GLRI 2026.1 Get a Shortlist

Home › Gambling Licensing › Mexico

🇲🇽 Mexico · Secretaría de Gobernación — Dirección General de Juegos y Sorteos (SEGOB)

Mexico Online Gambling Licence — 2026

A 1947 prohibition with permits as the exception: only Mexican companies, one permit per establishment, internet betting only as an extension of that permit. New permits are rarely granted, the "operador" route was abolished in November 2023, and the federal IEPS jumped to 50% on 1 January 2026.

Tier 3 — Emerging / recently liberalised

Facts on this page verified 15 September 2026 against primary sources.

Mexico regulates gambling under the Ley Federal de Juegos y Sorteos of 1947, which prohibits games of chance and betting nationwide and lets the Secretaría de Gobernación (SEGOB), through its Dirección General de Juegos y Sorteos (DGJS), permit the exceptions: sports betting, races, draws of numbers and the games the Act lists. The 2004 Reglamento, reformed on 16 November 2023, is where the operating rules live. There is no online licence as such: a permit holder for an establishment may take bets over the internet through a control system SEGOB has approved.

Three facts decide whether Mexico is a market you can enter or only a market you can serve. Permits go only to Mexican companies, one per establishment, and are non-transferable. The November 2023 decree abolished the third-party "operador" that used to run establishments under someone else's permit, banned slot machines and capped permits at fifteen years. And on 1 January 2026 the federal excise on bets less prizes went from 30% to 50%, reaching foreign online operators as well. New establishment permits are rarely granted; the 36 or so holders, and their 136 authorised websites, are the market.

Quick facts

RegulatorSecretaría de Gobernación — Dirección General de Juegos y Sorteos ↗
TierTier 3 — Emerging / recently liberalised
Licence typesSEGOB permit for a centro de apuestas remotas (sports betting) or sala de sorteos de números (number draws), one permit per establishment, 1-15 years, Internet, telephone and electronic betting as an extension of an establishment permit under a SEGOB-approved control system (Reglamento arts. 85-86); no stand-alone online licence
Application costPermit charges are aprovechamientos authorised yearly by the SHCP and published by the DGJS; the 2026 tariff could not be read on 15 September 2026, so no amount is stated. Surety bond covering 60 days of unpaid prizes; federal participation fixed in each permit (advisers report 1-2% of bets)
Annual costFederal participation per permit plus the annual DGJS tariff; permits for new establishments are rarely granted, so the practical cost is the commercial deal with an existing permit holder
Gaming taxIEPS 50% of amounts collected from players less prizes paid, since 1 January 2026 (30% until 2025), also charged to foreign online operators serving users in Mexico; plus the federal participation in each permit and state taxes that vary by state
Corporate tax30% federal; prizes taxed at source at 1% (21% where a state levies more than 6%)
SubstanceMexican sociedad mercantil with gambling as its main object; every shareholder and ultimate beneficiary disclosed with net-worth statements, tax returns and credit reports; ten-year viability study; favourable opinion of the state and municipality; 25% independent directors
TimelineNo statutory deadline in the Reglamento; advisers report three months of SEGOB review inside a route that, for a new establishment permit, has rarely produced a grant in recent years

Verified facts — fees, tax, capital, market access

Regime: Active · Last verified 15 September 2026 · Next review 14 December 2026 · 6 claims: 5 officially verified, 1 corroborated, 0 estimates. Each row opens its sources.

Calculate my scenario → Compare with the other canonical licences

Taxes and levies

ChargeBaseRatePaidEvidence
ggr taxSAT (IEPS, Ley del IEPS art. 2 II B as amended DOF 7 November 2025) GGR 50% of GGR monthly
Officially verified

From 1 January 2026 the federal IEPS on games with bets and draws is 50% (Ley del IEPS art. 2 II B, decree of 7 November 2025), charged monthly on the amounts collected from participants less prizes effectively paid and refunds (art. 18, as advisers read it); the same 50% applies to online gambling offered to users in Mexico by foreign residents without an establishment, with digital-intermediation platforms retaining 100% of the tax and non-payers exposed to blocking of their digital service.

Effective from 1 January 2026

Rate and cross-border scope read from the DOF text; the net base is art. 18 as summarised by advisers and UNAM, not re-read this batch. Our old page said "~20% on GGR".

Locked or required capital — not a fee

  • bond — Surety bond (fianza) from an authorised institution, kept in force for the whole permit term, covering unpaid prizes for 60 days of average annual operation, filed with SEGOB within three days of issue with the underlying calculation (Reglamento art. 29 XIII); no fixed amount.
    Officially verified

    A permit holder must keep in force, for the whole permit term, a surety bond from an authorised institution covering unpaid prizes for 60 days of average annual operation, filed with SEGOB within three days of issue together with the calculation (Reglamento art. 29 XIII); the permit itself states the bond amount (art. 32 VII).

