Denmark

As of 2025-2026, Denmark’s gambling market is licensed by Spillemyndigheden (the Danish Gambling Authority), which sits under the Ministry of Taxation and enforces the Danish Gambling Act. Online sports betting and online casino require licences, and operators must connect to the SAFE data warehouse via Tamper Token and check players against the ROFUS self-exclusion register.

Horse-race betting was liberalised from 1 January 2018 after EC clearance, ending the Danske Spil (Dantoto) monopoly, and is now covered by the standard betting licence — including fixed-odds and pool betting, with a special contribution on stakes on Danish horse races funding the sport (8% at liberalisation, reduced to 6% since 2021). The general minimum gambling age is 18. From 1 January 2025, B2B suppliers of critical gambling software must also hold a DGA licence.

Prediction markets such as Polymarket and Kalshi are a live policy issue: legally their wagers fit Denmark’s broad definition of betting, and while Spillemyndigheden initially said it could not block them unless they targeted the Danish market, Polymarket was among 98 sites blocked in 2026 after a Frederiksberg court ruling of 8 July (Polymarket has appealed).

Denmark is a model for online gambling regulation and licensing. The country had fairly restrictive gambling laws up until 2012 with a state-owned monopoly that controlled all forms of gambling in the country. New legislation eased those restrictions on January 1st, 2012 and the country is now open to competition between local and foreign operators alike.

The Danish betting sites have licenses to provide real money casino games, poker and sports betting. The state still has a monopoly over lotteries and scratch cards, but sports betting — including horse and greyhound race betting since 2018 — casino games and poker are open to licensed competition.

Denmark Betting Sites

Denmark still blacklists unlicensed online betting sites, and the list is no longer small — 870 illegal gambling sites have been blocked since 2012, including 98 in the 2026 round alone. That blocklist is no longer short and keeps growing, so check that a site carries the Danish Gambling Authority's label of approval before you sign up.

Denmark Gambling Laws

The Denmark state-owned lottery corporation Danske Spil had a monopoly over all forms of gambling from 1948 to 2012. On January 1st of 2012, that monopoly ended with the passage of the Act on Gambling that opened the doors for competition from local and foreign operators.

Denmark’s move towards the free market began in 2008 when the Danish Gambling Authority began drawing up legislation to open the Denmark betting market to online gambling operations. Danske Spil pushed back against the new laws on the grounds that it was unfair that online gambling operators would be subject to lower taxes than land-based casinos.

The court case was eventually referred to the European Commission where the European Court of Justice ruled in favor of the Danish Gambling Authority. Thus, the legislation was allowed to stand and the new laws went into effect in 2012.

Operators wishing to enter the Danish betting market may apply for one or both of two license types. One licence covers betting while the other covers online casino games and poker. Operators can base their operations out of Denmark but this is not a requirement. As a result, a number of big-name foreign operators have obtained licenses.

New applicants are subject to an application fee of DKK 343,300 for one licence and a fee of DKK 480,600 if they opt for a combined licence (2026 rates; the fees are adjusted annually). Ongoing yearly license fees are based on each company’s gaming revenue and range from DKK 73,200 to DKK 6,447,500 per year (2026). A licence may be granted for up to five years at a time, after which it must be renewed. Licensed betting and online casino operators pay a gambling duty of 28% of gross gaming revenue on top of ordinary Danish corporate tax.

In 2019, the Danish government approved a new budget calling for a significant tax hike on all online casino and sports betting operators beginning in 2021. Under the new rules, Danish betting sites are subject to a 28% tax on revenue. This is still lower than the land-based gaming tax rate (which starts at 41% and goes up from there), but it still represents a big change of the industry.

Danish poker players were especially pleased with the legislation as it allowed licensed operators to pool Danes with the rest of the world. Legalization efforts in some other countries require betting sites to ring-fence locals which result in significantly smaller player pools.

Unlicensed Danish betting sites still exist and cater to Danes with Danish-language websites and deposit methods that work with Danish kroner. The government has had 870 such sites blocked since 2012 and also has the power to order financial institutions to block transactions to and from blacklisted sites. New sites keep appearing, but when the court orders a block, Danish internet providers enforce it with a DNS blocker, and anyone trying to reach a blocked site is shown a page saying it is illegal and blocked by the Danish Gambling Authority.

Danish Krone Betting Sites

The Danish krone is accepted by all gambling sites with a license to operate in Denmark. The catch is that you won’t be able to place your bets or play poker using kroner. The major international sites stick to euros, British pounds and US dollars for the actual wagering.

You may still deposit and withdraw in DKK. When you make a deposit in any currency other than EUR, UDS or GBP, the betting site will automatically convert your currency over to one of those three primary currencies. You’ll place all your bets in that currency for as long as you keep your account balance with that site.

When you’re ready to withdraw, you can choose a deposit method and then your gambling website will convert back to Danish kroner. As nice as it would be to play in DKK, remember that these sites accept customers from around the world.

The exact list of deposit methods varies from one gambling website to the next, but some of the most common include credit cards, debit cards, Neteller, Skrill, bank transfer and PayPal. You can see which methods your site accepts by logging in and visiting the cashier to make a deposit.

Taxes on Winnings at Denmark Betting Sites

Denmark does not assess any taxes on gambling winnings. No matter how much you win, you are not subject to any taxes on those winnings. However, I do recommend you consult a tax professional for serious advice on how earned income from betting may impact your overall tax liability.