Is online gambling legal in Libya?

No. Law No. 5 of 2022 on combating cybercrime, art. 31, punishes anyone who owns, manages, offers, facilitates, encourages or promotes an online gambling project with detention of at least two years and a fine of LYD 10,000 to 20,000.

Is it an offence to play?

Yes. Art. 31 of Law No. 5 of 2022 punishes anyone who gambles online with detention, and Penal Code art. 493 punishes anyone caught gambling in a public place with up to one month's detention or a fine.

Can a foreign operator get a licence?

No. There is no licensing regime or regulator. Law No. 5 of 2022 applies to offences committed abroad whose effects extend into Libya (art. 3), and a convicted foreigner is expelled (art. 51).

Are there casinos or a national lottery?

No casino or betting licence exists, and setting up a lottery without permission is an offence under Penal Code art. 496; no authority that grants lottery permission was found.

Can gambling be advertised?

Not online: promoting or encouraging an online gambling project carries the same penalty as running one under Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31. No separate rule for broadcast or print advertising was found.

Are gambling debts enforceable?

No. Civil Code art. 739 makes every gambling or betting agreement void, although money paid voluntarily cannot be recovered unless the payer was a minor.

Sovereign state

Africa

ISO LY

Libya: gambling regulation and licensing

Online casinoProhibited
Online sports bettingProhibited
Online pokerProhibited
iLotteryProhibited
Horse race bettingProhibited
Land-based (reference)Prohibited

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

Summary

Libya prohibits gambling in every form and has no gambling regulator, licence or gaming tax. Online gambling is a specific offence under Law No. 5 of 2022 on combating cybercrime, issued by the House of Representatives on 27 September 2022. Article 31 punishes anyone who owns or manages an online gambling project, or who offers, facilitates, encourages or promotes one, with detention of at least two years and a fine of LYD 10,000 to 20,000, and it also makes gambling online an offence for the player, punishable by detention. The law reaches offences committed abroad whose effects extend into Libya, a court can order the website used to be closed, and a convicted foreigner is expelled. Offline, Penal Code articles 492 to 496, dating from the code of 1953 and amended in 1956, punish preparing gambling in a public place, gambling in such a place, and setting up a lottery without permission, with confiscation of stakes and equipment; no authority that grants lottery permission was found. Civil Code article 739 makes every gambling or betting agreement void. Casinos and gambling operators are not among the businesses covered by the 2017 anti-money laundering law. The National Information Security and Safety Authority can block online content and supports enforcement of the cybercrime law, but it does not license gambling. No bill to open or regulate the market, and no published enforcement case under article 31, was found at review. Whether the cybercrime law is applied uniformly across the country's rival administrations was not established.

Common pitfalls

Treating the National Information Security and Safety Authority as a gambling regulator: it is an information security body with blocking powers, and no gambling licence exists. Assuming players are safe: gambling online is itself an offence under Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31, and gambling in a public place is an offence under Penal Code art. 493. Reading the Penal Code fines of 10 and 50 as the whole exposure: the cybercrime law sets detention of at least two years and fines of LYD 10,000 to 20,000 for online operators and promoters.

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: No gaming tax applies because no form of gambling can lawfully be offered (Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31; Penal Code arts. 492 to 496).

Legal framework

Primary statutes

Law No. 5 of 2022 on combating cybercrime
قانون رقم (5) لسنة 2022م بشأن مكافحة الجرائم الإلكترونية
Year
2022
In force
Yes
Summary
Art. 31 (gambling): anyone who owns or manages a gambling project, or offers, facilitates, encourages or promotes the setting up of a gambling project, on the internet or by any other electronic means, is punished by detention of at least two years and a fine of LYD 10,000 to 20,000; anyone who gambles on the internet or by any other electronic means is punished by detention. Art. 3: the law applies where the offence is committed wholly or partly in Libya, or committed abroad with results and effects extending into Libya, even if not punishable where committed. Art. 44: laundering illicit funds online carries up to seven years and LYD 30,000 to 60,000. Art. 48: the person responsible for the actual management of a legal person is liable to at least one year's detention where an employee commits an offence under the law in its name and for its benefit because that person breached the duties of the role, and the court dissolves a legal person set up to commit cybercrime. Art. 50: devices, software and proceeds are confiscated, and the premises or website are closed, wholly or for a period the court sets, where the offence was committed with the owner's knowledge. Art. 51: a convicted foreigner is expelled. Issued in Tobruk on 27 September 2022, in force from issue (art. 53).
Penal Code, articles 492 to 496
قانون العقوبات، المواد 492 إلى 496
Year
1953
In force
Yes
Summary
Art. 492: anyone who prepares the means for gambling in a public place or a place open to the public, or makes a place ready for it, is punished by detention of up to six months and a fine of up to 50 pounds; a habitual offender may be placed under supervised liberty. Art. 493: anyone caught gambling in a public place or a place open to the public is punished by detention of up to one month or a fine of up to 10 pounds. Art. 494: in all gambling offences the money staked and the equipment used or prepared are confiscated. Art. 495: gambling games are games played for gain in which gain or loss depends wholly or mostly on chance, and gambling houses include private places where people meet to gamble, however the purpose is disguised. Art. 496: anyone who sets up a lottery without permission is punished by detention of up to six months and a fine of up to 50 pounds, with confiscation of the money and prizes. Detention runs from 24 hours to three years unless the law provides otherwise (art. 22). Arts. 492 and 493 take their current wording from Law No. 48 of 1956.
Civil Code of 28 November 1953, articles 739 and 740
القانون المدني، المادتان 739 و740
Year
1953
In force
Yes
Summary
Art. 739: every agreement relating to gambling or betting is void; money paid voluntarily to settle a gambling or betting debt cannot be recovered unless the payer was a minor. Art. 740, as amended by Law No. 86 of 1972: sporting or cultural competitions are not treated as bets where the prize is put up by one of the competitors or donated by someone who is not competing. The code was published in the Official Gazette on 20 February 1954.

