The UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport has confirmed a 25% increase in Gambling Commission licence and application fees, effective 1 October 2026. The decision follows a public consultation that ran from 27 January to 30 March of this year.
Fee Structure and Market Adjustments
The revised package applies to operating licences, application submissions, personal licences, corporate control changes and single machine permits. First annual fees will continue at 75% of the standard rate, while supplementary operating licence charges rise by the same 25% margin. Society lottery fees remain frozen to protect funding for charitable causes, and ancillary society lottery licence costs stay at current levels.On-course bookmakers will see their general betting licence fees calculated through a gross gambling yield market share model instead of operating days. According to DCMS, this adjustment will lower costs for 44% of affected operators, with 53% facing increases averaging £22. The department declined to ringfence fees for illegal market enforcement, directing a separate £26 million Treasury allocation over three years toward the regulator’s compliance strategy instead.
The fee adjustment addresses an annual budget shortfall of approximately £4 million at the Gambling Commission. Even with the 25% uplift, the regulator must deliver £8 million in efficiency savings across the next five years to maintain operations. Licence charges remain calculated on a cost-recovery basis.
The January to March consultation received 47 responses from industry operators, suppliers and sector representatives. This feedback prompted the department to discard earlier proposals of 20% and 30% increases alongside a ringfenced black market fee option.