BELGIUM Law and Practice Contributed by: Pieter Paepe and Christoph de Preter, EDSON
• provide details about advertising policy; and • provide proof that there are no tax debts. The applicant is also responsible for a permanent data connection between the website and the Gam- ing Commission. The second Royal Decree states that applications for an online licence must be submitted to the Gaming Commission either by registered post or electronically. It further specifies that the application must indicate “where the website will be managed”. This means that the Gaming Commission needs to be informed of the exact location in Belgium where the servers used to operate the website will be located. 4.7 Application Timing The Gaming Commission is required to make a deci- sion on applications for A, B, F1, F1P, and E licences within six months of receiving the application or the submission of a complete application file. Similarly, applications for an online licence must also be pro- cessed within six months from the date the application is submitted. 4.8 Application Fees There are no fees associated with submitting a licence application; however, a guarantee deposit is required. This deposit must be paid to the Deposits and Con- signments Fund ( Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations , or CDC). Guarantee deposits are necessary for most licences and vary in amount: EUR250,000 for an A or A+ licence, EUR75,000 for a B, B+, or F1+ licence, and EUR10,000 for an F1 licence. 4.9 Ongoing Annual Fees Additionally, licence holders are required to pay an annual fee, the exact amount of which is determined Personnel exercising a professional activity in class I, II or IV gaming establishments are required to hold a D licence. There is no other licencing requirement for individuals within business to be personally licensed. However, during the licence application procedure, the Gaming Commission verifies whether or not the members of the management of the licence applicant each year by Royal Decree. 4.10 Personal Licensing
have a criminal record. All changes in the manage- ment of a licence holder must also be notified to the Gaming Commission.
5. Land-Based Gambling 5.1 Premises Licensing
A “casino” (class I gaming establishment) is defined as an establishment “in which are operated games of chance, whether or not automatic, that are author- ised by the King and in which there are at the same time organised sociocultural activities, such as shows, exhibitions, congresses and hotel and catering activi- ties”. Only nine casinos are allowed on Belgian terri- tory. The Gaming Act lists the territories of the com- munes/cities where a casino can be operated as Blankenberge, Chaudfontaine, Dinant, Knokke-Heist, Middelkerke, Namen, Oostende, Spa and Brussels. The casino must conclude a concession agreement with the council of the municipality or city. A Royal Decree of 3 December 2006 contains the operating rules and additional requirements concern- ing the supervision and control of games of chance that can be offered in class I gaming establishments. A Royal Decree of 15 December 2004 provides that class I (and II) gaming establishments must have an access register. A Royal Decree of 23 May 2003 lays down the rules for the supervision and control of the games of chance offered in casinos, including control through an IT system. All casinos must have a local area network (LAN) that is connected to the LAN of the Gaming Commission. “Gaming arcades” (class II gaming establishments) are “establishments in which only games of chance authorised by the King are operated”. Gaming arcades may not be located in the vicinity of hospitals, pris- ons, schools, ceremonial places and places where young people regularly meet. The operating rules for the automatic games of chance that can be offered in class II gaming establishments are laid out in a Royal Decree of 8 April 2003. A Royal Decree of 23 May 2003 sets out the rules for supervising and control- ling the games of chance offered in class II gaming establishments. This includes the control through an IT system, whereby the class II gaming establishment
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