Online gambling in Tajikistan: regulation, licence and market guide

Is online gambling legal in Tajikistan?

Casinos were closed by presidential decision in the early 2000s, and Article 240 of the Criminal Code criminalizes the organization or maintenance of casinos, gaming tables and slot machines with cash prizes, with penalties reported at six to eight years' imprisonment and confiscation. No law creates a licence for online casino games, so internet casino has no lawful basis. Bookmaking, totalizator cash desks and lotto are listed as licensable activities under the Law on Licensing Certain Types of Activity, and since 1 September 2024 bookmaking has run under a special regulatory regime piloted by the Agency for Innovation and Digital Technologies, with payouts settled through a Central Settlement Center and credit institutions. Foreign gambling sites are blocked, and the market is closed to international operators.

Prohibited: Online gambling is illegal for operators and players and is enforced.

Who regulates gambling in Tajikistan?

• Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Tajikistan (MoF) — Licensing body for bookmaker offices, totalizator cash desks and lotto under the Law on Licensing Certain Types of Activity
• Agency for Innovation and Digital Technologies under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan — Established and administers the special regulatory regime for the bookmaking pilot project in force since 1 September 2024, including the Central Settlement Center
• Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) — Enforces the criminal prohibition on casinos and slot machines and works with telecom providers to block unlicensed gambling sites

Tajikistan gambling licence: how it works

No licence exists for casino games in any form, land-based or online, because Article 240 of the Criminal Code makes organizing or maintaining casinos, gaming tables and cash-prize slot machines a criminal offense and no statute carves out a remote casino category. The Law on Licensing Certain Types of Activity of 17 May 2004, as amended, lists the organization and maintenance of totalizator cash desks, bookmaker offices and lotto games as licensable activities of the Ministry of Finance, so a domestic bookmaking business is possible in principle. From 1 September 2024 the Agency for Innovation and Digital Technologies placed bookmaking under a special regulatory regime for a pilot project (Order 1/32 of 9 August 2024, amended by Order 1/05 of 24 May 2025) in which participants contract with a credit institution and winnings are paid on the instruction of a Central Settlement Center through its unified system. The licensing law does not define a separate internet betting category, and licences are not available to foreign operators. For an international online casino or sportsbook platform, Tajikistan is a closed market.

What an applicant needs

• No licence for casino, slot or online casino games; organizing them is a criminal offense
• Bookmaking, totalizator and lotto licences are available only to domestic entities through the Ministry of Finance
• Bookmakers operate within the 2024 pilot regime with a contract with a credit institution and settlement through the Central Settlement Center

Gambling taxes in Tajikistan

• Operators: No gambling tax regime for casino or online casino operators, since the activity is criminalized; licensed bookmakers pay taxes under the general Tax Code.
• Players: Not applicable for prohibited products; winnings from licensed bookmakers are settled through credit institutions under the pilot regime.

Advertising, player protection, KYC and payments

Advertising

Advertising of casinos or online casino products has no lawful basis. Promotion of bookmaking is confined to licensed domestic participants in the pilot regime.

Responsible gaming

There is no responsible-gaming framework for casino products because they are prohibited. The bookmaking pilot regime centralizes payouts through a settlement center, which gives the state visibility of every winning paid.

Identity and age verification

Not applicable to casino operators. Licensed bookmakers identify customers for payouts, which the Central Settlement Center instructs credit institutions to make to the winner.

Payments

Payment processing for casino or online casino gambling has no lawful basis, and unlicensed sites are blocked. Under the pilot regime, bookmaker winnings are paid by a credit institution on the instruction of the Central Settlement Center and debited from the bookmaker's account at that institution.

Notable restrictions

• Organizing or maintaining casinos, gaming tables and cash-prize slot machines is a criminal offense under Article 240 of the Criminal Code
• No legal category exists for online casino or remote casino platforms
• Bookmaking, totalizators and lotto require a Ministry of Finance licence and, since 2024, participation in the state pilot regime
• Accepting bets privately without authorization is an administrative offense
• Unlicensed foreign gambling sites are blocked

Tajikistan iGaming market: size, players and payments

No reliable public estimate; the authorities do not publish gambling revenue, and the regulated sector is limited to a small number of domestic bookmakers and lotto operators.

A handful of domestic bookmakers and lotto operators hold Ministry of Finance licences and take part in the 2024 pilot regime; there are no licensed casinos or online casino operators, and no foreign operator is licensed.

Timeline: how Tajikistan got here

1. 2000Casino activity suspended by presidential decision
2. 2004-05Law on Licensing Certain Types of Activity adopted; bookmaking, totalizator and lotto later listed as licensable
3. 2009Criminal Code amended to criminalize organizing casinos and slot machines with cash prizes (Article 240)
4. 2024-08Agency for Innovation and Digital Technologies issues Order 1/32 creating a special regulatory regime for a bookmaking pilot from 1 September 2024
5. 2025-05Order 1/05 amends the pilot rules: winnings paid by credit institutions on the instruction of the Central Settlement Center
6. 2026-09No licensing route for casino or online casino games; prohibition remains in force

Outlook

The pilot regime shows the state intends to keep bookmaking under tight central settlement rather than open the market, and there is no sign of a licensing category for online casino games. Any change would require amending the Criminal Code and the licensing law, neither of which was under public discussion at the review date. Compliance teams should treat Tajikistan as prohibited for casino products and closed to foreign operators for betting.

GameBridge and Tajikistan

Not served by GameBridge. Casino gambling is a criminal offense in Tajikistan and betting is reserved for domestic licensees inside a state pilot regime, so no GameBridge brand can lawfully serve residents; the country is excluded by geo-controls by default and this page exists so compliance teams can verify the status quickly.

Tajikistan sits on GameBridge's default exclusion list, and every brand's geo-controls block Tajik IP addresses, identity documents and payment instruments at registration and deposit. GameBridge does not describe or support any means of reaching players in a prohibited market. Russian is available as a site language for markets where GameBridge brands operate lawfully, but it is not used to target Tajikistan. Should the Criminal Code and licensing law change to create a lawful category for online games, GameBridge would review the framework with the operator's counsel before any change to the geo list.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and review

Reviewed against the sources below on 11 September 2026. Regulation changes; confirm the current position with local counsel before launch.

• Уголовный кодекс Республики Таджикистан (с изменениями по состоянию на 17.06.2026), статья 240 — Continent Online, accessed 2026-09-11
• Распоряжение Агентства инноваций и цифровых технологий от 9 августа 2024 года № 1/32 о специальном режиме в сфере букмекерской деятельности — Paragraf, accessed 2026-09-11
• Распоряжение от 24 мая 2025 года № 1/05 о внесении изменений в распоряжение № 1/32 — Paragraf, accessed 2026-09-11
• Law of the Republic of Tajikistan amending the Law on Licensing Certain Types of Activity (bookmaker offices, totalizators, lotto) — CIS Legislation, accessed 2026-09-11
• Онлайн-казино в Таджикистане в 2026 году — закон, запрет и легальные ставки — Bet Rating, accessed 2026-09-11
• Ставки на спорт и азартные игры в Таджикистане: законы и ограничения — Avesta.tj, accessed 2026-09-11

Regulatory summaries are provided for orientation only and are not legal advice. Licensing requirements change; we validate them with you during scoping.