Capital that must be held is shown here so it is never mixed into fee totals; the cost calculator treats it as locked capital.

Market access — where this licence does and does not reach

Holding this licence does not create a right to take players in every country. Check the rules of the player's country. Rows without an evidence-backed rule say "Needs legal review" rather than assuming access.

Player marketStatusBasisEvidence
Great Britain Local licence required Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act 2014: point-of-consumption licensing by the UKGC.
Officially verified

A Mexican permit does not cover Great Britain: GB-facing operators need a UK Gambling Commission licence.
United StatesNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for SEGOB permit for a centro de apuestas remotas / sala de sorteos de números (one permit per establishment; internet betting as an extension under arts. 85-86) and United States.—
CanadaNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for SEGOB permit for a centro de apuestas remotas / sala de sorteos de números (one permit per establishment; internet betting as an extension under arts. 85-86) and Canada.—
BrazilNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for SEGOB permit for a centro de apuestas remotas / sala de sorteos de números (one permit per establishment; internet betting as an extension under arts. 85-86) and Brazil.—
EU / EEANeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for SEGOB permit for a centro de apuestas remotas / sala de sorteos de números (one permit per establishment; internet betting as an extension under arts. 85-86) and EU / EEA.—
Latin AmericaNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for SEGOB permit for a centro de apuestas remotas / sala de sorteos de números (one permit per establishment; internet betting as an extension under arts. 85-86) and Latin America.—
AsiaNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for SEGOB permit for a centro de apuestas remotas / sala de sorteos de números (one permit per establishment; internet betting as an extension under arts. 85-86) and Asia.—
AfricaNeeds legal reviewNo evidence-backed rule in the registry for SEGOB permit for a centro de apuestas remotas / sala de sorteos de números (one permit per establishment; internet betting as an extension under arts. 85-86) and Africa.—

Process and timeline

  1. incorporationMexican sociedad mercantil with gambling as its main object

    Only a company incorporated under Mexican law may hold a permit for a centro de apuestas remotas or sala de sorteos (art. 20 I); every shareholder and ultimate beneficiary is disclosed with net-worth statements, credit reports and clean-record declarations (art. 22).

    Officially verified

    Only a sociedad mercantil incorporated under Mexican law may hold a permit for a centro de apuestas remotas or sala de sorteos, one permit per establishment (Reglamento art. 20 I); the file discloses every shareholder and ultimate beneficiary with net-worth statements, five years of tax returns, credit reports and clean-record declarations, a ten-year financial viability study, the exact site and a favourable opinion from the state and municipality (art. 22); the board needs at least 25% independent directors (art. 29).

  2. applicationPermit application to SEGOB, one per establishment

    Ten-year financial viability study, exact location and trade name, favourable opinion of the state and municipality, and the surety bond; permits run one to fifteen years (art. 33). New permits have rarely been granted in practice; most entrants contract with an existing permit holder.

    Corroborated

    New permits for centros de apuestas remotas and salas de sorteos are rarely granted: Chambers counts 36 permit holders and describes grants as seldom; SEGOB data reported in July 2026 put the authorised betting websites at 136, of which about two thirds were active. Entry in practice is through an existing permit holder, whose permit is non-transferable and, since November 2023, cannot be run by a third-party operador.

    No source cites the date of the last new permit; our old page said "none since 2014" without a source.

  3. go liveInternet betting under the permit

    The establishment sets up an internal control system for internet, telephone and electronic bets, approved in advance by SEGOB (arts. 85-86); IEPS at 50% and the federal participation follow from the first bet.

    Officially verified

    There is no stand-alone online licence: an establishment holding a SEGOB permit may take bets via internet, telephone or electronic means only through an internal control system, described in writing and approved in advance by SEGOB, that records the bettor's account and identity and each transaction (Reglamento arts. 85-86).

Sources and change log

Primary sources (statute, regulator, ministry, tax authority) are listed first. Superseded figures are kept, not deleted.

Spot an error? Submit a correction — every change is versioned with its source and effective date.

