The beautiful nation of Vanuatu stretches across 1,300km of the South Pacific Ocean. Over 80 individual islands make it up and each falls in a north-to-south line below the Solomon Islands. Vanuatu lies to the east of Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, and west of Fiji. Its population of 267,000 is spread over the 65 islands of the Y-shaped archipelago.

Formerly the jointly administered Anglo-French condominium of the New Hebrides, Vanuatu achieved independence in 1980. The name Vanuatu means “Our Land Forever” in many of the locally used Melanesian languages. The capital, largest city, and commercial center is Port-Vila. Vanuatu can be easily reached from Australia. Direct flights from the east coast take under 5 hours.

Major airports are located near Port-Vila, near Luganville on Espiritu Santo, and on the northwest side of Tanna. Many smaller airfields are scattered throughout the islands. Since independence, Vanuatu’s tourism and offshore financial services have emerged as the largest earners of foreign income. The growing lucre generated by tourism has attracted the attention of foreign companies seeking to develop the land into resorts and other attractions.

The sale of commercial fishing rights is another important source of foreign revenue, and there is extensive small-scale fishing for local consumption. Vanuatu has established over a long period of time, a secure financial infrastructure focused on a low tax regime. Vanuatu can be considered a 5-star financial and commercial investment center.

Gaming operators are looking for stable environments to conduct business. The political stability of Vanuatu combined with a sophisticated infrastructure and a minimal tax regime make Vanuatu an ideal location for the online gaming industry. Vanuatu says it aims to attract strong and well-positioned internet gaming operators who can, together with the Government, be a driving force to the sensible legitimization of internet gaming worldwide.

The government of Vanuatu offers casino operators, software, and service providers in the gambling industry, with a gambling license that allows gambling operators to conduct business related to casino, lotto, and other gaming-related activities. Vanuatu Gambling License is one of the most popular licenses for online casinos worldwide.

The most important legislative documents regulating gambling in the country are the Lotteries Act of 1989, the Casino Control Act of 1993, and the Interactive Gaming Act of 2000. Vanuatu was one of the first countries in the world to regulate online gambling and is working hard to become one of the world’s most trusted issuers of interactive gaming licenses. Since the Interactive Gaming Act is in operation since 2000, Vanuatuan gamblers have a great variety of trusted and high-quality online casinos to choose from, which were licensed in the country.

Vanuatu’s infrastructure offers a wide array of services for online gaming operators and providers, such as high-capacity private racks, private cloud services, custom dedicated servers amidst other hosting options.

Vanuatu has long been recognized as one of the preferred locations for Online Gambling operators to base their operations. This success has been due to a combination of factors, such as a progressive legislative system, political stability, first-rate telecommunications facilities, and a well established financial services industry. A wide range of gambling sites operates out of Vanuatu including sports betting, casino sites, poker, bingo, and more.

In Vanuatu, betting is regulated and overseen by the Betting Control Act of 1993. Licenses are handed out by the authorities and licensees must meet the standards set in the Act. The results of these regulatory acts are rigorous rules which make gambling safe and the Vanuatu license more reputable. The Director of Customs and Inland Revenue is the Regulator under the Act.

The Regulator is assisted by Global Gaming Regulators Limited, the appointed government consultant, in administering the Act. Global Gaming Regulators are the official appointee of the Vanuatu Government with respect to Interactive Gaming within the Republic of Vanuatu. As such Global Gaming Regulators are authorized to represent and act on behalf of the Regulator and execute the roles and responsibilities required under the Interactive Gaming Act (2000) on behalf of the Director of Customs and Inland Revenue in his capacity as Regulator.

Consumers can be safe in the knowledge that companies regulated in this jurisdiction will have undergone stringent testing and that their information will be kept private and confidential. Monthly reporting is requested to make sure that companies remain trustworthy and that player funds are managed correctly. National Anti-Money Laundering Regulations, Unusual Transactions Act, Counter-Terrorism Financing Regulations and Know Your Customer Policies are applicable to all Vanuatu Gambling Companies.

As part of its duties, the Local Regulatory Authority monitors gaming businesses and services to ensure that they operate according to the standards and regulations of the Government of Vanuatu. Compliance audits are conducted on a regular basis to ensure that the terms of the license are met. Licensees must maintain a complete audit trail for each player making a deposit with an operator, including financial transactions and individual bets.

Gaming systems, including back-end software logs, must be made available to third-party auditors. Gaming rules, results of games, and pay-outs are to be made available to the Local Regulatory Authority for five years.

Let’s talk more about the benefits by understanding the reasons why obtaining a Vanuatu igaming license may be ideal for you.

When starting a Vanuatu Online Gambling Business, first of all, it’s important to think about one of the most essential procedures, that is company registration and acquisition of the license. Vanuatu Gambling License gives many excellent opportunities to each licensee and makes their business profitable.

Once approved, operators must pay an interactive gaming tax of 2.5% on gross monthly earnings and a 0.1% turnover tax on fixed-odds betting. No other taxes or charges are levied on licensees or licensee companies. Licensed Gambling companies in Vanuatu may qualify for tax-exempt status, meaning they do not have to pay any income tax. VAT is not payable on interactive gaming revenues regardless if onshore or offshore. VAT paid on business inputs by licensees is refundable.

Vanuatu has political stability, first-rate telecommunications facilities, and a well-established financial services industry. In addition, it maintains an attractive environment for international online gaming companies. Vanuatu Gambling License is recognized by many countries all over the world, so you will have a large potential customer base after getting it.

In order to obtain a Vanuatu Gambling License, the decision to approve the application is at the discretion of the Local Regulatory Authority, based on the documentation submitted by our experts. The Vanuatu issues one Online Gambling license which covers all gaming operations, igaming service providers, network operators, affiliates, white-label operators, and igaming software suppliers.

With this Vanuatu Gambling License, online gaming companies can operate legally. Each applicant undergoes a thorough assessment, ensuring that licenses are only awarded to those applicants who are able to demonstrate such a financial standing and integrity as to preserve the international reputation of Vanuatu as an online gambling hub.

In case something does not correspond to requirements, the Local Regulatory Authority will provide a checklist of necessary improvements. A Vanuatu Gambling License covers all forms of online gambling including Casino, eSports, Poker, Sports Betting, Lotto, Bingo, Horseracing, Bitcoin Casino, Fantasy Sports, Games of Skill, and other gaming-related activities without being required to obtain one license for each individual product. Vanuatu Gambling License enables companies to operate all over the world.

• Residence in Vanuatu. Operators wishing to offer their services to Vanuatu gamblers must be residents of Vanuatu and they must obtain the relevant licenses and authorizations from the Vanuatu Gambling Companies. In case the company is a foreign entity, it must appoint a local director, whose domicile is in Vanuatu, to deal with the competent authorities in the country and have the power to conclude contracts on its behalf
• Opening of a bank account with one of the banks in Vanuatu where the operator would need to deposit the players’ money. Licensed remote gaming operators will only be allowed to make payments to players through the payment processors that have been approved by the Vanuatu Gambling Authority
• Requirements regarding the minimum share capital of the company depending on the type of game it offers
• A monthly declaration giving details regarding income from games of change as well as the fees due will have to be submitted to the Vanuatu Gambling Authority on a standard form
• Compliance with the principles regarding the protection of minors as well as with the content of the promotional material used and the locations where they can be displayed