Anjouan vs Curaçao Gaming Licence in 2026: Cost, Speed and Which One Operators Are Actually Choosing
For ten years the answer was automatic. If you were launching an online casino outside the regulated majors, you got a Curaçao sub-licence, you paid somewhere between €15,000 and €25,000, and you were live in a month.
That option no longer exists. Curaçao's master licences expired in early 2025, sub-licensing ended with them, and the replacement regime is a different product at a different price. Here is the 2026 comparison, without the hedging.
The headline numbers
| Anjouan sub-licence | Anjouan direct | Curaçao (LOK/CGA) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Application fee | None | €17,828 (non-refundable) | €4,592 (non-refundable) |
| Annual licence fee | Included | €17,828 | €47,450 (B2C) |
| Realistic year-one total | €9,000 | €25,000–€38,000 | €70,000–€110,000 |
| Ongoing annual | €9,000 | €22,000–€30,000 | €50,000–€70,000 |
| Time to live | 2–4 weeks | 6–14 weeks | 3–5 months |
| GGR tax | 0% | 0% | 0% (fixed fee model) |
| Resident director required | No | No | Yes |
| Physical office required | No | No | Phasing in 2028–29 |
| Compliance Officer + MLRO | Framework provided | Recommended | Mandatory, separate persons |
| Sub-licensing available | Yes | — | No — abolished |
The Curaçao annual fee of €47,450 splits into €24,490 to the National Treasury and €22,960 as the CGA supervisory levy. B2B suppliers pay €24,490. Neither figure includes your local director, your compliance staffing, your legal fees or your corporate maintenance.
What changed in Curaçao, and why it matters
The National Ordinance on Games of Chance (LOK) replaced a system that had been criticised for two decades. Under the old model, four master licence holders issued an effectively unlimited number of sub-licences with minimal oversight. Regulators in the EU and elsewhere increasingly treated a Curaçao licence as no licence at all.
The new regime addresses that. The Curaçao Gaming Authority now licenses operators directly, with:
- Direct application to and supervision by the CGA
- A mandatory local managing director from the moment the licence is granted
- A Compliance Officer and an MLRO, who cannot be the same person as the CEO or operational director
- A physical office requirement phasing in through 2028–29
- Escalating key-person requirements over the same period
- A two-phase review process of roughly eight weeks each, each extendable by four weeks
This is a genuine regulatory upgrade. It is also, unambiguously, a different market segment. Curaçao in 2026 competes with Malta and the Isle of Man on substance and cost, not with Anjouan on speed and price.
Where Anjouan wins
Cost. The gap is not marginal. A Curaçao LOK licence costs roughly eight to twelve times what an Anjouan sub-licence costs, every year, forever. For an operator running a single brand at moderate volume, that difference is the entire year-one marketing budget.
Speed. Two to four weeks against three to five months. In a market where a well-executed brand can be profitable inside a quarter, four extra months of not being live is not an administrative inconvenience — it is a full quarter of revenue you never earn.
Substance. Anjouan requires no resident director, no local office, no separately staffed compliance function in-jurisdiction. For a five-person team, hiring a resident managing director in Willemstad is not a line item, it is a business model change.
Sub-licensing still exists. This is the decisive point for a large group of operators. The structure that made Curaçao workable for small and mid-size operators — shelter under an established licence, launch fast, prove the brand, upgrade later — is available in Anjouan today and is not available in Curaçao at any price.
Where Curaçao still wins
Being fair about this matters, because getting it wrong costs real money.
Recognition. Curaçao has twenty years of name recognition. Some affiliates, some B2B suppliers and some payment partners still weight it more heavily, and the LOK reforms have improved rather than damaged that standing.
Regulatory trajectory. The CGA is building toward genuine supervisory credibility. If your five-year plan involves selling the business to a listed acquirer, or moving into regulated markets, a licence from a regulator with real supervisory teeth is worth something on the balance sheet.
