The Netherlands’ licensed online gambling sector is urging lawmakers to reconsider plans for a complete advertising ban, warning that further restrictions could make illegal operators more attractive and harder for consumers to distinguish from regulated brands.
Trade association VNLOK raised the issue ahead of a House of Representatives debate scheduled for 3 September, where lawmakers are expected to discuss the government’s latest gambling reforms. The package includes a proposed ban on advertising for online gambling, alongside a prohibition on bonuses and tighter controls on player deposits.
VNLOK argues that restrictions on licensed companies need to be assessed against the growing size of the unregulated sector. Kansspelautoriteit’s spring 2026 monitoring report estimated that around 91% of Dutch online gamblers played exclusively with licensed operators. However, when measured by gross gambling revenue, the regulated market accounted for only 53% of spending, meaning approximately 47% was associated with illegal providers.
That gap has become one of the central concerns in Dutch gambling policy. KSA Chairman Michel Groothuizen has previously opposed a complete advertising ban, arguing that licensed businesses need some ability to make themselves visible to consumers or risk surrendering more ground to unregulated competitors.
Advertising rules in the Netherlands are already extensive. Online gambling companies cannot use untargeted advertising, must avoid vulnerable groups and young adults, and are subject to strict requirements for digital campaigns. Gambling sponsorship has also been prohibited since July 2025.
At the same time, illegal advertising remains widespread. In April 2026 alone, the KSA submitted more than 4,600 reports to Meta concerning unlawful gambling advertisements appearing on Facebook and Instagram. The regulator said illegal operators frequently use social-media marketing and sometimes incorporate well-known brands or public figures to appear more credible.
VNLOK wants authorities to concentrate more resources on disrupting those businesses. Its proposals include giving the KSA stronger website-blocking powers, increasing cooperation with payment companies and other intermediaries, and treating serious illegal gambling activity more closely as organised crime. The Dutch government has already indicated that website blocking and new obligations for companies facilitating illegal operators are being considered as part of its wider reform programme.
The pressure on licensed operators has also increased following successive gambling-tax rises. The rate moved from 30.5% to 34.2% in January 2025 before reaching 37.8% at the beginning of 2026. A joint assessment by the Ministry of Finance and the KSA subsequently found that the increases generated substantially less additional revenue than initially forecast, partly because the taxable market had contracted.
VNLOK is therefore asking lawmakers to adopt a risk-based approach rather than introducing a blanket advertising prohibition. Its position is that advertising by licensed companies should remain tightly controlled and focused away from vulnerable consumers, while still allowing regulated brands to remain identifiable as legal alternatives to the rapidly expanding offshore market.