UK licence conditions (LCCP)

What the UK licence conditions (LCCP) are

The Gambling Act 2005 lets the Gambling Commission attach conditions to licences and issue codes of practice. The LCCP is where it writes them down. Every business licensed in Great Britain, from a high-street bookmaker to an online casino, must follow the parts that apply to its licence type. The Commission publishes the online LCCP (opens in a new tab) as a searchable set of numbered provisions, and the version in force at the time of writing took effect on 29 July 2026.

If you've read a casino's bonus terms and wondered which bits are the casino's choice and which are compulsory, the LCCP is the answer key. It doesn't set the minimum deposit or decide which slots your spins work on. It does decide the ceiling on wagering, how clearly terms must be shown, when identity must be checked and when bonuses must stop for someone showing signs of harm.

How the LCCP is organised

The LCCP splits into three parts. Part 1 holds 18 sections of operating licence conditions, Part 2 holds 10 sections of code of practice provisions, and Part 3 covers personal licences. Provision numbers tell you where you are: 5.1.1 is in Part 2, section 5 (marketing), while 7.1.1 and 17.1.1 are Part 1 conditions.

Licence conditions, SR code and ordinary code: what's the difference?

Not every provision has the same force, and the label tells you how seriously a breach is treated. The Commission marks each provision on its page.

Ordinary codes still carry weight. The Commission's provision pages note they can be admitted as evidence in civil or criminal proceedings, and courts must consider them where relevant. But if you're reading a bonus term and want to know whether a rule is truly compulsory, look for 'licence condition' or 'social responsibility code' at the top of the provision. Our social responsibility code and LCCP glossary entries define both.

The LCCP provisions that shape a casino bonus

Here are the provisions you'll bump into most often when claiming or clearing an offer.

• 5.1.1 Rewards and bonuses (SR code). Terms must be clear, transparent, fair and easy to access. Since 19 January 2026, wagering can't exceed 10 times the bonus, and one incentive can't mix betting, casino, bingo or lottery. An offer can't be increased or changed because you reach the qualifying spend faster than the offer period. Details on our social responsibility code 5 page.
• 5.1.9 Other marketing requirements. Significant conditions must be shown transparently and prominently at the point of sale and in adverts, with full terms no more than one click away online.
• 7.1.1 Fair and transparent terms. Condition 7.1.1 (opens in a new tab) says terms must not be unfair or lack transparency under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, customers must be told about material changes before they take effect, and unfair commercial practices under the DMCC Act 2024 are banned.
• 17.1.1 Customer identity verification. Under condition 17.1.1 (opens in a new tab), name, address and date of birth must be verified before you gamble, including with a bonus.
• 3.4.3 Customer interaction. Operators must spot and act on signs of harm, and on strong indicators must stop marketing and new bonus take-up (in force since 12 February 2023). See bonuses and harm indicators.
• 3.4.4 Financial vulnerability checks. A public-record check once net deposits pass £150 in a rolling 30 days.
• 3.5.5 Multi-operator self-exclusion. Online licensees must take part in GAMSTOP, which also blocks you from bonuses.
• 6.1.2 Credit cards. Licensees can't accept credit card payments, including through e-wallets funded by a credit card.
• 4.2.1 Disclosure to customers. You're told your funds protection rating before your first deposit is used; see customer funds protection.

Tracing real bonus terms back to the LCCP

Taking our partners' published offers line by line shows which clauses come from the rulebook and which are commercial choices.

Casumo: 50% up to £100, 10x within 7 days

A £200 first deposit gets the full £100 bonus. Ten times £100 is £1,000 of wagering, exactly at the 5.1.1 ceiling. The 7-day deadline and the £5 maximum bet while a bonus is active are Casumo's own choices, though for an 18 to 24-year-old the separate £2 legal slot limit applies first. At a 4% house edge, £1,000 of slot play costs about £40 on average, which is why a 10x requirement is still a cost rather than a formality.

