Gambling in the Falkland Islands: Laws and Online Play

Published by Casino News Daily editorial teamReviewed byFilip RadulovicOur editorial approach

The Falkland Islands are a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic with a usually resident population of 3,662 people at the 2021 census (FIG). Gambling there is a matter for local law, not for the United Kingdom’s Gambling Act 2005, which does not extend to the territory. The local law on the subject is old and thin. Historical legislation shows a Lotteries Ordinance, amended in 1968 to exempt certain small lotteries held at entertainments, and a body of English gaming law received into Falklands law in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. No ordinance that licenses casinos, online casinos or remote betting has been identified, and no gambling regulator exists. This guide explains how the law reached its present form, what can and cannot be verified from public sources, and what follows for players, taxation and consumer protection.

Key points

The UK Gambling Act 2005 extends to England, Wales and Scotland. It does not apply in the Falkland Islands, which legislate for themselves under the 2008 Constitution.
Falklands law includes a Lotteries Ordinance (cited in 1968 as Cap. 41). The Lotteries (Amendment) Ordinance 1968 added an exemption for small lotteries held as part of entertainments.
English gaming statutes were received into Falklands law. These include the Gaming Act 1835 and, through the Application of Enactments Ordinance 1954, the Gaming Act 1922.
No licensing regime for casinos, online casinos or remote betting, and no gambling regulator or licence register, could be identified.
There is no specific tax on gambling. Income tax for individuals is charged at 21% on the first £12,000 of taxable income and 26% above that (2024 onwards).
No Falklands-specific gambling helpline or self-exclusion scheme exists. Local mental-health services and UK-based online support are the main options.

Last reviewed: 14 October 2026.

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Historical development

The islands are administered as a British Overseas Territory. Argentina maintains a claim to the archipelago, which it calls the Islas Malvinas. The Falkland Islands Government (FIG) notes that in a 2013 referendum 99.8% of those who voted chose to remain a British Overseas Territory. It describes the territory as having “full internal self-government”, with the United Kingdom responsible for foreign affairs and defence (FIG, About the Falkland Islands). This guide uses the name Falkland Islands and takes no position on the sovereignty dispute.

As in other former colonies, Falklands law grew from two sources: ordinances made locally and English law received into the colony. Historical notes published by the Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI), whose law was long administered with that of the Falklands, explain the mechanism. Under section 14(1) of the Interpretation and General Law Ordinance (Cap. 33), English law in force on 22 May 1900 applied “in so far as the circumstances of the Colony permit”. Specific later English statutes were added by schedule. The most important schedule was the one to the Application of Enactments Ordinance 1954 (Falklands No. 13 of 1954), which listed 63 UK enactments (SGSSI, Application of Enactments Ordinances).

Gaming law arrived through both routes. SGSSI’s note on the Gaming Act 1922 describes the Gaming Act 1835 as an English Act of general application “considered to apply in the Falklands and Dependencies before 22 May 1900”. The 1922 Act itself appears as item 24 in the 1954 schedule (SGSSI, Schedule No. 24: Gaming Act 1922). Its long title is “An Act to repeal section two of the Gaming Act, 1835”. It concerned the civil recovery of money paid on securities given for gaming debts, not the licensing of gambling (Gaming Act 1922, original text). English gaming law of this period was mainly concerned with the enforceability of gaming debts and the suppression of lotteries. It did not create a system for licensing commercial gambling.

Local legislation on lotteries existed by the 1960s. A scanned 1968 volume of Falklands ordinances includes the Lotteries (Amendment) Ordinance 1968 (No. 7 of 1968). It amended the Lotteries Ordinance (Cap. 41) by inserting new sections 8A to 8C. Section 8A carries the heading “Exemption of small lotteries incidental to certain entertainments”. It provides that a lottery promoted as part of a qualifying entertainment is not unlawful if statutory conditions are met. Anyone concerned in such a lottery who breaks those conditions commits an offence, unless they show that it happened without their consent and that they used due diligence to prevent it (Lotteries (Amendment) Ordinance 1968). The scan does not reproduce the conditions in full. A separate, fragmentary page in another scanned 1968 volume, whose heading and parent ordinance are missing, contains a proviso that “the prize moneys shall not be less than 80 per centum of the gross takings” and provides that a person refused a licence by the Treasurer “may appeal to the Governor in Council within thirty days of such refusal” (1968 ordinances, scanned volume). Because neither scan is complete and the fragment cannot be tied to a named ordinance, these details are reported only as historical text; whether any such scheme exists today could not be verified.

The territory’s statute book has been revised several times: in 1915, in 1951 (stating the law as at 31 December 1950), in a seven-volume loose-leaf edition of 1993, and on CD-ROM from 2006. FIG’s Statute Law Commissioner says that the CD-ROM omitted updates to applicable UK laws and was “not a definitive point of reference”. The official Falkland Islands Gazette remains the authoritative record of the law (FIG, History of the Falkland Islands Law Revision).

