Austria’s online gambling bill standstill extended to 7 December

The European Commission’s TRIS entry for notification 2026/0415/AT lists Malta as having issued a detailed opinion on Austria’s proposed Federal Act amending the Gambling Act and Telecommunications Act 2021. The Commission also issued comments. The standstill end date has moved from 5 November 2026 to 7 December 2026. Austria cannot adopt the bill before the extended standstill expires.

The bill is not law, but Austria’s notification says access to online gambling would depend on holding an Austrian concession and that enforcement would target providers operating without one.

The notified restrictions

Austria describes the measures as restrictions on the freedom to provide services. Its notification says they apply to domestic and foreign providers alike and are justified by compelling public-interest objectives, including effective regulatory oversight, player protection and the consistency of Austria’s gambling monopoly with EU law as assessed by the Court of Justice of the European Union.

The proposed enforcement package would allow injunctions blocking illegal online gambling services, payment blocking and publication of a blacklist. Austria says these measures would be directed only at providers without an Austrian concession and would therefore be proportionate and no more restrictive than necessary.

The public TRIS entry identifies Malta’s detailed opinion and the Commission’s comments, but does not publish their arguments. Malta’s reasons should not be inferred from the extension alone.

Concessions and player controls

The Finance Ministry’s announcement says the reform would create an open procedure for online concessions. Providers that have operated illegally would have to stop offering in Austria from 1 January 2027. If they did not, they would face an 18-month bar on receiving a concession, increasing to 24 months from 2030. Applicants would also have to settle non-time-barred tax debts and unpaid player-protection claims.

The proposal would introduce a central, operator- and product-spanning exclusion register covering casino, gaming-machine and online gambling exclusions. It would also set online gambling and gaming-machine deposit limits, with lower limits for customers aged 18 to 26, and create a digital supervisory system to apply a central cross-operator deposit limit.

For land-based casinos, the bill would set the number of concessions at 13 and permit awards in packages. Austria says package awards would be assessed partly by their effect on competitive pressure between casinos and player protection.

The Austrian Parliament’s page for government bill 594 d.B. describes the measure as strengthening player protection and combating illegal online and land-based gambling. It lists the bill as assigned to the Finance Committee, with deliberations not yet started. The proposal therefore remains subject both to the EU notification process and to Austria’s parliamentary procedure.

The next fixed point is 7 December 2026, when the extended standstill ends. Until then, Austria cannot adopt the notified gambling and telecommunications amendments.