The Curacao Gaming Authority offers licenses to arguably more online casinos than any other licensing body. It is not just casinos which prosper from being licensed by the Curacao Gambling Authority, either. This commission covers sportsbooks, poker sites, bingo rooms, many top betting domains. What does being authorised out of Curacao offer casinos, though, and why might you consider playing at a gambling portal which is licensed out of the tiny southern Caribbean island? Allow us to explain…
Who Is the Curacao Gambling Authority?
The Curacao Gambling Authority first made their debut in 1996 and was one of the first bodies to realise the internet gambling market’s potential. While many national licensing authorities have sprung up since, not least the UK Gambling Commission and the Malta Gaming Authority, two of the better-known ones; few tend to be as international as the CGA.
This willingness to license international casinos, and those that prefer to cater to players in specific countries is one reason why sites favour such a license. A license out of Curacao offers significantly more flexibility than you would get with a typical UKGC license.
Known across the world as “offshore casinos”, the domains which are licensed out of Curacao used to get a bad reputation. Unregulated was one of the nasty words bandied around about these casinos. However, a lot has changed over the last ten years, and Curacao has cemented itself as a reputable licensing authority, as you will see.
Are Curacao Licensed Casinos Safe?
The big question is, are Curacao licensed casinos safe? Irrespective of what you may have heard in the past, Curacao licensed casinos are amongst the safest around. National governments do not tend to like Curacao licensed betting sites, as they do not reap the same tax boost that they would get from a casino licensed by their own national gambling commission.
For instance, casinos pay a corporate tax of just 2% on their net profit and nothing on income from wagers. This makes the Curacao license one of the cheapest to obtain, and that is naturally appealing to casino operators, particularly smaller ones which are not yet established in the industry. At the same time, Curacao offers more relaxing licensing and auditing, without overzealous regulation. Nonetheless, the amount of regulation and auditing done is more than enough to ensure that fair play and secure gaming practices are adhered to. One of two dodgy casinos will always slip through the net, but you only need to look at the fines issued by the MGA and UKGC to national and European casinos to see that they, too, have the odd bad casino in their midst.
A license issued by the CGA may also cover multiple gambling enterprises. For instance, one license is all it takes to offer online and live casino games, sports betting, poker, and bingo games, all under one roof. This makes it easier for domains to expand their services. The fact that Curacao licenses are not tied to one specific country also ensures that those casinos licensed by them can cater to players near enough anywhere.
Clearing Up the Myths
Curacao licensed casinos are not, despite what you may have heard, free of regulation. They are audited and checked for fair play. They still need to be certified, and most will also offer responsible gambling tools and practices which protect against money laundering and under-age gambling. These are practices you would expect to see in any reputable licensing body.
For instance, Curacao licensed casinos must adhere to the following rules:
- They must keep all financial documentation on player deposits. They are audited to ensure that their businesses are legal and that everything is squeaky clean. They must also publish their payouts, to ensure that fair play is adhered to.
- Curacao casinos must provide full access to their systems, games, back-ends, and hand over transaction logs to independent, third-party auditors, who will verify that a casino maintains fair play standards.
- They must also refrain from unethical marketing and advertising. While they are freer than many UKGC and MGA casinos to advertise gambling, there are still a set of rules that they must stick to, or risk losing their e-gambling license.
- Curacao casinos must also provide fraud prevention services, such as KYC processes to ensure that everything is legal and that players are who they claim to be.
Available Games at Curacao Online Casinos
The array of available games at Curacao online casinos has grown exponentially over the last few years. You do not have to go that far back to find a time when RTG, Rival Gaming and BetSoft Gaming were practically the only developers offering titles at Curacao casinos. That has all changed now.
You can now expect to see Curacao casinos offering thousands of games, many of which come from reputable and popular developers like NetEnt, Microgaming, Pragmatic Play, Yggdrasil and Play ‘n Go. You can even find live dealer games from the likes of Evolution Gaming at Curacao casinos. In short, the selection of games you can play is plentiful at Curacao betting sites.
How Are the Bonuses at Casinos Licensed Out of Curacao?
Playing at a Curacao licensed casino is ideal if you like bonuses. The offers and deals you can claim tend to be more extensive than those at nationally certified casinos, on account of there being a touch less regulation. You will still get fair and transparent terms and conditions, though, which can be viewed at any time.
Many countries have cut down on the array of promos that players can claim, in a bid to decrease the lure of online gambling. As Curacao licenses are predominantly served to more international domains, this is not as big of a problem. You can find plenty of no deposit, match deposit and loyalty deals.
Which Payment Methods Can I Use at Curacao Casinos?
Another perk of opting to play at Curacao online casinos is that you will likely find a greater array of payment methods and currencies at your disposal. Again, as these tend to be international, offshore casinos, they try to cater to many players. If you want to experiment with different currencies, and possibly even cryptocurrencies (at some casinos), a Curacao licensed domain could be the way to go.
Some locally licensed casinos tend to shirk away from offering e-wallet payment methods, such as Neteller, Skrill, PayPal, Bitcoin and plenty of others. By contrast, most Curacao online casinos are more than happy to facilitate transactions using these easy, free, and widespread payment methods. This is advantageous for players who want to get hold of their winnings speedily, too, as e-wallets are amongst the fastest casino payment options around.
Who Can Play at Curacao Licensed Casinos?
In theory, any player (save for those living in the Netherlands Antilles) can play at a Curacao online casino. In countries where gambling is strictly regulated, and freedom of the internet is not as widely available, some local ISPs (internet service providers) may attempt to blacklist any non-locally licensed sites. However, for players in many countries, this will not be an issue. Curacao casinos are required to be transparent, so you can always head to the terms and conditions page at a casino and check to see if they accept players from your country.
Where Can I Find the Best Curacao Online Casinos to Play At?
You will not have to look extremely hard to find the best Curacao online casinos. You are already here. We have put together a top selection of the best, and most reputable Curacao licensed casinos for you on this page. Read our reviews, and you will discover everything you want to know about these Curacao casinos, including what payment methods and support they offer, the top security features they carry, the games they support, and which types of juicy bonuses await you.
If you want to play at an open, friendly, and flexible site, you cannot go far wrong with the Curacao online casinos which feature right here.
