Withdrawals and the law in Austria: monopoly, licences and planned payment blocking

Anyone in Austria who wants to take money out of an online casino sooner or later runs into the question of whether this is allowed at all. The answer depends on the operator. Under § 3 GSpG the right to conduct games of chance is reserved to the federal state, and the act expressly calls this reservation the gambling monopoly. For online casino withdrawals this creates two separate worlds: the licensed win2day offer on one side, casinos with a licence from Curaçao, Kahnawake or Anjouan on the other.

Searches such as „online casino legal österreich“, „welches online casino ist in österreich legal“ and „glücksspielgesetz österreich online casinos“ show how unclear the situation is for many players. In Austrian forums opinions range from the line “because Casino Austria has a monopoly on this business” (da die Casino Austria ein Monopol auf dieses Business haben) to the assumption that only offering games is prohibited, not playing them. Both views are only partly right, because the act, the authority and the supreme court each step in at different points.

The legal position has four layers: the Gambling Act in force (GSpG), statements by the Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF), the case law of the Supreme Court (OGH) and government bill 594 d.B. This GSpG amendment has not been passed. Everything below about payment blocking, website blocking and new deposit limits therefore describes a draft and should be read as planned.

II

The gambling monopoly and win2day

The monopoly under § 3 GSpG is implemented through concessions. § 12a (1) GSpG defines electronic lotteries as games in which people take part via electronic media; an online casino falls under this term. The concession for lotteries, electronic lotteries included, is granted by the Austrian Tax Office (Finanzamt Österreich) under § 14 (1) GSpG. § 14 (4) GSpG limits its term to at most 15 years, and § 14 (6) GSpG rules out further lottery concessions as long as a granted concession remains in force. Since 1.1.2021 supervision of licensed gambling has also been with the Finanzamt Österreich.

According to the BMF, Österreichische Lotterien GmbH is entitled until 30 September 2027 to run electronic lotteries on win2day; the BMF expressly lists online gambling there as the scope of the concession. win2day describes itself as the holder of the only Austrian online gambling licence. In everyday talk players mostly speak of the Casinos Austria monopoly; one forum user puts it this way: “According to internet research, only Win2Day holds the gambling concession in Austria as an online casino.” (Laut Internet Recherchen besitzt in Österreich nur Win2Day als Online Casino die Glücksspiel Konzession.) Legally this is the short version of § 3 and § 14 (6) GSpG.

Searches around „win2day auszahlung“ are almost always about time. In a forum one player says he requested the payout at night and the money was in his account during the day: „in der Nacht die Auszahlung angefordert, am Tag ist das Geld am Konto“. Another recalls earlier rules: “Win2Day pays out on Mondays and Thursdays at customary bank charges.” (Win2Day bezahlt Mo und Do zu Banküblichen Spesen aus.) Later he adds that transfers are now made daily and without fees, and sums up: “so you wait a max. of 3–4 days for the payout.” (man wartet also max. 3-4 Tage auf die Auszahlung.) How processing and crediting compare at the offshore casinos is shown in the overview of withdrawal time by payment method.

For the searches „win2day auszahlung wochenende“, „win2day auszahlung dauerauftrag“ and „win2day auszahlung dauert ewig“ there are no published terms, so the answer is no data. Two points from the forum concern the route of the money: you need a bank account in Austria („Du musst über ein Bankkonto in Österreich verfügen“), and once a request is made, „ist das geld weg und man kann es nicht mehr Stornieren“.

The licence holder also handles limits differently from offshore casinos. By its own account, win2day sets a deposit limit per week up to the age of 26 and per calendar month from the 26th birthday. This is a cap on depositing, not on withdrawing. Which daily, weekly and monthly caps the five compared casinos set on withdrawals is described in the article on withdrawal limits with all values from the terms.

III

What an EU or offshore licence means in Austria

The five compared casinos hold licences from Curaçao, Kahnawake or Anjouan. For Austria the position is clear: according to the BMF, a concession from another EU or EEA state does not entitle anyone to offer games of chance in Austria. The BMF also states that what is otherwise not allowed is prohibited on the internet as well. § 2 (4) GSpG defines prohibited games as games for which no concession or permit under the GSpG exists. This applies all the more to a licence from Curaçao, Kahnawake or Anjouan, since it does not even come from within the EU.

