Swedish Casinos: Licensed vs. Non-Licensed & What You Need to Know

As you may already be aware, gambling laws have changed a lot throughout history － sometimes for the negative and sometimes for the positive. Unfortunately, despite these alterations weighing on many people, they haven’t always been very clear nor easy to educate yourself on.

Finding good, reliable information has been challenging, and the same can be said about the law changes enacted just a couple of years ago. Are you having trouble navigating how to play at your favorite online casino sites with these somewhat-recent switches?

We’re here to guide you through it all. Continue reading below to learn everything you need to know about these newer laws, your two current gambling options, and whether a casino utan svensk license, or one that’s lacking a Swedish license, might be a good option for you.

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The Low Down On The Law

As we said previously, the laws here in Sweden have seen a pretty good amount of change over the years, and they saw yet another shift in January of 2019 with the passing of the new Swedish Gaming Act.

Despite the consistent shifting of the legal landscape, the passage of these new regulations caused considerable upset amongst the gambling community. Where before, online casinos could function in Sweden without too much oversight or too many restrictions, they were now facing strict control over operations.

The act essentially prohibited online casinos that didn’t have a Spelinspektionen-issued license from operating directly out of Sweden. This then solidified that any casino wanting complete access to the Swedish gambling market had to apply and get approved for a valid gaming license, unlike prior when that was a mostly-optional step.

Naturally, one would assume that this barres Swedes from playing at sites that don’t hold these credentials but (thankfully) this isn’t the case. Players are still well within their legal rights to play at both licensed Swedish and unlicensed foreign casinos alike and can enjoy all the benefits they did prior to the 2019 rule changes.

So, if you were worried that you no longer have much choice in where you’re gambling or how you can rest easy! Confused by this? We don’t blame you a bit. The governmental powers behind the act we’ve been discussing haven’t engaged in much public discourse about the law modifications, thus there have been few avenues for clarification.

But what it basically boils down to is that the Swedish Gaming Act more directly affects casinos and their owners than it does actual gamers. They have to find out about the specific regulations and either seek to meet them or move their business from a Swedish entity to a global one if they don’t want to pursue the appropriate permits. The only thing you really have to do is pick a reputable online casino in the country or locate an internationally-based casino you think is trustworthy.

Perks And Pitfalls Of Licensing

When it comes to licensing, everyone is going to have their preference. Some people just feel better gambling on sites that hold a Spelinspektionen license, feeling more secure thanks to its built-in protections, whereas others prefer the increased freedom and benefits of unlicensed casinos. Both are completely valid and have their own individual advantages and disadvantages.

For licensed Swedish outfits, one of its obvious pluses is that it’s more secure. Tightly regulated and carefully evaluated to ensure they’re meeting the standards they should, the odds that a casino will misuse accounts, simply refuse winnings, or engage in other nefarious acts are incredibly low.

They’re held accountable, and you’re safer because of it. They also come with the additional bonuses of expanded currency choices, shorter withdrawal times, and the assurance that Swedish will be the language of choice.

On the other hand, though, non-licensed casinos located outside of Sweden address many of the downsides that also come along with these sites. Namely, they’re better for the gameplay and payday aspect of gambling.

Offering unlimited casino bonuses, no wait times between spins (which is required for places with permits under the new Swedish rules!), and no need for loss or deposit limits, there’s a lot more potential for profit. Additionally, global casino options give you a little more flexibility in playing as you wish, which could be a plus for some players.

It’s all in your specific preferences. What matters a lot to some won’t always hold as much significance for others, so we highly recommend you simply do your research. Think about your priorities, search which gambling option makes more sense for those, and go with that. You’ll have a far better experience this way than just allowing one person’s opinion to sway you!

How To Play At Unlicensed Casinos

If you’ve done a little digging and decided that unlicensed casinos are the more attractive option for you, you’re probably a little concerned about where to go from here. The good news is that it’s not nearly as difficult as you might be expecting! Gambling on unlicensed foreign sites is very similar to playing on licensed Swedish ones. There are just a few small differences to keep in mind.

The first thing to be aware of is that these online casinos do not give you the option of registering via BankID or e-ID, unlike if you were to stick with licensed choices. You’ll have to create an account from scratch instead, filling out your basic details like name, address, phone number, email, etcetera. Once you do this and set a password, you’ll be tasked with completing verification.

Similarly, verification is slightly different here. The specifics will vary a bit depending on the casino in question and where it’s headquartered; however, you can expect for submission of documents proving identity and place of residence to be required. After receiving these documents, staff will manually look over everything and approve your account once it all checks out.

From there, the experience is pretty familiar. Simply sign in to your account, play the games you’re interested in, stay safe, and enjoy! And with the lack of a three-second rule, the latter of these is easier than ever. Just remember, you might need to do a bit of digging to find an option that has been translated into your native tongue or has support staff to help you out with language difficulties.