Secondary instruments

Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Law (Presidential Council decision-law No. 1013 of 2017)
قانون مكافحة غسل الأموال وتمويل الإرهاب
Year
2017
Summary
Issued by the Presidential Council on 24 October 2017 and published in an Official Gazette special issue on 21 February 2018. Art. 1 lists the designated non-financial businesses and professions subject to AML duties: estate agents, dealers in precious metals and stones, lawyers, notaries and accountants, and trust and company service providers. Casinos and gambling operators are not listed.

Key amendments

23 Sept 1956Law No. 48 of 1956 rewrites Penal Code art. 492, first paragraph, and art. 493 on preparing gambling and gambling in public places.
27 Sept 2022Law No. 5 of 2022 on combating cybercrime creates the offences of running or promoting an online gambling project and of gambling online (art. 31).

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: The market is closed. Running or promoting an online gambling project is punishable by detention of at least two years and a fine of LYD 10,000 to 20,000 under Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31, which reaches offences committed abroad with effects in Libya (art. 3) and requires a convicted foreigner to be expelled (art. 51). Land-based gambling and unauthorised lotteries are offences under Penal Code arts. 492 to 496, and gambling and betting contracts are void under Civil Code art. 739.

Licence types

None available
Scope
No statute provides a licence for any form of gambling, online or land-based. Penal Code art. 496 refers to lotteries set up with permission, but no authority that grants such permission was found.

Taxation

Headline GGR tax: Not yet verified
Effective date: Not yet verified
Tax base: No gaming tax applies because no form of gambling can lawfully be offered (Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31; Penal Code arts. 492 to 496).

Compliance

Minimum age: Not yet verified
National self-exclusion: Not yet verified
AML regime: The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Law issued by Presidential Council decision-law No. 1013 of 2017 (Official Gazette, 21 February 2018). Casinos and gambling operators are not designated non-financial businesses under art. 1. Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 44, separately punishes laundering illicit funds through the internet with up to seven years and LYD 30,000 to 60,000.
AML supervisor: None for gambling; the Libyan Financial Information Unit is the financial intelligence unit
KYC requirements: Not yet verified
Stake limits: Not yet verified

Advertising

Advertising permitted: No
Penalties for breach: Detention of at least two years and a fine of LYD 10,000 to 20,000 for promoting an online gambling project (Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31).

Restrictions

Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31, punishes anyone who offers, encourages or promotes the setting up of a gambling project on the internet or by any other electronic means, with the same penalty as the operator: detention of at least two years and a fine of LYD 10,000 to 20,000.
No gambling-specific rule for broadcast or print advertising was found.

Payments

Credit card ban: Not yet verified
Crypto stance: Not yet verified
Payment blocking regime: No statutory duty on banks or payment providers to block gambling transactions was found. Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31, extends to anyone who facilitates an online gambling project, and art. 28 separately punishes forging electronic payment cards and electronic money.

Enforcement

ISP blocking: Not yet verified
DNS blocking: Not yet verified
Payment blocking: Not yet verified
App store takedowns: Not yet verified
Administrative penalties: The court orders confiscation of the devices, software and proceeds and, where the offence was committed with the owner's knowledge, closure of the premises or website used, wholly or for a period it sets (Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 50); a legal person set up to commit cybercrime is dissolved (art. 48). NISSA may block content that threatens security or social peace (art. 7); gambling sites are not named among the sites it must block (art. 8).
Criminal penalties: Owning, managing, offering, facilitating, encouraging or promoting an online gambling project: detention of at least two years and a fine of LYD 10,000 to 20,000; gambling online: detention (Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31); a convicted foreigner is expelled (art. 51). Preparing gambling in a public place: detention of up to six months and a fine of up to 50 pounds; being caught gambling in such a place: up to one month or a fine of up to 10 pounds; setting up an unauthorised lottery: up to six months and a fine of up to 50 pounds; stakes and equipment confiscated (Penal Code arts. 492 to 494 and 496).
Operator liability: Owners, managers and promoters of online gambling projects, and the person responsible for the actual management of a legal person in whose name the offence is committed (Law No. 5 of 2022, arts. 31 and 48); anyone who prepares gambling in a public place or sets up an unauthorised lottery (Penal Code arts. 492 and 496).
Player liability: Yes. Gambling online is punishable by detention (Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31, second paragraph), and anyone caught gambling in a public place or place open to the public faces up to one month's detention or a fine of up to 10 pounds (Penal Code art. 493).