The Austrian system has repeatedly been challenged on the basis of EU law. In 6 Ob 157/25v the OGH held that the Austrian concession system does not breach EU law. In 6 Ob 85/26g the OGH cites the CJEU judgment of 16.4.2026, C-440/23 (European Lotto and Betting).

For withdrawals the civil-law side matters most. Under RS0134919 contracts that breach § 2 (4) GSpG are absolutely void, and under RS0134152 prohibited games do not create a natural obligation. According to settled OGH case law, players can reclaim stakes lost in prohibited gambling. How such a claim is built and which details the court expects is explained on the page on reclaiming losses with the relevant OGH decisions.

Voidness works in both directions, though. Under RS0134919 the operator also has an unjust-enrichment claim to recover winnings it has paid out. In 3 Ob 199/25y the OGH requires, for a conclusive recovery claim, details of the playing period, the total of deposits and the total of withdrawals. What counts is the balance of deposits and withdrawals, not a single loss or a single win.

How this plays out in practice is described by a player from Austria with regard to Malta casinos: “First, many casinos from there no longer pay out” (Erstens zahlen jetzt viele Casinos von dort nicht mehr aus), and secondly “they even sue to get winnings back” (klagen sie sogar Gewinne wieder zurück). The first statement is a forum impression; the second matches the legal principle RS0134919.

The tax question also comes up often, for example as “only Win2Day as an online casino is tax-free” (nur Win2Day als online casino ist steuerfrei). Only the operator side is documented here: § 57 (2) GSpG sets the gambling levy for electronic lotteries at 45 per cent of annual gross gaming revenue, meaning stakes minus winnings paid out. Under § 59 GSpG the debtors are the licence holder or the organiser and intermediary. On income tax for players on online casino winnings there is no data.

IV

Licences of the 5 casinos

None of the five compared casinos holds an Austrian concession. According to their terms or country lists, all five accept players from Austria. The licence details differ by source, so diverging values are shown side by side.

HellSpin states a licence from Kahnawake (KGC, No. 01031), checked by Casino.Guru; AskGamblers and LCB also name Curaçao, and AskGamblers additionally Estonia. The sources also differ on the operator: LUFILIGHT LTD according to Casino.Guru and the Kahnawake register, TechOptions Group B.V. according to AskGamblers, Latcas B.V. and Lufilight Ltd. according to LCB. Austria is active in the operator platform's country list, and the currency is EUR.

Verde Casino works with a licence from the Curaçao Gaming Control Board, licence OGL/2024/686/0183. The operator is Wiraon B.V. (Curaçao, reg. no. 146886), and payment processing is handled by Briantie Limited, based in Cyprus. According to terms section 4.4, Austria is not on the blocked list. Deadlines, limits and verification at this operator are summarised on the page on Verde Casino withdrawals, including the rules for large wins.

Nomini holds a licence from Anjouan (Comoros), licence ALSI-202411077-FI2, according to Casino.Guru and AskGamblers; LCB lists “No license” or, outdated, Curaçao. The operator is Naale Limited according to Casino.Guru, while AskGamblers names Stellar Ltd and LCB the Tranello Group of Companies. According to terms section 2.3, Austria is not on the list of excluded countries, and there is a separate AT version with a German interface and EUR.

Izzi Casino states a licence from the Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA), licence OGL/2024/570/0396, and the operator is Carrer N.V. Austria is not blocked in the operator's country list, and EUR and USD are offered. Starda Casino has a licence from the Curaçao Gaming Control Board, OGL/2024/169/0146; the operator is GALAKTIKA N.V., based at Scharlooweg 39 in Willemstad, Curaçao. Here too, opening an account from Austria is not blocked, and the currencies are EUR and USD.

From the GSpG perspective these differences change little: none of these licences is a concession under § 14 GSpG. What matters most for the player is therefore each casino's terms, because they govern deadlines, limits and checks. Which documents are requested before the first payout and when the check starts is described in the article on verification before a withdrawal for all five operators.

At the licence holder, identity checks are set by law: for electronic lotteries with a not insignificant risk, § 31c (3) GSpG refers to establishing and verifying customer identity under § 6 (1) no. 1 FM-GwG. A forum post says that “W2D works together with the Central Register of Residents” (W2D mit dem Zentralen Melderegiester zusammen arbeitet), meaning age and residence are matched against the central register. At offshore casinos the check follows from the terms alone. If a payout fails at this point or because of another clause, the page on withdrawal declined lists the most common reasons according to casino terms.

