Is online gambling legal in Eritrea?

No law addresses it. There is no gambling regulator or licence, the 2015 Penal Code has no gambling offence, and the ESAAMLG evaluation of 2025 says casinos are prohibited by law, relying on provisions that appear to have been repealed or replaced. The status of online gambling is therefore unsettled, and no operator can be licensed.

Is there a gambling regulator or licensing authority?

No. Business licences are issued by the Ministry of Trade and Industry under the business licensing proclamation, whose licence classes do not include gambling, and the ESAAMLG reports that casino activities are excluded.

Can gambling debts or winnings be enforced in court?

Generally not. Under Civil Code art. 2709 games and wagers give rise to no valid claim for payment, though money paid voluntarily and without fraud cannot be recovered. Art. 2710 makes exceptions for stock exchange speculation, wagers connected with sporting activities (which the court may reduce) and lotteries or wagering authorised by the government.

Does Eritrea have a lottery?

The Civil Code recognises lotteries authorised by the government, and the Ministry of Information reported in July 2014 that the Rymoc Lottery had paid out an 8 million nakfa special lottery linked to the Youth Festival. No law establishing it and no online lottery were found.

Could Eritrean residents pay an offshore operator?

In practice hardly at all. The ESAAMLG found no cards, ATMs or internet banking, outward remittances are prohibited by law except with government approval, cash withdrawals are capped at 5,000 nakfa a month for individuals, and no virtual asset activity exists.

Is Eritrea on the FATF grey list?

No. It was on neither FATF list published on 19 June 2026, although the ESAAMLG evaluation of July 2025 found low effectiveness across all eleven outcomes and no AML supervision of non-financial businesses.

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Sovereign state

Africa

ISO ER

Eritrea: gambling regulation and licensing

Online sports bettingNot yet verified
Online casinoNot yet verified
Online pokerNot yet verified
Lottery and iLotteryNot yet verified
Land-based (reference)Prohibited

Regulator: Not yet verified
Headline tax: Not yet verified
Licence required: Not yet verified
Last verified: 24 Sept 2026

Summary

Eritrea has no gambling regulator, no gambling statute and no licensing regime for any form of gambling, online or land-based. Since 1998 the country has been under a state of emergency with the Constitution and Parliament suspended, and law is made by proclamation. The Penal Code of 2015, which repealed the Transitional Penal Code inherited from the Ethiopian Penal Code of 1957, contains no offence of gambling, betting or running a lottery. The Civil Code of 2015 gives games and wagers no valid claim for payment (art. 2709), except stock exchange speculation, wagers connected with sporting activities and any lottery or wagering authorised by the government (art. 2710). The ESAAMLG mutual evaluation adopted in July 2025 states that casinos are prohibited by law and that none operated at its on-site visit in 2024. It cites the 1995 business licensing proclamation and article 744 of the 1957 Penal Code, but the second was repealed in 2015 and the licence classes in the 2002 amending proclamation do not mention casinos, so the legal basis is uncertain. The Ministry of Information reported in July 2014 that the Rymoc Lottery had paid out a special lottery of 8 million nakfa linked to the 6th Youth Festival. No law addresses online gambling, and no gambling tax or advertising rule was found. Payments are the practical barrier: the financial sector is state-owned, with no cards, ATMs or internet banking, outward remittances are prohibited by law, and a 2015 Bank of Eritrea directive caps individual cash withdrawals at 5,000 nakfa a month. No gambling bill or consultation has been published.

Common pitfalls

Reading the ESAAMLG statement that casinos are prohibited as resting on a current penal offence: the article it cites, art. 744 of the 1957 Penal Code, was repealed with the Transitional Penal Code in 2015. Equally, the absence of a gambling offence in the 2015 Penal Code does not make gambling a licensable activity: there is no gambling licence, and the authorities treat casinos as not permitted. Web guides describing a national gambling proclamation or a licensing authority for Eritrea: none was found in the codes or the official evaluation.

Key facts

Regulator: Not yet verified
Regulator type: No dedicated regulator
Headline tax: Not yet verified
Licence required: Not yet verified
Minimum age: Not yet verified
Tax base: Not yet verified