Pros

  • Online overtook land-based revenue in 2025 and the World Cup put the market on every operator's map
  • A permit, once held, runs up to fifteen years and can be renewed for further fifteen-year periods
  • The 2025-2026 SEGOB reform bill promises a modern statute with investment certainty as its stated aim

Cons

  • New permits for centros de apuestas remotas and salas de sorteos are rarely granted; permits are non-transferable
  • IEPS 50% of bets less prizes since 1 January 2026, on top of the federal participation, state taxes and 30% corporate tax
  • The third-party operador model was abolished on 17 November 2023; grandfathered operators run out with the host permit
  • Enforcement is live: ten online domains suspended in July 2026, UIF investigations into 13 casinos, and a reform bill aimed at money laundering

Best for

  • Groups able to buy into or contract with one of the 36 or so permit holders and carry a 50% federal excise
  • Suppliers, platforms and marketing partners serving existing permit holders

What a Mexican permit is, and what it is not

Art. 4 of the Act bars any premises from taking bets or running draws without a SEGOB permit, and art. 20 of the Reglamento says who can hold one for a centro de apuestas remotas or a sala de sorteos de números: only a sociedad mercantil incorporated under Mexican law, one permit per establishment, with a new permit for any change of address. The permit names the games allowed, the site, the obligations, the federal participation, the term and the bond (art. 32). Permits run one to fifteen years and can be renewed for further periods of up to fifteen (art. 33). They cannot be pledged, assigned or sold (art. 31). Internet betting is not a separate permission: arts. 85-86 let an establishment capture bets via internet, telephone or electronic means through an internal control system, approved in advance by SEGOB, that records the bettor's account and identity and every transaction. Online, in Mexico, is a channel of a land-based permit.

The November 2023 decree: no operador, no slots, fifteen years

The decree published in the Diario Oficial on 16 November 2023 rewrote the entry route. It repealed art. 30 and with it the "operador", the company a permit holder could contract to run its establishments, which is the legal form most "skin" and "white-label" deals in Mexico took; operators already running an establishment keep their rights only until the host permit expires, without extension (transitional art. 4). It prohibited slot machines in any form (art. 12) and capped permits that included them at fifteen non-extendable years from publication. It cut the maximum permit term from 25 to 15 years and added shareholder and beneficiary disclosure, five years of tax returns, credit reports, a ten-year viability study and a favourable opinion from the state and municipality to the file (arts. 21-22). Three of the guides in our audit say the slot ban is being contested through amparo proceedings; that litigation is not tracked here.

Tax: IEPS 50% since 1 January 2026, and what sits on top

The federal excise (IEPS) on games with bets and draws was 30% of the amounts collected from players less prizes paid. The decree published in the Diario Oficial on 7 November 2025 set it at 50% for 2026 and, for the first time, named online gambling offered to users in Mexico by foreign residents without a Mexican establishment as taxable at the same 50%, through the digital-services rules: an intermediation platform retains 100% of the tax, and a non-paying provider can be blocked and listed by the SAT. On top of the IEPS each permit fixes a federal participation in the holder's proceeds under art. 5 of the Act, which advisers put at 1% of bets for remote sports betting and 2% for number draws; states add their own taxes at rates that vary by state; corporate income tax is 30%; and prizes are taxed at source under Ley del ISR art. 138 at 1%, or 21% where the state levies more than 6%.

Fees, bond and the 2026 tariff we could not read

SEGOB does not charge statutory licence fees. Its permit charges are aprovechamientos: amounts the SHCP authorises to the Interior Ministry each year under the Ley de Ingresos, which the DGJS publishes as a tariff notice. The 2009 notice, the one we could read, priced draw permits as a sliding percentage of the prize pool, 15% of the first MXN 5,000 down to 2% above MXN 6 million. The DGJS site refused every connection on 15 September 2026, so the 2026 tariff for establishment permits is not stated here, and neither is the "MXN 50-100M" our old page carried without a source. What the Reglamento does fix is the bond: a surety from an authorised institution, kept in force for the whole term, covering unpaid prizes for 60 days of average annual operation, filed with SEGOB within three days of issue (art. 29 XIII).

Who actually enters, and what the DGJS did in July 2026

Chambers counts 36 permit holders and describes new grants as seldom; SEGOB data reported in July 2026 listed 136 authorised betting websites, about two thirds of them active. Entry therefore runs through a permit holder: buying into the company, since the permit itself cannot be sold, or contracting as a supplier or agent under its permit and control system. Stake's launch of stake.mx on 4 May 2026 "as an agent under Uno Capali's licence agreement" is the visible example. The counterparty risk is equally visible: in July 2026 the DGJS suspended ten online domains running under authorised permits, among them bet365.mx and betano.mx under Ganador Azteca of Grupo Salinas, 1xbet.mx, luckia.mx and kingsbet.com.mx, while the UIF pursued investigations into 13 casinos opened in November 2025. The 3 September 2026 reform bill, complete and headed for the security cabinet, is aimed at money laundering and tax fraud first and at investment certainty second, in the Interior Secretary's own order of words.