V

Taking part from within Austria: § 52 GSpG

The common assumption that only offering games is prohibited falls short. § 52 (1) GSpG provides for administrative fines of up to 60 000 euros, among others for organisers of prohibited games. In addition, § 52 (5) GSpG expressly addresses participants: taking part in electronic lotteries for which no concession has been granted carries a penalty if the stakes are placed from within Austria. The range is up to 7 500 euros for intent, otherwise up to 1 500 euros. According to the BMF, taking part in foreign electronic lotteries from within Austria is not permitted.

Criminal law sits on a different level. The BMF refers to § 168 (2) StGB: the ordinary player remains exempt from criminal court penalties unless playing on a commercial basis. Both apply side by side. Before the criminal courts the casual player is not pursued, while under administrative law § 52 (5) GSpG still provides for a penalty. One forum user states the opposite view briefly: “we have a gambling monopoly in Austria, so you are playing on a prohibited site.” (wir haben in AUT ein Glücksspielmonopol und du spielst daher auf einer verbotenen Seite.)

The role of banks is especially relevant for withdrawals. § 52 (1) GSpG also penalises credit institutions that knowingly forward a player's payment to operators of prohibited games. Players also report consequences on the account side: “If the money is transferred to an Austrian account, the bank can terminate your account contract.” (Wenn das Geld auf ein österreichisches Konto überwiesen wird, kann die Bank deinen Kontovertrag kündigen.) Another asks whether the origin in an unlicensed crypto casino is reason enough on its own. Which routes are open to players from Austria and what applies to bank, card, e-wallet and crypto is shown in the overview of withdrawal methods by method.

Another worry concerns amounts already paid out. A player who had withdrawn about 4.6k writes that he is not sure whether the win could be seized: „bin mir nicht sicher, ob dieser Gewinn eventuell beschlagnahmt werden könnte“. The collected legal norms contain no data on seizure of player winnings.

If a withdrawal gets stuck at the casino itself, this is usually not a GSpG question but one of terms, checks and payment method. What the statuses “pending”, “cancelled” or a blocked account mean according to the terms, and which steps make sense then, is described in detail on the page on withdrawal problems.

VI

Planned: payment blocking and website blocking (RV 594 d.B., draft)

The GSpG amendment is before the Finance Committee of the National Council as government bill 594 d.B.; deliberations have not started and the amendment has not been passed. According to the BMF, it is meant to protect the legal market with payment blocking, blacklisting and website blocking. The BMF uses the present tense in its release, but legally this is a draft. All the points below are therefore planned and do not apply at present.

The core of the draft for withdrawals is the planned § 56e GSpG. It provides for payment blocks („Payment-Blocking“) for prohibited games and bans taking part in payment transactions for prohibited games. Under the draft, payment service providers would have to stop their involvement within three bank working days. This would affect deposits and withdrawals over the payment routes that lead to offshore casinos today.

Players who deposit with prepaid solutions in particular ask which route they can use to get money back later. Whether and how a payout to such a card works, and which alternatives the casinos name for it, is explained on the page on withdrawing to Paysafecard with the rules of the five operators.

The second building block is blocking websites. The planned § 56c GSpG provides for blocking orders against hosting, caching, search engine and internet access services, in other words website blocking. According to the government bill, §§ 56a to 56e are to enter into force at the end of 31 December 2026, subject to a decision by the National Council. Until then the law in force continues to apply.

The draft also contains new deposit limits. Planned are 250 euros per week up to the completed age of 26 and 1 680 euros per month after that. These caps concern depositing, not withdrawing, and they too exist only in the government bill so far.

VII

New online concessions from 2027

According to parliamentary correspondence PK 787/2026, new online concessions are to be awarded from 1.1.2027 and apply from 1.10.2027. The timing follows on from the end of the existing win2day entitlement. This timetable is also subject to the act being passed; the award is planned, not decided.

Only a vote in the National Council would turn payment blocking, website blocking, deposit limits and the new concessions into law in force.

Independently of the amendment, player protection bodies already exist today. A player protection unit has been set up within the BMF under § 1 (4) GSpG, and the BMF lists counselling and treatment facilities for gambling addiction by federal state. The Spielsuchthilfe offers free, confidential and, on request, anonymous counselling throughout Austria.