Norway proposes online poker with loss caps to tackle unregulated play

Norway has proposed allowing state-owned Norsk Tipping to offer online poker, seeking to bring players using unregulated overseas sites into its domestic gambling system.

The Ministry of Culture and Equality launched its consultation on 29 September, proposing tournament poker and cash games alongside limits on losses, stakes and simultaneous tables. The move would expand the state operator’s existing remit rather than introduce commercial licensing. Responses are due by 29 November 2026, with the government seeking to let Norsk Tipping begin developing a regulated alternative quickly.

A domestic alternative for existing players

The government says the absence of a legal Norwegian online poker product leaves demand being met by foreign operators outside its regulatory framework.

A University of Bergen survey conducted in 2022 estimated that nearly 90,000 Norwegians played online poker annually. Norsk Tipping puts the current annual figure between 100,000 and 150,000, according to the ministry’s announcement.

Culture and equality minister Lubna Jaffery presented the proposal as a consumer-protection measure. In translation, she said:

“We know that many Norwegians play online poker.” — Lubna Jaffery, Norway’s culture and equality minister

Her argument is that a supervised domestic service would offer safer conditions than unregulated commercial alternatives. That policy depends on players choosing the new product; permission to launch alone would not demonstrate that overseas activity had declined.

Loss limits and restrictions on simultaneous play

The proposed poker loss ceiling is NOK5,000 per day and NOK10,000 per month. Norsk Tipping’s own stricter limit for players under 20, currently NOK2,000 monthly, would also be relevant.

The consultation sets out the following safeguards:

Tournament players would take a five-minute break after each hour. Cash-game players would instead be able to set daily time limits, with dedicated monitoring expected to address that format’s risks.

The ministry also suggests a 15-minute pause when switching between poker and online casino games. It is presented as an example of a possible barrier against chasing losses across products, rather than a final rule already in force. 

Advertising restrictions remain under consideration

The consultationasks whether online poker advertising should be prohibited or allowed only on a very limited basis.

This creates a practical tension: the service needs to reach existing poker players without encouraging people who would otherwise avoid gambling to start. The ministry identifies younger people as a particular concern.

The consultation also proposes proactive reporting of serious incidents and operational failures by major gambling providers, including Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto. These reporting changes extend beyond the proposed poker service.

What the proposal means for UK operators

Norway’s plan would preserve its monopoly model. It would not create a new licensing route for British poker brands or make a UK licence sufficient to target Norwegian customers. 

That differs from Great Britain, where the Gambling Commission’s remote casino operating licence covers online poker alongside other casino games.

For the wider industry, the proposal offers a test of whether adding a tightly controlled product can bring existing demand into a regulated system. The immediate next step is the consultation, rather than a confirmed launch: the proposed limits, advertising rules and operational arrangements still need to be settled.