‘do not override local prohibitions or regulatory requirements’. Operators remain solely responsible for geo-blocking, market access controls and local compliance. By the issuer’s own account, then, the licence is not a permission to offer a service where local law prohibits it.

On complaints, the position mirrors Curaçao. ‘The Authority does not handle, mediate, or adjudicate player complaints,’ it says, and players ‘should not contact the Authority to resolve a dispute’. The process it describes starts with the operator, which has 30 calendar days to respond. A dispute over a game result must be raised within 14 days of the session and a dispute over an account within 30 days. After that comes an approved alternative dispute resolution (ADR) provider, which the issuer says is mandatory for licensed operators at the operator’s cost (Anjouan Gaming, as at 5 October 2026). Complaints from players in ‘excluded territories’ fall outside the process. The pages checked do not list those territories, so they do not show whether the process is open to players in Australia.

The issuer’s Verify a Licence tool searches by licence number, company name or domain. Anjouan Gaming says that verification does not constitute an endorsement of the licence holder’s services, products or business practices.

The standing of the issuer is disputed. ABC News reported on 31 December 2025 that the Comoros Central Bank has warned about Anjouan regulators and the firms that sell their licences. It quotes a central bank official, speaking in 2020, saying such entities ‘have in reality no physical or legal existence in the territory of the Union of the Comoros’. Anjouan Gaming cites an independent legal opinion that calls the AOFA ‘the lawful regulatory authority for gaming in Anjouan’. This guide does not decide who is right. For a player in Australia the answer to the main question stays the same: the licence is not an Australian one.

What stands behind each licence

The table sets out only what the authorities themselves state. Where a page checked on 5 October 2026 is silent, the cell says so.

QuestionAustralian state or territory licenceCuraçaoAnjouan
Who issues itA state or territory licensing authorityCuraçao Gaming AuthorityAnjouan Gaming, under the AOFA by its own account
Legal basisNot covered in this guideNational Ordinance on Games of Chance (LOK), in force since 24 December 2024Anjouan Computer Gaming Licensing Act 2005, as the issuer describes it
Public registerACMA register of licensed interactive gambling providersCGA licence register, with a ‘no rights can be derived’ cautionVerify a Licence tool, described as not an endorsement
Player complaints to the issuerCan go to the licensing authorityNot handled; the CGA is not a civil courtNot handled; operator first, then ADR
Does the licence override local bansNot covered in this guideNot stated on the authority’s pages checkedNo, by the issuer’s own account
Australian regulators’ helpComplaints can go to the licensing authorityThe ACMA says regulators cannot help if an illegal service withholds winningsThe ACMA says regulators cannot help if an illegal service withholds winnings

How to check a licence claim

A licence badge is a claim to be checked, not a verdict on the operator. The steps below test the claim. They are not a way to choose a casino.

  1. Find who issued the licence and under what number. The footer should name the licensing body and the licence holder. A logo with no number and no holder’s name proves nothing.
  2. Check the holder with the issuer. The CGA has its licence register and Anjouan Gaming has its Verify a Licence tool. Write down the date you checked.
  3. Read the caveats. The CGA says no rights can be derived from its overviews, and Anjouan Gaming says a register entry confirms licensing status only.
  4. Ask the Australian question separately. A genuine overseas licence does not answer it. The question is whether the service is on the ACMA’s register of licensed interactive gambling providers, and an online casino is not, because online casinos are on the banned list.
  5. If money is already involved, read who takes a complaint in the next section.

Where to complain and where to get help with an overseas licence

If you have problems recovering money from an overseas gambling website, the ACMA lists the options open to you and then adds: ‘Unfortunately, you are unlikely to see your money again in these situations’ (ACMA, accessed 5 October 2026).

Contacting the licensing authority that issued an overseas licence is a way to report the operator. Neither the CGA nor Anjouan Gaming says it will get your money back, and both say they do not resolve player disputes. The process Anjouan Gaming describes is its own, and the pages checked do not show that it helps a player in Australia.

You can also make a complaint to the ACMA if you think a website offers illegal gambling services, and you do not have to give your name. That is a report, not a claim for repayment. The steps, and what each body does with a complaint, are in who takes a complaint about a betting company or an illegal site. Keep every email and screenshot, and note the date of each.

If money has gone and you are under pressure, the National Debt Helpline on 1800 007 007 offers free financial counselling. If gambling is affecting you or someone close to you, the National Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858 is free and confidential, and Gambling Help Online has support you can use online. You do not need to wait until things become serious.

Frequently asked questions

Is a Curaçao licence casino valid in Australia?

A Curaçao licence is issued under Curaçao’s own law and is not an Australian licence. The ACMA lists online casinos and pokies among the services providers must not offer to people in Australia, and sports betting services without an Australian licence. This guide does not give a legal verdict on any single site.

What does ‘licensed in Curaçao’ mean on an online casino?

It means the operator says it holds a licence from the Curaçao Gaming Authority. The authority says its role is to regulate gaming activities conducted within or from Curaçao and that it does not handle individual player complaints. Its register carries a caution that no rights can be derived from the overviews.

Who issues Anjouan gambling licences?

Anjouan Gaming describes itself as the designated licensing authority for internet gaming on the autonomous island of Anjouan. Its standing is disputed: ABC News reported on 31 December 2025 that the Comoros Central Bank has warned about Anjouan regulators and the firms that sell their licences, while Anjouan Gaming cites a legal opinion in its favour.

Can the Curaçao Gaming Authority get your money back?

No. The authority says it does not handle individual complaints and is not a civil court, so it cannot order operators to compensate players. A complaint or a pattern of complaints may lead to action against the operator, but the authority will not disclose the status of any investigation.

How do you check whether a casino licence is real?

Find the issuer and the licence number, then check the holder in the issuer’s own register and note the date. A register entry confirms licensing status only. It does not answer whether the service may be offered to people in Australia, which is a question about the ACMA’s register and banned list.

Does an overseas licence stop the ACMA blocking a site?

The ACMA’s question is whether a provider offers a banned or unlicensed service to people in Australia. It publishes a list of the illegal gambling websites it has asked internet service providers to block. A licence from elsewhere is not among the grounds the ACMA describes for leaving a site alone.

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