The UK Gambling Commission has revealed that it will put a limit on betting bonus wagering requirements – making it easier for punters and players to turn winnings made via a bonus into withdrawable cash.
The plan is to reduced wagering requirements to a maximum of ten times the bonus amount; putting an end to arguably exploitative terms and conditions that can see players have to bet up to 50 times their bonus before being able to withdraw any winnings.
It comes as part of a raft of changes to bonuses and promotions in the UK sector, which will also see ‘mixed product’ promotions offered by bookmakers and online casinos banned.
A Perfect Ten
The biggest change, which will be enforced from December 2025, is the cap on wagering requirements.
This will prevent betting sites and particularly online casinos from ‘hiding’ impractical wagering requirements in their terms and conditions. Currently, their offers – which include wagering of up to 50x – can encourage players to ‘over bet’ in a bid to satisfy the requirements.
For example, if a bonus is worth £10 and comes with 50x wagering requirements, the player must bet £500 on eligible markets or casino games before they are able to withdraw their bonus winnings.
That could be construed as being anti to the idea of social responsibility, which is one of the licensing criteria that betting sites must adhere to in order to secure an operating a UK licence.
And so the Gambling Commission has been moved to make a change, introducing a limit of 10x wagering requirements on any bonuses and promotions offered by a UK-facing operator.
According to the regulator, the switch will ‘decrease the likelihood of harm, reduce complexity and improve transparency while maintaining consumer choice.’
The amendment comes as the Commission continues to act upon the government’s Gambling White Paper, which has identified a raft of rule changes to ensure that the sector’ legislation is fit for purpose and future-proofed.
Mixed Product Promotions Banned
The Gambling Commission wants to make bonuses and promotions, and the rules governing them, safer and simpler for players to understand and use.
And so operators will now be banned from offering promotions in which a player must wager on two different verticals, e.g. betting on sport and slot games from a single bonus.
As is the case with sizable wagering requirements, that can encourage individuals to over bet in a bid to ‘turn over’ their bonus, leading to potentially harmful ramifications.
Evidence gathered by the regulator confirms that players are ‘more at risk of harm’ when claiming a promotion that requires them to bet on two or more products, rather than exclusively betting on sports, playing slots etc. These multi-vertical offers can also be governed by ‘confusing’ terms and conditions.
Sections of the Gambling Commission’s Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP) rulebook, which all UK licensed operators must abide by, will be updated to reflect the changes and reinforce what the regulator expects from its licensees.
They had updated their code of practice as recently as August, when changing policies regarding direct marketing that ensure all UK-facing operators offer their customers the chance to opt out of promotional material across all mediums.
It is expected that the changes will be ratified and enacted on December 19, 2025. The Commission’s executive director for research and policy, Tim Miller, commented:
“These changes will better protect consumers from gambling harm and give consumers much better clarity on, and certainty of, offers before they decide to sign up.”
However, one proposed change that won’t be enforced is a ban on bonuses and promotions that require ‘excessive intensity’ of play. But the regulator was unable to come up with a concrete definition of what excessive intensity would entail, and so that potential amendment has been shelved.
The regulator has clamped down on operators that have played fast and loose with their bonuses in recent times. Gamesys, the firm behind Jackpot Joy and Bally Casino, were fined £6 million in January 2024 after they had interacted with a customer that had lost nearly £10,000… only to then offer them new promotions.
And in March 2023, William Hill was fined a record £19.2 million after failing to intervene when a series of new customers, after claiming welcome bonuses, then went on to bet thousands in the space of just a few hours – including one individual that wagered £23,000 within the first 20 minutes of their account being opened.