How to start a betting company in Great Britain
Which licences the Gambling Commission issues, which councils issue, the order, the up-to-16-week window, the fees and the duties a new licensee inherits.
To start a betting company in Great Britain you need an operating licence from the Gambling Commission first, Personal Management Licences for specified management roles and, for a shop or track, a premises licence from the local licensing authority. A betting application can take up to 16 weeks, depending on complexity.
This is an evergreen how-to on how to start a betting company, built from the regulator’s own pages. This desk read the Commission’s betting sector page, its fee page for the remote general betting standard (real events) licence, its operating-licence application page and its record of code changes on 15 October 2026. Fees and code wording are as of that read.
Do you need a licence to start a betting company?
Yes. The sector page puts the split in one sentence: “We issue operating licences and personal licences; premises licences are issued by local licensing authorities.”
| Licence | Issued by | Who needs it |
|---|---|---|
| Operating licence | Gambling Commission | Any business providing betting, remote or non-remote |
| Personal Management Licence | Gambling Commission | People in specified management roles; small-scale applicants submit an Annex A personal declaration form instead |
| Premises licence | Local licensing authority where the premises is | Betting in a non-remote setting, such as a shop or track |
Non-remote options cover betting shops and tracks, on-course bookmaking and pool betting. Remote options include betting host licences for real or virtual events, a betting intermediary licence (a betting exchange) and a limited licence for betting taken only by telephone or email. Telephone betting with gross gambling yield of £250,000 or more needs the remote general betting standard (real events) licence.
How to start a betting company: in what order do you apply?
The operating licence comes first. The sector page is explicit: “You will need to apply for an operating licence, before you apply for a premises licence from the local licensing authority.” The application fee is calculated from the activities chosen and paid by card on submission, and the first annual fee falls due 30 days after the licence is issued.
How long does a Gambling Commission licence application take?
Up to 16 weeks, “depending on the complexity of your business”, per the sector page.
What does the licence cost?
A worked example at the smallest band, F1 (annual gross gambling yield under £250,000), of the remote general betting standard (real events) licence: the application fee is £6,535 and the annual fee £5,937. The first annual fee is reduced by 25 percent, to £4,452.75 by this desk’s arithmetic, so year one costs £10,987.75 in Commission fees.
What obligations does a new licensee inherit?
Three code changes on the Commission’s record of LCCP changes shape day one:
- GAMSTOP. From 1 April 2024, SR Code 3.5.5 extended the requirement to participate in the GAMSTOP multi-operator self-exclusion scheme to all gambling businesses that make and accept bets by telephone and email. See the Holland Park Leisure fine.
- ADR. Since 6 April 2026, SR Code 6.1.1(a) points to an ADR provider accredited under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 procedure, and the reference to the Commission’s own list of approved ADR providers was removed. See our review of complaints and ADR.
- Personal licences. From 29 November 2024, Operating Licence Code 1.2.1 clarified and extended the management roles expected to hold a Personal Management Licence.
Deposit limits are a separate duty, covered in our explainer on whether bookmakers must ask you to set a limit.
Frequently asked questions
Do you need a licence to start a betting company?
Yes. Providing betting facilities in Great Britain needs an operating licence from the Gambling Commission, whether for a shop, an on-course pitch, a website or an exchange. Specified management roles need Personal Management Licences, and a betting shop also needs a premises licence from the local licensing authority, applied for after the operating licence.
How long does it take to get a gambling licence in the UK?
The Commission’s betting sector page says a betting application can take up to 16 weeks to process, depending on the complexity of the business. That is a ceiling, not a promise. A shop operator then applies separately to the local licensing authority for the premises licence, whose timetable this desk did not read.
How much does it cost to start a betting company in the UK?
Licence fees alone, at the smallest band of the remote general betting standard (real events) licence, are £6,535 to apply and £5,937 a year, with the first annual fee cut by 25 percent. That makes £10,987.75 payable to the Commission in year one. Staff, software, premises and duty are separate costs this desk did not price.
Bet Bulletin reports on the UKGC-licensed market; it does not advise on whether to start, fund or join a gambling business, and this piece names no operator as licensed. Gambling is for adults aged 18 and over. Support is available through GambleAware at begambleaware.org.