Legal framework

Primary statutes

Penal Code of the State of Eritrea 2015
Year
2015
In force
Yes
Summary
Issued in 2015 (the Minister of Justice's foreword is dated 15 May 2015) and in force on publication in the Gazette of Eritrean Laws (art. 3). Art. 1 repeals and replaces the Transitional Penal Code of Eritrea. The Code creates no offence of gambling, betting, gaming or running a lottery: none appears anywhere in its special part (arts. 107 to 396), including the chapters on offences against public order (arts. 186 to 207), fraud (arts. 347 to 367) and drugs (arts. 376 to 396). Art. 5 applies the Code's general part to offences created by any other law and sets their penalties by the Code's classes.
Civil Code of the State of Eritrea 2015
Year
2015
In force
Yes
Summary
Title V (Aleatory Contracts), Chapter 3, "Games and Wagers". Art. 2709: the insurance provisions do not apply to operations in the nature of games and wagers; games and wagers give rise to no valid claim for payment; a person with civil capacity who has voluntarily paid a gaming or wagering debt, without fraud, cannot recover it. Art. 2710: the defence of invalidity is not available for stock exchange speculation, for games or wagers connected with sporting activities (the court may reduce an excessive claim), or for any lottery or wagering authorised by the government. Art. 2639 keeps insurance contracts outside the games and wagers chapter. Art. 2774 repeals all earlier written or customary rules on matters the Code covers.
Business Licensing System Control and Business Licensing Office Establishment Proclamation No. 72/1995, as amended by Proclamation No. 128/2002
Year
1995
In force
Yes
Summary
Every business activity needs a business licence from the Ministry of Trade and Industry, one for each class of activity (Proclamation No. 128/2002, arts. 2(1), 5 and 6). The amended art. 5(1) lists eleven licence classes; the general service class includes hotels, bars, and amusement, recreational and sporting activities, and does not mention casinos or gambling. The ESAAMLG reports that art. 5(1) of the 1995 proclamation prohibits activities related to casino operations; the 1995 text itself could not be opened.
Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism Proclamation No. 175/2014, as amended by Proclamation No. 181/2018
Year
2014
In force
Yes
Summary
The main AML/CFT law. It sets customer due diligence and reporting duties for financial institutions and establishes the Financial Intelligence Unit (art. 13.1). Designated non-financial businesses, the category that would include casinos, are bound only by the suspicious transaction reporting and tipping-off provisions, and no supervisor has been designated for them (ESAAMLG MER 2025, paras. 9, 79 and criterion 28.1). Text described from the ESAAMLG evaluation; the proclamation itself could not be opened.
Transitional Penal Code of Eritrea (the Penal Code of Ethiopia 1957 as adopted by Proclamation No. 3/1991)
Year
1991
In force
No
Summary
Art. 744 of the 1957 Code punished with a fine or arrest whoever publicly organised lotteries, professional betting or gambling for profit without authorisation, organised for profit, or took part in, unauthorised gambling or betting in a public place or private club, or otherwise broke the relevant rules; lotteries and games of chance permitted by law and organised for public or charitable purposes were exempt. Eritrea kept the 1957 Code as its Transitional Penal Code by Proclamation No. 3/1991 until the Penal Code of 2015 repealed it (art. 1). The ESAAMLG evaluation of 2025 still cites art. 744.

Secondary instruments

Bank of Eritrea Directive of 2015 on cash payment and withdrawal limits
Year
2015
In force
Yes
Summary
Caps cash withdrawals at 5,000 nakfa a month for individuals and 20,000 nakfa a month for companies; transfers above 5,000 nakfa must go by cheque deposit or through a bank (ESAAMLG MER 2025, para. 46). Described from the ESAAMLG evaluation; the directive itself was not found online.
Legal Notice No. 130/2018
Year
2018
In force
Yes
Summary
Imposes additional AML/CFT requirements on financial institutions (ESAAMLG MER 2025, para. 79). Not applicable to casinos or other non-financial businesses.

Key amendments

27 Dec 2002Business Licensing Amendment Proclamation No. 128/2002 published, replacing the licence classes in art. 5 of Proclamation No. 72/1995 and moving licensing to the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
15 May 2015Penal Code of 2015 repeals the Transitional Penal Code, including the 1957 petty offence of unauthorised lotteries, gambling and betting (art. 744); the new Code contains no gambling offence.
15 May 2015Civil Code of 2015 replaces all earlier rules on the matters it covers (art. 2774); games and wagers are governed by arts. 2709 and 2710.
2018AML/CFT Proclamation No. 175/2014 amended by Proclamation No. 181/2018.

Licensing

Licence required: Not yet verified
Application window: Not yet verified
Local establishment required: Not yet verified
Local server required: Not yet verified
Barriers to entry: There is no gambling licence of any kind. Any business activity needs a business licence from the Ministry of Trade and Industry (Proclamation No. 128/2002, arts. 5 and 6), and the ESAAMLG reports that casino activities are prohibited under the business licensing law. The financial system is entirely state-owned apart from 11% private shareholding in the one insurer, has no card payments, ATMs, internet or mobile banking, and has negligible links to the international financial system (ESAAMLG MER 2025, paras. 40, 41, 65 and 66).