Legal framework

Checking gambling legislation and licensing

Constitutional basis

The Falkland Islands Constitution Order 2008 (SI 2008/2846) sets out the territory’s constitution. Under section 37 the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly, “may make laws for the peace, order and good government of the Falkland Islands”. The Legislative Assembly has eight elected members and two ex officio members (section 26(2)). The Executive Council includes three elected members of the Assembly (section 57(1)). Laws may be disallowed by the Crown through a Secretary of State (section 54(1)) (Constitution of the Falkland Islands). Gambling therefore falls within local legislative competence. Any new gambling statute would be passed as an ordinance of the Legislative Assembly and published in a Gazette Supplement.

Non-application of the UK Gambling Act 2005

The Gambling Act 2005, which governs gambling in Great Britain and created the Gambling Commission, does not extend to the Falkland Islands. Section 361 provides that, apart from a few provisions that also extend to Northern Ireland, the Act extends to England and Wales and to Scotland only (Gambling Act 2005, section 361). Licences issued by the Gambling Commission authorise gambling in Great Britain. They do not authorise anything in the Falklands, and the Commission has no regulatory role there.

Statutes identified

From the sources available, the gambling-related legislation of the Falkland Islands can be summarised as follows. The current status of each item could not be confirmed against a consolidated text.

Instrument	Origin	Subject	Status found
Lotteries Ordinance (Cap. 41)	Local ordinance	Lotteries; exemptions for small lotteries	Amended 1968; current text not retrieved
Lotteries (Amendment) Ordinance 1968 (No. 7 of 1968)	Local ordinance	Small lotteries incidental to entertainments (ss. 8A–8C)	Enacted 1968
Gaming Act 1835	English statute received before 22 May 1900	Gaming securities and debts	Historically considered to apply
Gaming Act 1922	UK statute applied by the Application of Enactments Ordinance 1954	Repeal of section 2 of the 1835 Act	Listed as Schedule item 24
Gambling Act 2005	UK statute	Great Britain’s gambling regime	Does not extend to the Falklands

FIG publishes up-to-date laws through its Statute Law Database at legislation.gov.fk, maintained by the Statute Law Commissioner (FIG Legal Services). The consolidated texts were not retrievable for this review, so the current wording of the Lotteries Ordinance, and whether any older English gaming statutes have since been repealed or replaced locally, could not be checked. Readers who need a definitive answer should consult that database or the Statute Law Commissioner.

Regulator and licensing model

The Falkland Islands do not follow any of the three models usually seen in gambling regulation. In a monopoly model, the state reserves gambling to one operator. In a licensing model, any operator meeting statutory conditions can obtain a licence. In a prohibition model, gambling is banned outright. The Falklands have no dedicated gambling regulator, no published licence register and no public application process for commercial gambling. The legislation identified concerns lotteries and the civil treatment of gaming debts.

The fragmentary 1968 text described above refers to licences refused by the Treasurer, with an appeal to the Governor in Council (the Governor acting with the advice of the Executive Council); because the fragment is incomplete and its parent ordinance is not identified, the scope of those licences is unclear. Whether the Treasury still issues such licences, and on what terms, could not be confirmed from published FIG material. No figures for licence numbers, fees or gross gaming revenue (GGR, the amount staked minus prizes paid) have been published.

No casino has been licensed in the islands, and no legislation providing for one was identified. Nor was any national or state lottery identified. Small-scale lotteries and raffles run by community organisations would, on the historical text, fall under the exemptions in the Lotteries Ordinance. Their current administrative handling could not be verified.

Online gambling

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No Falklands legislation licensing or expressly regulating remote gambling (gambling by internet or telephone) was identified. The territory does not issue online gambling licences, and it has not developed the offshore licensing industry found in some other British-linked jurisdictions. None of the Falkland Islands Gazette indexes for 2023, 2024 and 2025 lists any bill, ordinance, regulation or notice on gaming, gambling, lotteries or betting (Gazette Index 2023; Gazette Index 2024; Gazette Index 2025).

In practice, any online casino or betting site available to residents is based and licensed elsewhere, if it is licensed at all. A licence from another jurisdiction, including Great Britain, does not authorise an operator under Falklands law. No public measures against offshore gambling were found: there is no published blocklist of gambling websites, no instruction to internet providers or banks to block gambling services, and no gambling-specific advertising code. Because there is no local licensing system, no operator is authorised by a Falklands body to offer online casino games to residents.

Whether received English law or the Lotteries Ordinance would catch an online game offered from abroad has not been tested in any published decision. Lottery legislation of the English type defines a lottery broadly and makes promoting one unlawful unless an exemption applies. It is therefore possible that some online products fall within local prohibitions. This guide has found no authority confirming the point either way.

