18+ Over 18s only. Gambling can be addictive: set deposit and time limits, and stop when it stops being fun. Credit cards cannot be used for gambling in Ireland. The free, confidential National Gambling Helpline is open 24 hours on 1800 936 725.
In Casinos
01Live Casino IrelandThe equipment is real and the stream is live. Neither of those changes the house edge, which is built into the payouts.
021 Euro Minimum Deposit CasinosOne euro buys between two and ten spins, and almost never a bonus. Useful for testing a cashier, not for a session.
03Minimum Deposit Casinos in IrelandA site can take 1 euro and still need 20 before its welcome offer applies. The deposit minimum, the bonus minimum and…
Online casinos serving Irish players currently operate under licences from other jurisdictions such as Malta, while the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) issues licences in phases and gaming licences are not expected to open until throughout 2027 and 2028. The public register held 40 licences on 6 October 2026: 35 remote betting, 4 remote betting intermediary, 1 in-person betting, and no gaming licences yet.
That makes the useful question different from the one most players start with. Instead of asking whether a site holds an Irish licence, check which company runs it and which overseas regulator it answers to. The operators on this page hold casino licences from Malta or Gibraltar and, in several cases, a separate GRAI betting licence for their sportsbook. Our review method measures how clearly that corporate trail is documented.
Top online casinos for Irish players
The table below lists operators we have checked against the GRAI, Malta Gaming Authority and Gibraltar registers. The order follows our published transparency score, not a test of payouts, game counts or withdrawal speed. A higher score means the operator makes it easier to verify who runs the casino and under which licence.
Compared operators
Operators we compared for this page
18+ ·
We may earn a commission when you sign up through these links; it never changes the order. Read our affiliate disclosure.
Before you sign up, find the company named in the site footer and search that exact name in the register the operator claims to use. If the casino badge names Malta, check the MGA register for that company. If the badge names Gibraltar, the public register lists the holder but no licence number. A GRAI number on the same site covers its sportsbook, so treat it as evidence of the betting arm only. For a longer checklist, see our safe casino sites page, and for quicker withdrawals, our fast payout casinos guide. Bonus terms change often, so we do not quote live offers here; the place to check current conditions is the operator itself.
Which licences the casinos here operate under
The Gambling Regulation Act 2024 created the GRAI and set a phased licensing system. Remote betting and betting intermediary licences commenced on 1 July 2026. Gaming licences, the category an online casino would need, are scheduled to open throughout 2027 and 2028. Until then, no operator can hold an Irish casino licence because the GRAI has no casino category to grant.
Register on 6 October 2026 40 licences in total
Remote betting 35
Remote betting intermediary 4
In-person betting 1
Gaming licences 0
A GRAI number displayed on an operator’s site covers its Irish sportsbook. It tells you nothing about the casino games on the same domain. You can verify that at grai.ie/register. Several of the casinos below hold a GRAI betting licence through the same company that runs the casino, but the licence categories are still separate. Some sites use Curacao instead of Malta or Gibraltar, and that register works differently; our Curacao casinos page explains what to look for there.
How we score these sites
CasinoCraic gives each site a score out of 10 on how well its licensing is documented. This is a transparency rating, not a verdict on how enjoyable the casino is, and it says nothing about payouts or game choice.
How the review is organised
30 %Casino licence in a public register
We find the company that actually runs the casino in a regulator’s own public register, not just a badge in a footer.
20 %Irish regulatory touchpoint
Whether that same company is on the GRAI register. It covers betting, never casino, but it means an Irish regulator already holds the operator to account.
20 %Disclosure on the operator’s own pages
Whether its own site names the contracting company, the casino licence and which product each licence covers.
20 %Accuracy of its Irish claims
Points are lost where a betting licence is presented so it could read as casino approval, and lost entirely for implying Irish casino licensing that does not exist.
10 %Corporate traceability
Whether the register gives a company registration number and licence number you can look up, and how many companies sit between the player and the licence.
We work in four steps: find the company behind the casino, look it up in the regulator’s own register, separate the casino licence from any betting licence, and compare what the site claims against what the register shows. We date every check. We did not deposit, withdraw or count a lobby for this page. The full method is on our how we review page.
The casinos we have checked
These six brands lead the page because their casino licensee and their GRAI betting licensee are the same company. That makes the corporate trail easier to follow than a brand where the Irish betting arm sits in a different company.
NetBet Casino
10.0/10
Screenshot of NetBet Casino lobby.
NetBet Enterprises Limited, a Malta company with registration number C 39218, operates NetBet Casino under MGA/B2C/126/2006. The same company holds the Irish remote betting licence GRAI-1195-RB-26-0001. Both entries are visible in their respective public registers.
That single-company structure removes a common source of confusion. When you check the casino badge, you find one legal entity. When you check the GRAI register for the sportsbook, you find the same entity, so the chain between the brand and the operator is short.
The Malta licence number and the GRAI number are specific enough to cross-check without ambiguity. No Gibraltar-style gap appears, because Gibraltar publishes no licence numbers at all.