Ladbrokes: 50 spins a day for 10 days

Some readers ask whether daily-drip offers break the 2026 rules. They don't. The old clause about benefits depending on gambling for a set time or frequency was deleted from 5.1.1. What remains is clause 3(c): the offer can't grow or change because you hit the qualifying spend quicker. Ladbrokes' 50 a day (up to 500 spins, £50 of spin value at 10p) is fixed in advance, so it fits. See our page on time-based incentive rules.

Coral: excluded payment methods

Coral's terms exclude Neteller, PayPal, Paysafe, Skrill, prepaid cards and certain debit cards. Excluding methods is Coral's choice; showing that exclusion clearly with the offer is an LCCP requirement under 5.1.9 and the advertising codes. Our guide to how payment exclusions work covers why casinos do it.

How to look up an LCCP provision yourself

1. Open the Commission's online LCCP and choose the part: operating licence conditions, codes of practice or personal licence conditions.
2. Pick the section by topic, for example section 5 (marketing) in Part 2 for bonus rules.
3. Open the provision and read the label at the top: licence condition, social responsibility code or ordinary code.
4. Check which licences it applies to; 5.1.1, for instance, covers all licences except gaming machine technical and gambling software licences.
5. Note the version date of the LCCP you're reading, since provisions are rewritten over time.
6. Compare the provision with the casino's bonus terms and, if they clash, raise it through the casino's complaints process.

Which version of the LCCP applies to my bonus?

The LCCP isn't a fixed document. The Commission consults on changes and publishes new versions with effective dates; the online version in force at the time of writing took effect on 29 July 2026. Earlier versions are what applied before. For a bonus, the version that matters is the one in force when you opted in.

That's why an article from 2024 describing 35x wagering as normal, or one claiming a 2026 ban on time-based incentives, can mislead. The first describes rules that no longer apply; the second describes a change that didn't happen. Our bonus terms 2025 vs 2026 comparison shows what actually moved.

How the LCCP is enforced

Breaking a licence condition or SR code can lead the Commission to review a licence and impose a financial penalty, suspend or revoke it. Most large penalties in 2024 to 2026 involved social responsibility and anti-money laundering failures rather than bonus wording, but unfair terms are enforced too. In July 2025 Taichi Tech was fined £170,000 (opens in a new tab), partly for a term letting it close accounts or forfeit winnings at its discretion, which falls under condition 7.1.1.

Customer interaction failures under 3.4.3 feature in many recent cases, including Paddy Power Betfair's £2 million settlement in December 2025. Our page on operator fines for bonus failings lists cases relevant to promotions, and customer interaction rules explains the duty itself.

What the LCCP doesn't cover

• Advert wording in detail. That's the CAP and BCAP codes, which the LCCP requires licensees to follow; see advertising codes CAP 16.
• Game design and RTP display. These sit in the Commission's separate remote technical standards, which the LCCP points to.
• Consumer law itself. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies on its own terms; the LCCP adds a licence obligation to comply with it.
• Northern Ireland. The LCCP binds Commission licensees serving Great Britain.
• Your tax. Players don't pay tax on winnings; duty is an operator matter under finance law.

LCCP changes that affected bonuses: timeline

The LCCP and our partner offers

All five of our partners hold Commission licences, so every provision above applies to their offers. Coral's offer is the cleanest fit with the LCCP's aim of simple terms: 18+, new players, deposit (certain types excluded) and bet £10 or more on slots to get 100 free spins at 10p each on selected games, accepted within 48 hours and valid for 7 days, with no wagering on winnings. Neteller, PayPal, Paysafe, Skrill, prepaid cards and certain debit cards don't qualify.

Ladbrokes, run by the same licence holder, offers new customers aged 18+ who deposit and spend £10 on slots 50 free spins a day for 10 days, up to 500 at 10p each, with no wagering; claim each batch by 23:59 and use it within 7 days, and note that prepaid cards, PayPal, Paysafe, Neteller, Skrill and Moneybookers deposits don't qualify. PlayOJO gives new UK customers, excluding Northern Ireland, 80 spins on Big Bass Bonanza at 10p each after a first deposit of at least £10, with winnings paid as cash. Terms apply, and the house edge applies to every spin you pay for. See all five on our casino bonuses hub.

18+. Gambling should be entertainment that costs money, not a way to make it. Decide a budget before you play: set a budget. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.