Position of players

No provision was found that makes it an offence for an individual in the Falklands to place a bet or play casino games online with an overseas operator. No prosecution of a player has been reported in the sources reviewed. The lottery legislation, as shown in the 1968 text, targets those who promote or are concerned in conducting lotteries, not participants.

Players should still understand the practical consequences of the current position:

No local recourse. There is no Falklands regulator to receive complaints, order the payment of winnings or require an operator to meet standards on fairness or the protection of customer funds.
Unenforceable debts. English gaming law of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries treated gaming debts as unenforceable in the courts. That approach may still affect claims in the Falklands, depending on the current status of the received statutes.
Foreign law governs. Disputes with an offshore operator are generally decided under the law and complaint procedures of the operator’s home jurisdiction, where any exist.

In short, playing online from the Falklands is not shown by any source to be a criminal offence, but it takes place outside any local legal protection.

Taxation

The Falkland Islands do not impose a gambling duty, betting tax or casino levy, and none appears in the Gazette indexes for 2023 to 2025. Direct taxation is governed mainly by the Taxes Ordinance 1997 and administered by the FIG Taxation Office.

Individuals. For 2024 onwards, resident individuals are taxed on worldwide income. The personal allowance is £15,960. Taxable income above the allowance is taxed at 21% on the first £12,000 and 26% on the remainder. Residence for tax purposes generally requires presence in the islands for 183 days or more in the tax year, which runs from 1 January to 31 December (FIG Taxation Office, General Tax Guide for Individuals). The guide does not mention gambling winnings. No Falklands guidance or ruling on the tax treatment of gambling winnings was found. Individuals with significant or regular winnings should seek advice from the Taxation Office.

Companies. Corporation tax is charged at 21% on profits up to £500,000, shared among associated companies worldwide, and 26% above that. A separate flat 26% rate applies to oil exploration and exploitation profits (FIG Taxation Office, Companies). Any business carrying on gambling activity in the islands would fall under these general rules, because there is no gambling-specific tax.

Consumer protection and responsible gambling

Because there is no gambling regulator, the safeguards found in licensed markets do not exist in the Falklands. These include operator duties to verify age and identity, deposit limits, affordability checks and statutory self-exclusion schemes. No national self-exclusion register exists. Anti-money-laundering (AML) obligations are a standard part of gambling regulation elsewhere, and no published AML supervisory arrangement for gambling operators was identified.

Help for people affected by gambling therefore depends on general health services and on support available online. FIG’s Emotional Well Being Service provides a community psychiatric service to the Falklands population for mild to severe mental health problems, including low-intensity therapy and community visits (FIG, Emotional Well Being Service job description, 2023). Residents can also use UK-based support. GamCare operates the National Gambling Helpline (0808 8020 133) 24 hours a day and offers live chat and WhatsApp contact with advisers (GamCare). The helpline number is a UK freephone number, and whether it can be called free from the Falklands has not been confirmed. Practical guidance on limiting gambling is available in our responsible gambling guide.

People playing on offshore sites should use the tools those sites offer, such as deposit limits, time-outs and self-exclusion. They should keep in mind that these tools are enforced, if at all, by the operator’s home regulator, not by any Falklands authority.

Recent and upcoming developments

No legislative activity on gambling, 2023–2025. The annual indexes of the Falkland Islands Gazette for 2023, 2024 and 2025 list no bill, ordinance, subsidiary legislation or notice on gaming, gambling, lotteries or betting. Tax legislation in this period, including the Finance Ordinance 2025 and the Taxes and Duties (Special Exemptions) (Amendment) Ordinance 2024, contained no gambling-specific measures.
2026. No 2026 Gazette index was available at the time of review. Gazettes and Supplements published up to March 2026 are available on FIG’s Gazettes and Supplements page, but their contents were not reviewed individually for this guide.
Statute law database. FIG now presents in-force legislation through its online Statute Law Database. Once consolidated texts are accessible, the current form of the Lotteries Ordinance and of the received gaming statutes should be rechecked.

No consultation, bill or public proposal to license online gambling or casinos in the Falkland Islands was found as of October 2026.

Casino listings for players in the Falkland Islands

The listings below are generated automatically from our casino database. They do not show that any operator is licensed or authorised in the Falkland Islands. No Falklands authority licenses online casinos, so no local register exists to check against. The listings must not be read as an indication that offering or playing these games is lawful, or that any local consumer protection applies.

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Key points

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Historical development

Legal framework

Constitutional basis

Non-application of the UK Gambling Act 2005

Statutes identified

Regulator and licensing model

Online gambling

Position of players

Taxation

Consumer protection and responsible gambling

Recent and upcoming developments

Casino listings for players in the Falkland Islands

Related country guides

Sources and further reading

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