Parameter
What the registers show
Casino licensee
NetBet Enterprises Limited (C 39218)
Casino licence
MGA/B2C/126/2006
GRAI betting licence
GRAI-1195-RB-26-0001
Same company
Yes
The 10.0 score reflects that this operator makes every relevant licence check straightforward, with the casino and betting arms sitting under one identifiable company.
Paddy Power Games
9.5/10
Screenshot of Paddy Power Games lobby.
PPB Counterparty Services Limited, registered in Malta as C 40083, runs Paddy Power Games. Its casino licence is MGA/CRP/131/2006. The same company holds the GRAI betting licence GRAI-1003-RB-26-0001.
This is the clearest illustration of the betting and casino split on a single domain. The sportsbook answers to the GRAI. The casino games answer to the Malta Gaming Authority. The company behind both is the same, so the public trail is unusually tidy.
Betfair shares this licensee, which matters if you play on both brands. One company, one casino licence, one GRAI betting licence. The shared structure does not merge the products, but it does simplify due diligence.
The score is 9.5 rather than 10 because the brand’s marketing pages lean heavily on its Irish identity, and a reader can mistake that identity for a casino licence. The register check clears it up quickly.
We did not deposit or withdraw with this operator, and we did not count its lobby.
In its favour
The casino and sportsbook licensee is the same Maltese company.
The Malta licence number appears in a public register.
The GRAI number points to the same legal entity.
Watch out for
Irish advertising does not mean the casino is GRAI-regulated.
The brand shares its casino licence with Betfair.
Gaming oversight remains Maltese until 2027 or 2028.
Betway Casino
9.5/10
Screenshot of Betway Casino lobby.
Betway Limited, a Malta company with registration C39710, operates Betway Casino under MGA/CRP/130/2006. Its Irish sportsbook uses the same company, with GRAI betting licence GRAI-0524-RB-26-0001.
The casino and betting arms therefore share a single legal entity. A reader checking either register ends at the same corporate name, which reduces the chance of confusing a trading name with a licensee.
The Malta licence is specific and searchable. The GRAI number is also specific, so the two categories can be kept separate without losing sight of the operator.
Parameter
What the registers show
Casino licensee
Betway Limited (C39710)
Casino licence
MGA/CRP/130/2006
GRAI betting licence
GRAI-0524-RB-26-0001
Same company
Yes
The MGA register lists Betway Limited as the casino licensee.
The GRAI register lists the same company for remote betting.
No separate intermediary licence complicates the picture.
BoyleSports Casino
9.0/10
Screenshot of BoyleSports Casino lobby.
Boylesports (Gibraltar) Limited holds a Gibraltar Gaming Operator (B2C) licence for the casino. The same company appears on the Irish register with GRAI betting licence GRAI-0852-RB-26-0001. That is the main reason this brand scores well.
Gibraltar publishes no licence numbers, only the holder and the category. The GRAI number is therefore more useful for a direct cross-check than the casino badge. You can still confirm the casino licence by searching the holder’s name in the Gibraltar register.
The structure is straightforward: one company runs the casino and the Irish sportsbook. The gap is that the casino badge gives you a category rather than a searchable number.
Parameter
What the registers show
Casino licensee
Boylesports (Gibraltar) Limited
Casino licence
Gibraltar, Gaming Operator (B2C)
GRAI betting licence
GRAI-0852-RB-26-0001
Same company
Yes
The 9.0 score is an editorial transparency rating against the published rubric, and it comes from the public registers rather than from play testing.
Betfair Casino
8.5/10
Screenshot of Betfair Casino lobby.
Betfair Casino uses PPB Counterparty Services Limited, the same Maltese company that runs Paddy Power Games. Its casino licence is MGA/CRP/131/2006. The GRAI betting licence GRAI-1003-RB-26-0001 belongs to the same company.
The exchange adds a second Irish licence, GRAI-1074-RBI-26-0001, as a remote betting intermediary. That extra layer is specific to Betfair and makes the overall picture slightly more complex, even though the casino licensee remains simple.
When you check Betfair, you should separate the casino, the sportsbook and the exchange. The casino and sportsbook share a company. The exchange sits under the same corporate umbrella but is a distinct licensed activity.
The score is 8.5 because the brand has more moving parts than Paddy Power, despite sharing the same casino licensee. The casino trail is still clear, but the extra intermediary licence changes what a reader must verify.
We did not deposit, withdraw or count a lobby for this card.
In its favour
The casino licensee is identifiable in the MGA register.
The same company holds the main GRAI betting licence.
The shared structure with Paddy Power is well documented.
Watch out for
The exchange licence is separate and must not be read as the casino licence.
Two brands share one casino licensee, which can confuse comparisons.
The Irish identity of the sportsbook does not extend to casino oversight.
Ladbrokes Casino
8.0/10
Screenshot of Ladbrokes Casino lobby.
LC International Limited holds a Gibraltar Gaming Operator (B2C) licence for Ladbrokes Casino. The same company appears on the GRAI register with betting licence GRAI-0622-RB-26-0001.