Compliance

Minimum age: Not yet verified
National self-exclusion: Not yet verified
AML regime: The AML/CFT Proclamation No. 175/2014, as amended by Proclamation No. 181/2018, and Legal Notice No. 130/2018 apply customer due diligence and reporting duties to financial institutions. Designated non-financial businesses are bound only by the suspicious transaction reporting and tipping-off provisions, and casinos are not covered because they are not permitted. The ESAAMLG evaluation adopted in July 2025 rated Eritrea non-compliant with Recommendations 22 and 28 (DNFBP due diligence and supervision) and low on all eleven effectiveness outcomes. Eritrea became a full ESAAMLG member in September 2021. Eritrea is not on the FATF lists of jurisdictions under increased monitoring or subject to a call for action published on 19 June 2026.
AML supervisor: Bank of Eritrea for financial institutions; no AML/CFT supervisor has been designated for non-financial businesses (ESAAMLG MER 2025, para. 61 and criteria 28.2 to 28.4).
KYC requirements: Not yet verified
Stake limits: Not yet verified

Payments

Credit card ban: Not yet verified
Crypto stance: Not yet verified
Currency restrictions: Two state-owned commercial banks serve customers only at 29 branches: there are no ATMs, debit or credit cards, internet or mobile banking. Outward remittances are prohibited by law, save exceptional government-approved payments such as medical treatment abroad, and the only money transfer service handles inward remittances. A Bank of Eritrea directive of 2015 caps cash withdrawals at 5,000 nakfa a month for individuals and 20,000 nakfa for companies. The ESAAMLG found no virtual asset activity and notes that virtual asset service providers are not recognised under the Commercial Code (MER 2025, paras. 9, 39 to 42, 46 and 66).

Enforcement

ISP blocking: Not yet verified
DNS blocking: Not yet verified
Payment blocking: Not yet verified
App store takedowns: Not yet verified
Operator liability: No current gambling offence was found. The 2015 Penal Code contains none, and the 1957 petty offence of organising lotteries, betting or gambling without authorisation (art. 744, a fine or arrest) went with the Transitional Penal Code in 2015. The ESAAMLG evaluation of 2025 nonetheless treats casino operation as prohibited and cites art. 744. Engaging in any business activity without a business licence is prohibited and punishable by imprisonment or a fine, or both, under the business licensing proclamation (Proclamation No. 128/2002, art. 22(1) and (7)).
Player liability: No provision punishing players was found in the 2015 Penal Code. Under Civil Code art. 2709 a gaming debt cannot be enforced, but money paid voluntarily and without fraud cannot be recovered.

Timeline

23 Jul 1957
Ethiopian Penal Code of 1957 proclaimed; its art. 744 punishes unauthorised lotteries, betting and gambling
1991
Proclamation No. 3/1991 keeps the 1957 Code in force as the Transitional Penal Code of Eritrea
1995
Business Licensing Proclamation No. 72/1995 enacted; the ESAAMLG reads its art. 5(1) as prohibiting casino activities
27 Dec 2002
Business Licensing Amendment Proclamation No. 128/2002 published, replacing the licence classes
2014
AML/CFT Proclamation No. 175/2014 enacted, establishing the Financial Intelligence Unit
14 Jul 2014
Ministry of Information reports an 8 million nakfa special lottery by the Rymoc Lottery, linked to the 6th Youth Festival
15 May 2015
Penal Code and Civil Code of the State of Eritrea issued (the Minister of Justice's forewords are dated 15 May 2015); the Penal Code repeals the Transitional Penal Code and has no gambling offence
Sept 2021
Eritrea becomes a full member of the ESAAMLG
16 Jul 2024
ESAAMLG on-site visit begins (to 2 August 2024); no casino activity found
Jul 2025
ESAAMLG adopts the mutual evaluation of Eritrea, stating that casinos are prohibited by law
19 Jun 2026
FATF lists published; Eritrea is on neither the increased monitoring nor the call for action list

Outlook

No gambling bill, consultation or licensing round has been published. The ESAAMLG evaluation of July 2025 rated Eritrea non-compliant on due diligence and supervision for non-financial businesses (Recommendations 22 and 28), the standards that would govern casinos if they were ever permitted. Eritrea was not on either FATF list published on 19 June 2026.

