Canada’s gambling market is big business. The total sector made around CA$15.6 billion in 2025, across all forms of gambling. While land-based casino performance remains steady, online gambling is a key driver of growth. Some 19 million Canadians gambled online in 2025, and that number is only expected to grow through the second half of the 2020s. This has seen many new operators join the market in recent years, especially in Ontario. But what do new gambling companies need to deal with before they get started?
Well, Canada’s market is fragmented between provinces. This presents unique challenges and opportunities. In some provinces, such as BC and Quebec, online gambling is limited to government run bodies so opportunities are limited. Other such as in Ontario, and soon to be Alberta, things are much more open for commercial competitors, while others remain unregulated. This is what gambling companies need to think about before they launching in Canada.
Assessing the Specifics of the Canadian Market and Opportunities
Gambling encompasses several slightly different legal markets in Canada. Online casinos, sportsbooks, lotteries and land-based casinos are all legal in various provinces. Outside of that, entrepreneurs could look to start a B2B supplier developing games or back-end tech for gambling operators.
A bit of market research can never go amiss, so finding the ideal casino apps in Canada is a good shout before you begin. Expert reviewers give you the lowdown on what the competition offers, from their user experience to bonuses, promotions and game collections. All so that you can narrow down the top operators with excellent mobile platforms.
Speaking of mobile tech, to be a platform or back-end technology supplier to the gambling business is often the least challenging model to set up. It often requires less complicated licensing, risk and financial capital to get going than starting a direct to customer gambling business. Although there are still some hurdles, tech suppliers can also more easily branch out into other international markets once they have proven customers.
One of Canada’s fastest growing gambling-adjacent operators of recent years has been geolocation and geofencing tech provider GeoComply. The Vancouver-based company creates the software that ensures gamblers on mobile can’t move across international or provincial borders while playing or between sessions. It is the tech provider of choice in this space for many major US and Canadian sports betting operators.
In the Canadian market geolocation is vital, as each regulated province has different rules and one license does not apply to all.
The simplest and most open province for online gambling is Ontario, with Alberta set to launch a similar open commercial market later this year. British Colombia and Quebec are basically non-starters for online gambling as they are limited to one government run operator. Land-based casinos are allowed in most provinces, except smaller territories – which have a limited market size anyway.
Licensing and Compliance Essentials
Before beginning a license application, any gambling business must be registered with Canadian authorities, either nationally or with provincial regulators. Key figures in the company will have to go through background checks.
Owners, directors and major shareholders are required to accept criminal record and financial due diligence checks. Before the rest of the licensing process it is a good idea to prepare:
- Corporate ownership structure and technical infrastructure details
- Liquidity set aside for direct license fees and compliance costs
- Technical certification of games and in-platform bonus games or other back-end tech
- Demonstrable systems to comply with Know Your Customer, anti money laundering, data protection and responsible gambling rules
This is a process that can take weeks, or even months in complicated cases or where back and forth is needed with regulators. License fees vary but in Ontario it is currently set at CAD 35,000 for the initial application alone. The entire licensing process could end up costing CAD 100,000 plus.
For companies looking to serve provinces without regulated online gambling, a Kahnawake Gambling Commission license is an option. Before provinces began their own internal markets, grey area offshore operators were widely tolerated across the country – and the Kahnawake territory of the Mohawk first nations (near Montreal) was one of the bigger and more respected licenses.
Online operations looking to gain legitimacy across Canadian provinces that don’t regulate their own gambling market may still consider this, and the Kahnawake still currently license dozens of operations. But, crucially, this license doesn’t allow access to Ontario, BC, Quebec or other provinces with their own frameworks.
Operating Once Licensed Still Requires Regular Compliance
Once licensed and up and running for customers, regulation will be a continued presence to ensure protection for customers. Gambling operators make monthly and yearly financial reports to provincial regulators including revenue, suspicious activity reports or incidents and responsible gambling data.
Direct gambling operators in Ontario pay revenue-based contributions on top of corporate tax rates, as well as license renewal fees. They must also pay for dedicated responsible gambling awareness campaigns as part of any marketing spend.
Marketing itself also closely regulated and monitored. Ontario specifically has recently tightened rules on marketing for online gambling operators. Gambling advertising must not be targeted at non-Ontarians or anyone who has self-excluded from a registered operator.