Timeline

28 Nov 1953
Penal Code and Civil Code issued; Penal Code arts. 492 to 496 make gambling in public places and unauthorised lotteries offences, and Civil Code art. 739 voids gambling and betting agreements
20 Feb 1954
Civil Code published in the Official Gazette
23 Sept 1956
Law No. 48 of 1956 rewrites Penal Code arts. 492 and 493 on preparing gambling and gambling in public places
24 Oct 2017
Presidential Council issues the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Law, which does not cover casinos or gambling operators
21 Feb 2018
AML law published in an Official Gazette special issue
27 Sept 2022
Law No. 5 of 2022 on combating cybercrime issued in Tobruk; art. 31 bans running, promoting and playing online gambling

Outlook

Nothing in the legislative pipeline would open the market: no bill or consultation on licensing gambling was found at review. Enforcement against online gambling rests on Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31, applied by the police, the prosecution and the courts, with the National Information Security and Safety Authority able to block content under art. 7.

Frequently asked questions

Is online gambling legal in Libya?: No. Law No. 5 of 2022 on combating cybercrime, art. 31, punishes anyone who owns, manages, offers, facilitates, encourages or promotes an online gambling project with detention of at least two years and a fine of LYD 10,000 to 20,000.
Is it an offence to play?: Yes. Art. 31 of Law No. 5 of 2022 punishes anyone who gambles online with detention, and Penal Code art. 493 punishes anyone caught gambling in a public place with up to one month's detention or a fine.
Can a foreign operator get a licence?: No. There is no licensing regime or regulator. Law No. 5 of 2022 applies to offences committed abroad whose effects extend into Libya (art. 3), and a convicted foreigner is expelled (art. 51).
Are there casinos or a national lottery?: No casino or betting licence exists, and setting up a lottery without permission is an offence under Penal Code art. 496; no authority that grants lottery permission was found.
Can gambling be advertised?: Not online: promoting or encouraging an online gambling project carries the same penalty as running one under Law No. 5 of 2022, art. 31. No separate rule for broadcast or print advertising was found.
Are gambling debts enforceable?: No. Civil Code art. 739 makes every gambling or betting agreement void, although money paid voluntarily cannot be recovered unless the payer was a minor.

Sources

Law No. 5 of 2022 on combating cybercrime (arts. 1, 3, 7, 8, 31, 44, 48, 50, 51, 52 and 53)
House of Representatives of Libya (translated)
Scanned signed text published by the House of Representatives, issued in Tobruk on 27 September 2022 and in force from issue (art. 53); read from page images. Whether and how the rival authorities in Tripoli apply laws of the House of Representatives was not established.
Tier 1Accessed 23 Sept 2026Published 27 Sept 2022
Penal Code, consolidated Arabic text (arts. 22, 492 to 496)
Social Security Fund of Libya (government host) (translated)
Unofficial consolidation hosted on a government website, not the Official Gazette. Fines are printed in pounds (junayh), the unit used when the code was enacted; the DCAF English translation renders them as LYD.
Tier 2Accessed 23 Sept 2026
Law No. 48 of 1956 amending certain provisions of the Penal Code, Arabic text (arts. 8 and 11; annex 2 texts of arts. 492 and 493)
DCAF Libyan security sector legislation database, reproducing the Arabic text (translated)
The original Official Gazette issue was not retrieved; DCAF reproduces the Arabic text and marks it applicable.
Tier 2Accessed 24 Sept 2026Published 23 Sept 1956
Penal Code, English translation (arts. 22 and 492 to 496)
DCAF Libyan security sector legislation database
Unofficial translation; used only to corroborate the Arabic text.
Tier 3Accessed 24 Sept 2026
Civil Code of 28 November 1953, consolidated edition (arts. 739 and 740, with the footnote recording the amendment by Law No. 86 of 1972)
Ministry of Justice of Libya (translated)
Tier 1Accessed 23 Sept 2026Published 20 Feb 1954
Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Law, issued by Presidential Council decision-law No. 1013 of 24 October 2017, Official Gazette special issue of 21 February 2018 (art. 1 definitions of financial institutions and designated non-financial businesses and professions)
Libyan Financial Information Unit (translated)
Tier 1Accessed 23 Sept 2026Published 21 Feb 2018
National Information Security and Safety Authority, official website
National Information Security and Safety Authority (NISSA) (translated)
Tier 1Accessed 24 Sept 2026
CMS Expert Guide to gambling laws in Africa: Libya (chapter by Tumi Law Firm, last updated 16 August 2023)
CMS
Answers "Yes" to whether online gambling is a regulated activity while describing a prohibition, and names the National Information Security and Safety Authority as the regulator; that body is an information security authority under Cabinet Resolution No. 28 of 2013, not a gambling regulator.
Tier 3Accessed 23 Sept 2026Published 16 Aug 2023