Direct licence in your own name. Every Curaçao licence is now issued directly to the operating entity. If a partner, investor or acquirer needs a certificate naming your company, Curaçao delivers it and a sub-licence does not.
Comparing the two for a live brand? We will model your year-one and year-three cost on both jurisdictions against your actual volumes. Book a demo →
Payment processing: essentially identical
Operators sometimes assume the higher Curaçao price buys better payment access. It does not, or at least not to a degree that justifies the difference.
Neither licence gets you Stripe, PayPal, or a direct Visa/Mastercard acquiring relationship. Both are treated as offshore high-risk by the card schemes. Both operate primarily on crypto rails, specialist high-risk PSPs at 8–12% merchant fees, and local payment methods in target markets.
Curaçao's improved supervision may eventually shift this. As of 2026 it has not, materially. If your payment stack is the deciding factor, the honest conclusion is that neither licence solves it and you should be building crypto-first regardless.
Restricted markets: broadly the same
Both regimes exclude the markets that regulate their own gambling: the US, UK, France, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, Australia and Austria, plus each jurisdiction's own territory and all FATF-blacklisted countries.
Neither licence gives you access to a regulated market. If Brazil, Ontario, or a specific European market is central to your plan, you need that market's own licence, and the offshore licence is a base of operations rather than a route in.
Who should choose what
Choose an Anjouan sub-licence if you are:
- Launching a first brand and want capital in acquisition rather than compliance
- Testing a market, vertical or product before committing
- Migrating from an expired Curaçao sub-licence and unwilling to pay eight times more for the same operational reality
- An affiliate moving into operating
- A lean team without the bandwidth to run a corporate compliance calendar
Choose an Anjouan direct licence if you are:
- Established, profitable, and need the certificate in your own entity's name
- A B2B supplier whose customers will ask to see it
- Planning a raise or an exit in the next two to three years
Choose Curaçao if you are:
- Large enough that €70,000–€110,000 in year one is immaterial
- Building toward regulated-market entry and want the supervisory track record
- Facing a specific commercial partner who requires a CGA licence by name
The migration path most operators are taking
The pattern we see repeatedly: an operator whose Curaçao sub-licence expired in 2025 prices the LOK route, finds it is eight to twelve times their previous cost with a resident director attached, and moves to Anjouan. Most start on a sub-licence, and a meaningful share upgrade to a direct Anjouan licence in year two once revenue justifies it.
That progression — sub-licence, prove the brand, upgrade — is the same one that built most of the offshore market over the last decade. The jurisdiction changed. The logic did not.
Frequently asked questions
Is Anjouan cheaper than Curaçao? Substantially. An Anjouan sub-licence costs €9,000 per year against €70,000–€110,000 for a Curaçao LOK licence in year one. Even a direct Anjouan licence at €25,000–€38,000 is roughly a third of the Curaçao cost.
Can I still get a Curaçao sub-licence? No. All Curaçao master licences expired in early 2025 and the CGA now issues licences directly only. Sub-licensing under the Curaçao regime no longer exists.
Is a Curaçao licence more respected than an Anjouan one? Somewhat, with certain B2B partners and affiliates, and the LOK reforms have strengthened that. In practical operational terms — game supply, aggregator onboarding, payment access — the difference is small.
Which licence is faster? Anjouan, decisively. A sub-licence takes 2–4 weeks and a direct licence 6–14 weeks, against 3–5 months for Curaçao.
Do I need a local director for an Anjouan licence? No. Curaçao requires a resident managing director from the moment the licence is granted. Anjouan does not.
Can I hold both? Yes, and larger groups do — an Anjouan licence for speed and cost on new brands, Curaçao or Malta for flagship properties. There is no conflict.
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Related reading: Anjouan Gaming Licence Cost in 2026: Full Fee Breakdown · How to Get an Anjouan Gaming Licence · Your Curaçao Sub-Licence Expired — What Now?
General information, not legal advice. Confirm current fees and requirements with a licensed advisor.