The online betting market in Poland is heavily regulated, yet alongside legal bookmakers, there's a vast gray market – sites offering bets without the required permit from the Polish Minister of Finance. Many players assume that just because a site "has a foreign license," "is Polish," or "pays winnings," its operations are legal. However, none of these circumstances determine a bookmaker's legality in Poland – and, more importantly, simply playing with such an entity may entail liability for the player, not just the organizer.
When does a bookmaker operate legally in Poland?
Pursuant to the Gambling Act of 19 November 2009, organizing betting in Poland requires a permit issued by the Director of the Tax Administration Chamber in Warsaw. The definition of betting is provided in Article 2 of the Act. Any entity that does not hold such a permit is operating illegally in Poland – regardless of its registered office or other documents.
The Ministry of Finance maintains a current list of entities with Polish licenses in its publicly available register of legal bookmakers. This is the first and easiest way to verify this – if a given service is not on this list, it is not operating legally in Poland, regardless of the professionalism of its website.
Will a license from Malta or Curaçao suffice?
No. This is one of the most frequently repeated myths, which the Ministry of Finance explicitly addresses in its announcements. Licenses issued by foreign regulators—the Maltese MGA, the Curaçao office, or other jurisdictions—function for the needs of a given market and do not replace a Polish permit.
The player's fiscal liability – Article 109 of the Penal Code
This is the most important provision from the perspective of the game participant. Pursuant to Article 109 of the Fiscal Penal Code, a person who participates in a gambling game organized or conducted in violation of the provisions of the Gambling Act or the terms of a license or permit is subject to a fine of up to 120 daily rates
It is worth emphasizing two important practical issues:
- The act must be intentional – liability under Article 109 of the Penal Code is borne solely by the person who, at the time of joining the game, was aware (or at least accepted the possibility) that the given service was operating illegally.
- Just taking part is enough – winnings or any other result are not required to commit the act – simply participating in an illegal game is punishable.
Administrative liability – Article 89 of the Gambling Act
Regardless of fiscal criminal liability, the Gambling Act provides for an administrative fine in Article 89, Section 1, Item 6, for participants in gambling games operated without a license, permit, or notification. This penalty is significantly different in nature than the sanction under the Fiscal Penal Code:
- It does not require guilt – unlike Article 109 of the Penal Code, the administrative provision does not examine whether the player knew about the illegality of the service.
- The amount of the penalty is linked to the winnings – in accordance with Article 89, paragraph 4, point 5 of the Act, the penalty for a participant in illegal gaming is 100% of the winnings obtained, not reduced by the amounts of the stakes paid.
Summary
Playing with an illegal bookmaker isn't just a financial risk associated with the lack of winnings. It's also a real legal risk—both under the Fiscal Penal Code (Article 109 of the Fiscal Penal Code, a fine of up to 120 daily bets) and the Gambling Act (Article 89, paragraph 1, item 6, a fine of 100% of the winnings, imposed without a fault finding). No circumstance—a foreign license, a Polish language version of the website, rankings, or the use of a VPN—changes this assessment. The only sure way to avoid these consequences is to exclusively use entities listed on the Ministry of Finance's official list of legal bookmakers.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice
Legal status as of September 8, 2026
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