Reader guide
A licence number is a starting point. Here is what to check next.
A practical reading guide to public gambling registers: match the entity, domain, permissions and current status before drawing conclusions.
Start with the regulator, then match the business
A licence badge on a website is a claim that needs checking. Begin with the relevant regulator’s own public register and search for the legal business name or licence number. In Great Britain, the Gambling Commission publishes a register of licensed businesses and individuals. Its remit is specific to its jurisdiction; a result there is not a worldwide permission.
Compare the register entry with the entity identified in the website’s legal terms. Similar brand names are not enough. A trading name, a corporate entity and a website address can be different identifiers for the same operation, but the connection needs evidence. Copy the exact spelling before searching.
Check what the entry actually allows
Read the status and the activities covered. A register may include historic records, so the existence of an entry is not itself proof of an active permission today. The Gambling Commission says it retains details for three years after a licence ends.
Check whether the website domain is associated with the listed business and whether the permission covers the activity being discussed. Do not assume that a software supplier’s authorisation is the same thing as permission to accept customers. If a detail cannot be matched, leave that point unresolved rather than filling the gap with a review site’s assertion.
Keep a dated record of your checks
Save the regulator’s URL, the exact legal name and the date checked. That small research note makes it possible to understand a later change in status or to correct a mistaken association. A screenshot can preserve what you saw, but the regulator’s live entry remains the place to revisit.
A successful identity match answers a limited question about a register entry. It does not guarantee a financial outcome, remove gambling risk or settle a particular dispute. For complaints, read the current process for the relevant jurisdiction and the business involved. This guide is a research method, not an operator recommendation.
Sources & reading
The documents behind this explanation. Historical sources describe their own period.
Publication byline. Prepared with AI assistance; see our editorial standards.