The casino licence trail relies on Gibraltar’s public register, which names the holder but does not issue a number. You can verify the category and the company, although the check takes an extra step compared with a numbered Malta entry.
The GRAI number is specific and covers the Irish sportsbook. It confirms the same legal entity as the casino operator, so the corporate chain remains short.
Parameter
What the registers show
Casino licensee
LC International Limited
Casino licence
Gibraltar, Gaming Operator (B2C)
GRAI betting licence
GRAI-0622-RB-26-0001
Same company
Yes
The Gibraltar register lists LC International Limited as a Gaming Operator.
The GRAI register lists the same company for remote betting.
No casino licence number exists in Gibraltar to quote.
Reading a licence badge
A badge is only useful if you know which register it points to. Malta and Gibraltar both publish casino registers, but they do not work in the same way. The GRAI badge covers a different category altogether.
Find the company
Open the footer and note the legal entity that runs the casino. A trading name is not enough.
Check the right register
Malta and Gibraltar publish casino licence registers. Search the exact company name.
Separate betting from casino
A GRAI number covers the sportsbook. Check whether the casino licence exists under the same company elsewhere.
Date the check
Registers change. Write down the date you looked, so you can spot later claims that no longer match.
A Malta badge gives you a licence number to search and a company name to match. A Gibraltar badge names the holder and the category but no number, as our MGA casinos page explains for the Malta side. A GRAI badge on a casino homepage usually tells you about the bookmaker, not the slots.
What protects you
A public casino licence from Malta or Gibraltar means a regulator can receive complaints.
Licensed operators must run identity checks and follow anti-money laundering duties.
You can verify the company name in a public register.
What does not
The GRAI does not regulate the casino games until gaming licences open.
A Gibraltar badge gives no licence number to cross-check.
Overseas regulators answer to their own rules, not Irish ones.
What changes when gaming licences open
The GRAI expects applications for gaming licences to open throughout 2027 and 2028. That is the category an online casino would need, and the register currently shows no gaming licences at all. When the category opens, the Irish register should finally list casino operators directly.
What should change
Once gaming licences open, the GRAI register will list casino licensees. You should be able to search an operator by company and see a gaming category.
What will not change
Existing rules such as the credit card ban, the 18 age limit and the advertising watershed stay in force. New licences will add oversight, not remove those duties.
Minimum age 18
Credit cards banned for gambling since 5 February 2026
Advertising watershed none between 05:30 and 21:00 on broadcast or streaming
Exclusion register not yet commenced
Credit cards cannot be used for gambling in Ireland since 5 February 2026. Debit cards are unaffected and remain the default payment instrument for most players.
Until gaming licences open, an Irish-facing casino will keep operating on an overseas licence. The useful habit is the one this page has repeated: find the company, search the correct register, and keep the casino licence apart from the sportsbook licence. For payment specifics, see payment methods. For what bonuses actually bind you to, see casino bonus. New operators will appear over time, and our new online casinos page tracks those changes.
In this section
01 / Casino guide
Safe Online Casinos in Ireland
Safe is the word Irish casino marketing abuses most, because the obvious proof does not exist here. Six checks you can do yourself instead.
Read the guide 02 / Casino guide
New Online Casinos in Ireland
A new brand on an existing licence is far more common than a genuinely new operator, and much less new than it looks.
Read the guide 03 / Casino guide
Fast Payout Casinos in Ireland
We did not time a single withdrawal, so this page does not rank casinos by speed. What it does is explain what actually controls it.
Read the guide 04 / Casino guide
MGA Licensed Casinos: What a Malta Licence Covers
Most casinos an Irish player can reach run on a Malta licence. It is an EU licence, it is not an Irish one, and it is the easiest of the three to verify.
Read the guide 05 / Casino guide
Curaçao Licensed Casinos: What the Licence Does and Does Not Do
Curaçao reformed its licensing, moving away from the master and sublicence model. It still leaves an Irish player with less than Malta does.
Read the guide 06 / Casino guide
Best Real Money Casino Apps in Ireland
Check the publisher name in the store against the company named in the casino’s own terms. A look-alike app with the right logo is the usual scam.
Can I join the National Gambling Exclusion Register today?
The register is provided for by the Act but has not commenced yet. Until it starts, self-exclusion is per operator, so you have to ask each site to close the account. Our responsible gambling page lists the current options.
Does a GRAI number mean the casino is licensed?
A GRAI number on an operator’s site covers its Irish sportsbook, not the casino games. The casino licence will be Maltese, Gibraltar or another overseas jurisdiction until 2027 or 2028.
Are Malta and Gibraltar licences safe for Irish players?
They are public licences from established gambling regulators, but they are not Irish oversight. You can check the company in the relevant register and read what the licence covers before you play.
Can I use a credit card at an online casino?
Credit cards cannot be used for gambling in Ireland since 5 February 2026, online or in person, and licensees may not facilitate credit. Debit cards are unaffected.
What happens when GRAI gaming licences open?
The Irish register should list casino licensees for the first time. You should then be able to search an operator by company and see a gaming category, with the GRAI as the direct regulator.