Application process

  1. Mexican sociedad mercantil with gambling as its main object; full disclosure of shareholders and ultimate beneficiaries (net worth, tax returns, credit reports, clean-record declarations)
  2. Site, trade name, ten-year viability study and a favourable opinion from the state and municipality (Reglamento art. 22)
  3. Permit application to the DGJS, one per establishment; surety bond for 60 days of unpaid prizes; federal participation fixed in the permit
  4. In practice: a commercial agreement with an existing permit holder, since new establishment permits are rarely granted and permits cannot be transferred
  5. Internet betting through an internal control system approved in advance by SEGOB (arts. 85-86)
  6. IEPS 50% on bets less prizes from the first bet; 1% withholding on prizes; state taxes

Operational realities

Capital requirements

No fixed capital figure in the Reglamento. Surety bond covering unpaid prizes for 60 days of average annual operation, kept in force for the whole permit term (art. 29 XIII); the amount is fixed in the permit (art. 32 VII). Shareholders must evidence the origin of capital (art. 22 II b).

Player protection

Permit-level rules; internet bets require account and identity records (art. 85); advertising may not explicitly promote the bets offered (art. 9); AML reporting to the UIF above 645 UMA per transaction; slot machines prohibited since November 2023.

Banking & payment processing

Internet bets count as paid only when the bank confirms payment (art. 86). Mexican operators are AML-regulated "vulnerable activities": 202,045 gambling-related reports reached the UIF between January and May 2026 (Yogonet). Foreign online operators without a Mexican establishment pay the 50% IEPS through the digital-services regime.

B2B vs B2C licensing

No B2B licence. Suppliers, platforms and marketing partners contract with a permit holder, whose permit and SEGOB-approved control system cover the activity; since November 2023 they cannot act as the operador of the establishment.

Recent developments (2025-2026)

DOF 7 November 2025: IEPS on gambling raised from 30% to 50% from 1 January 2026, extended to foreign online operators serving Mexican users. 4 May 2026: Stake launched stake.mx as an agent under an existing permit. July 2026: DGJS suspended ten online domains, including bet365.mx and betano.mx, while updating a register of 136 authorised sites of which about two thirds were active. 3 September 2026: Interior Secretary Rosa Icela Rodríguez said SEGOB's reform bill for the 1947 Act was complete and going to the security cabinet.

How it compares

Versus Brazil: Brazil granted authorisations on application at BRL 30 million for five years until it banned fixed-odds betting on 25 September 2026; Mexico grants almost none and taxes at 50%. Versus Colombia: Coljuegos runs an open online licensing regime; Mexico has no online licence at all.

Frequently asked questions

Can a foreign company get a gambling licence in Mexico?

Not directly. Permits go only to Mexican sociedades mercantiles, one per establishment (Reglamento art. 20), and new permits for betting centres and number-draw halls are rarely granted. Foreign groups invest in a Mexican company or contract with an existing permit holder.

Is there an online gambling licence in Mexico?

No. An establishment with a SEGOB permit may take bets via internet, telephone or electronic means through an internal control system approved in advance by SEGOB (arts. 85-86). Online is a channel of a land-based permit.

What is the gambling tax in Mexico in 2026?

Federal IEPS of 50% on amounts collected less prizes paid, since 1 January 2026 (30% before), also charged to foreign online operators serving users in Mexico. Plus the federal participation in each permit, state taxes and 30% corporate income tax. Prizes: 1% withheld, 21% where a state levies more than 6%.

Can I run a brand under someone else's permit?

The "operador" figure that allowed a third party to run an establishment under a permit was repealed on 16 November 2023; existing operators run out with the host permit. Supply, platform and agency agreements under the permit holder's control system remain the practical route, as Stake's May 2026 launch shows.

How much does a SEGOB permit cost?

Permit charges are aprovechamientos authorised yearly by the SHCP and published by the DGJS; the 2026 tariff could not be read for this page, so no amount is stated. Each permit also fixes a federal participation in proceeds (advisers report 1-2% of bets) and a surety bond for 60 days of unpaid prizes.

Is Mexico reforming its gambling law?

Yes, in stages. SEGOB announced a reform of the 1947 Act on 24 September 2025 and on 3 September 2026 said the bill was complete and going to the security cabinet, aimed at money laundering and tax fraud. A separate deputy's bill from October 2025 had its committee deadline extended to 31 August 2027.

Named experts covering Mexico

Real, publicly-verifiable practitioners whose work informs our coverage of this jurisdiction.

Ricardo Valdivia González Partner · Portilla, Ruy-Díaz y Aguilar, S.C. SEGOB gaming permits · Gaming regulatory compliance · AML/CTF under Mexican law Alfredo Lazcano Chair · Lazcano Sámano, S.C. Gaming, sports and entertainment law · Mexican gaming regulation (Ley Federal de Juegos y Sorteos) · Responsible gambling

Further reading on Mexico

Compare and define

Other Tier 3 jurisdictions

Brazil SPA
Argentina LOTBA and IPLyC
Chile SCJ
Peru MINCETUR