Payment Processing for Curaçao-Licensed Operators

Under the old system, most Curaçao operators held a sub-licence issued by a private master licence holder rather than by the regulator. For an acquirer, that meant limited regulatory oversight of the merchant it was boarding, and many acquirers declined Curaçao-licensed gambling altogether.

That reputation outlasts the law that created it. Even with a licence issued directly by the CGA, expect an acquirer to ask more questions than it would of an operator licensed in Malta, and to start with lower limits or a reserve. The operators that are accepted are usually the ones whose file answers those questions before they are asked.

• The National Ordinance on Games of Chance (Landsverordening op de kansspelen, LOK) entered into force on 24 December 2024 and replaced the previous offshore gaming ordinance.
• The Gaming Control Board became the Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA), which now licenses B2C operators and B2B suppliers directly. The master licence and sub-licence structure has ended.
• Licensees need real local substance: an office in Curaçao and, during the first four years, at least one full-time key person registered in Curaçao besides the local managing director, rising to three key persons from year five.
• The CGA's AML/CFT policy took effect on 9 January 2025, and a responsible gaming policy followed in April 2025.
• Operators may not offer games on credit or act as an intermediary in providing credit to players.
• Many operators currently hold a provisional licence under the new regime: by mid-December 2025 the CGA had granted 551 B2C and 53 B2B provisional licences.

• A licence issued by the CGA to the same legal entity that will sign the merchant agreement, with its entry on the CGA register. A sub-licence from the old system no longer counts.
• Whether the licence is provisional, and any conditions attached to it.
• Ownership and control: company documents, ultimate beneficial owners and directors, and the key persons who run the business in Curaçao.
• Target markets: the countries you accept players from, and how geo-blocking stops players from markets you do not serve.
• Your AML framework: risk assessment, customer due diligence procedure, sanctions and PEP screening, and the compliance officer responsible.
• Your payment mix: card share, alternative methods, and whether you accept crypto.
• Responsible gaming tools on the live site: age verification, deposit limits and self-exclusion.
• Processing history: recent statements with volume, approval rates, refunds and chargebacks. Without history, expect a smaller starting limit or a reserve.

A Curaçao licence authorises the gaming activity from Curaçao. It does not give you permission to serve countries that regulate online gambling locally, and an acquirer will only process deposits from markets it accepts for your business. Expect a list of permitted and excluded countries to be part of the agreement, and expect it to be checked against where your deposits actually come from.

If part of your traffic comes from markets where you also need a local licence, say so up front. An acquirer that finds out from your transaction data later is far more likely to end the relationship than one that agreed the market list at the start.

Online casinos and sportsbooks are processed under merchant category code 7995. Visa places gambling in Tier 1 of its Visa Integrity Risk Program, the highest-risk category, and Mastercard requires acquirers to register non-face-to-face gambling merchants before processing. Both add work and cost on the acquirer's side, which is why underwriting takes longer for gambling than for ordinary e-commerce.

Processing gambling under any other code to avoid issuer declines is miscoding. It breaches scheme rules and typically ends with the account being terminated.

Curaçao's AML rules for gaming require customer due diligence once a player's transaction reaches NAf 4,000, roughly €2,000. Higher-risk players, such as politically exposed persons or players from high-risk jurisdictions, need enhanced due diligence. Unusual transactions are reported to the Financial Intelligence Unit of Curaçao through its goAML system.

Anonymous payment methods such as prepaid cards are treated as a higher money-laundering risk, and crypto even more so. An acquirer reads your accepted payment methods with exactly that in mind, so be able to explain the controls behind each one.

In June 2026 the CGA published a crypto policy guideline for B2C licensees, with full compliance expected by mid-2027. Licensees may accept crypto for gambling but may not act as an exchange, custodian or virtual asset service provider. Deposits and withdrawals must be screened with blockchain analytics, funds linked to mixers or sanctioned addresses are prohibited, and player, operational and treasury wallets must be kept separate.

For a card acquirer, crypto is a question about your whole risk profile, not just about the crypto itself. Show that the guideline is already built into your process, and keep crypto flows clearly separate from card and bank deposits.

Some card issuers decline gambling transactions outright, and cardholders in the EEA must pass strong customer authentication. Both cut the share of card deposits that succeed, most of all in a player's first session.

• Offer bank transfers and e-wallets next to cards for markets you are permitted to serve, and respect any gambling block a player has set with their bank.
• Run 3-D Secure properly for EEA cards.
• Use a clear statement descriptor with your brand name, so players recognise the charge instead of disputing it.
• Track approval rates by country and by issuer, not as one global number.
• Pay out to the method the player deposited with once due diligence is complete. It keeps third-party funding visible and makes your AML controls easier to explain.

• CGA licence certificate and register entry for the contracting entity.
• Corporate documents, UBO and director identification, and your Curaçao key persons.
• List of target markets and excluded markets, with how each exclusion is enforced.
• AML risk assessment, CDD procedure, sanctions screening and compliance officer details.
• Crypto policy, if you accept crypto.
• Live website with terms, responsible gaming section, age verification and geo-blocking.
• Recent processing statements, if you already process.
• Planned payment methods, average deposit, monthly volume and payout process.

Acquipayer is not a payment provider. We connect Curaçao-licensed operators with payment providers that board gambling businesses with a Curaçao licence, through one online application.

• Add your business details and documents once: licence, company, target markets, volume and payment methods.
• We match your profile with a payment provider that accepts Curaçao-licensed operators and covers your markets.
• Your account is prepared with the provider, and you move on to going live and taking deposits.

• Curaçao Gaming Authority, Online Gaming: the National Ordinance on Games of Chance (LOK), in force 24 December 2024.
• Curaçao Gaming Authority, Local Substance, 10 September 2025.
• Curaçao Gaming Authority, AML/CFT/FP policy (effective 9 January 2025) and Crypto Policy Guideline (June 2026).
• Legal 500, Gambling Law: Curaçao, 2025.
• Visa Integrity Risk Program; Mastercard Security Rules and Procedures, specialty merchant registration.