Frequently asked questions

Is online gambling legal in Eritrea?: No law addresses it. There is no gambling regulator or licence, the 2015 Penal Code has no gambling offence, and the ESAAMLG evaluation of 2025 says casinos are prohibited by law, relying on provisions that appear to have been repealed or replaced. The status of online gambling is therefore unsettled, and no operator can be licensed.
Is there a gambling regulator or licensing authority?: No. Business licences are issued by the Ministry of Trade and Industry under the business licensing proclamation, whose licence classes do not include gambling, and the ESAAMLG reports that casino activities are excluded.
Can gambling debts or winnings be enforced in court?: Generally not. Under Civil Code art. 2709 games and wagers give rise to no valid claim for payment, though money paid voluntarily and without fraud cannot be recovered. Art. 2710 makes exceptions for stock exchange speculation, wagers connected with sporting activities (which the court may reduce) and lotteries or wagering authorised by the government.
Does Eritrea have a lottery?: The Civil Code recognises lotteries authorised by the government, and the Ministry of Information reported in July 2014 that the Rymoc Lottery had paid out an 8 million nakfa special lottery linked to the Youth Festival. No law establishing it and no online lottery were found.
Could Eritrean residents pay an offshore operator?: In practice hardly at all. The ESAAMLG found no cards, ATMs or internet banking, outward remittances are prohibited by law except with government approval, cash withdrawals are capped at 5,000 nakfa a month for individuals, and no virtual asset activity exists.
Is Eritrea on the FATF grey list?: No. It was on neither FATF list published on 19 June 2026, although the ESAAMLG evaluation of July 2025 found low effectiveness across all eleven outcomes and no AML supervision of non-financial businesses.

Glossary and directory

Glossary terms for this profile

AML (Anti-Money Laundering)

Sources

Source tiers. Tier 2: other official sources such as ministries, parliaments, courts and statistics agencies. Tier 3: established trade press, used to find and date the primary source. Only tier 1 and tier 2 sources can support a fact on their own.

Penal Code of the State of Eritrea 2015 (printed edition, foreword by the Minister of Justice dated 15 May 2015), arts. 1 to 5 and the table of contents of Part II
Ministry of Justice of Eritrea, copy held by the FAO FAOLEX database
Tier 2Accessed 24 Sept 2026Published 15 May 2015
Civil Code of the State of Eritrea 2015 (printed edition, foreword by the Minister of Justice dated 15 May 2015), arts. 2639, 2709, 2710 and 2774
Ministry of Justice of Eritrea, copy held by the FAO FAOLEX database
Tier 2Accessed 24 Sept 2026Published 15 May 2015
Anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing measures: Eritrea, Mutual Evaluation Report (July 2025), paras. 9, 11, 12, 38, 39, 40 to 46, 61, 64 to 66, 71 to 79 and criteria 22.1, 28.1 and 29.1
Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG)
The report (criterion 28.1) grounds the casino prohibition in art. 5(1) of the Business Licensing Proclamation No. 72/1995 and in art. 744(b) and (c) of the Penal Code of 1957. Art. 1 of the Penal Code of the State of Eritrea 2015 repealed and replaced the Transitional Penal Code of Eritrea (the 1957 Code as adapted by Proclamation No. 3/1991), and the 2015 Code contains no gambling, betting or lottery offence. Art. 5(1) of Proclamation No. 72/1995 was replaced by the Business Licensing Amendment Proclamation No. 128/2002, whose list of licence classes does not mention casinos or gambling. The English text of the original 1995 proclamation could not be opened (the Library of Congress copy blocks automated access). The report is kept as the source for the authorities' position that casinos are not permitted and did not operate, not for the legal basis it gives.
Tier 2Accessed 24 Sept 2026Published Jul 2025
The Penal Code of Ethiopia 1957 (Proclamation No. 158 of 1957), art. 744, the basis of the Transitional Penal Code of Eritrea until 2015
ICC Legal Tools Database, copy of the Negarit Gazeta text
Tier 2Accessed 24 Sept 2026Published 23 Jul 1957
Gazette of Eritrean Laws, Vol. 11/2002 No. 8, Asmara, 27 December 2002 (cover and contents, including Proclamation No. 128/2002)
Government of Eritrea, copy held by the FAO FAOLEX database
Tier 2Accessed 24 Sept 2026Published 27 Dec 2002
Business Licensing Amendment Proclamation No. 128/2002, amending the Business Licensing System Control and Business Licensing Office Establishment Proclamation No. 72/1995, arts. 1 to 9 (English text)
Natural Resource Governance Institute document repository (unofficial copy of the English text)
Tier 3Accessed 24 Sept 2026Published 27 Dec 2002
8-million Nakfa special lottery handed to winners (14 July 2014)
Ministry of Information of Eritrea (shabait.com)
Tier 2Accessed 24 Sept 2026Published 14 Jul 2014
Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring, 19 June 2026, and High-Risk Jurisdictions subject to a Call for Action, 19 June 2026
Financial Action Task Force (FATF)
Tier 2Accessed 24 Sept 2026Published 19 Jun 2026