Almost every crypto casino shortlists the same two gaming licenses. The short version: the Anjouan gaming license wins on cost, speed, and tax, while the Curacao gaming license wins on name recognition with payment providers and game suppliers. Which one fits depends entirely on your counterparties. Here is the line-by-line comparison we run with operators at the desk.
Anjouan gaming license: cost, timeline, and tax
Anjouan (Autonomous Island of Anjouan, Union of Comoros) starts from around EUR 23.5K, covering EUR 17K of regulator fees and application management, and issues in 2 to 6 weeks from a complete file. With incorporation and the compliance policy pack a full launch lands near EUR 31.7K. Gross gaming revenue is taxed at 0%, and a single license covers casino, sportsbook, and lottery verticals. Since the ADR framework introduced in 2026, dispute resolution requirements have tightened, which has improved how the license is perceived without materially slowing issuance.
Curacao gaming license under the LOK: what changed
Curacao's reformed LOK regime licenses operators directly through the Curacao Gaming Authority rather than through master license holders. The application fee is EUR 4,592, but annual costs run to EUR 47,450, being a EUR 24,490 license fee to the National Treasury plus a EUR 22,960 supervisory fee to the CGA, and the obligations are now real: local substance requirements phase in from January 2026 and a key person requirement lands by April 2027. In exchange, the recognition is unmatched. Game studios, aggregators, and PSPs have onboarded Curacao licensees for two decades, and conservative counterparties still treat it as the minimum acceptable license.
If you already hold a Curacao license, the LOK compliance deadlines now running through 2026 and 2027 change the calculation materially, and are covered in the Curacao LOK deadlines guide.
Cost comparison: Anjouan vs Curacao over three years
- Anjouan: from EUR 23.5K in year one, then roughly EUR 17K of regulator fees annually. Three-year spend lands in the high EUR 50Ks.
- Curacao: from EUR 58.5K in year one, then EUR 47,450 per year plus substance costs. Three-year spend comfortably exceeds EUR 150K once local presence, office and staffing are priced in.
That delta is the price of the Curacao name. Whether it is worth paying is a counterparty question, not a preference question.
Which license do payment providers and game suppliers accept?
A crypto-only operation running original or crypto-native games rarely needs the Curacao name and banks the savings. An operator planning fiat PSPs, mainstream studios, or aggregator relationships should price Curacao's overhead as the cost of smoother onboarding, some counterparties simply will not process for anything less.
What about Tuvalu?
A third option now sits between them on price and beats both on structure: the Tuvalu gaming license starts from around EUR 22.3K in year one with 3 to 4 week issuance and 0% GGR tax, and requires no local company at all, so it licenses an entity you already own. Operators choosing purely between Anjouan and Curacao on cost should price it as a third quote, the full breakdown is in the Tuvalu gaming license guide.
Can you hold both licenses?
The option neither of them covers
If the answer to Anjouan or Curacao is "neither", the middle ground is Saint Kitts and Nevis at around EUR 34.5K. It sits between the two on both price and recognition: a written framework and a dedicated authority created in 2025, one B2C license across every vertical, and a Caribbean address, but without the payment provider acceptance Curacao brings. Full cost rankings across every regime are in the cheapest gaming license in 2026.
Worth separating one thing out, because it is the most common structuring mistake we see. Neither license covers virtual asset services. A crypto casino that also runs an exchange, a custodial wallet, or token issuance needs a second authorization for that activity, and the Anjouan crypto license comes from the same authority as the Anjouan gaming license at around EUR 12.5K.
Yes, and it is an increasingly common sequence in our engagements: launch on Anjouan for speed, prove the operation, then add Curacao once counterparty requirements justify the annual cost. The corporate structure can be designed from day one so the second license slots into the same stack without reincorporation, see our company formation page for how the layers are arranged. The full launch sequence is in How to Start a Crypto Casino in 2026, and both regimes are quoted fixed on the licensing page.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an Anjouan gaming license cost?
From around EUR 23.5K through Rakemont, covering EUR 17K of regulator fees and the application management. Adding incorporation and the compliance policy pack brings a full launch to roughly EUR 31.7K. GGR tax is 0% and issuance takes 2 to 6 weeks.
How much does a Curacao gaming license cost in 2026?
EUR 4,592 to apply under the LOK regime, plus EUR 47,450 annually, which is a EUR 24,490 license fee and a EUR 22,960 supervisory fee. Through Rakemont that starts from around EUR 58.5K in year one, before local substance costs which phase in from January 2026.
Is the Anjouan license legitimate?
Yes. It is issued by the Anjouan Gaming Board under the laws of the Autonomous Island of Anjouan, and thousands of crypto operators run on it. Its 2026 ADR requirements added formal player dispute resolution. Recognition among conservative fiat counterparties is lower than Curacao, which is the trade-off.
Which license is better for a crypto-only casino?
Anjouan, in most cases: same legal effect for crypto rails at a fraction of the recurring cost. Curacao earns its overhead when fiat PSPs, mainstream game studios, or aggregators are on the roadmap.