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Internet gaming is a legitimate business activity in the Netherlands Antilles, especially Curacao, provided the e-gaming company has obtained the proper license. The Netherlands Antilles (master) gaming licenses are based on the National Ordinance on Offshore Games of Hazard.
Internet gaming operators can apply for an egaming license to the Curacao Department of Justice or obtain a sub-license from a master license holder. Since 1996, Cyberluck Curacao has been the Master License Authority designated by the Department of Justice. In May 2007, the Curacao Internet Gaming Association announced that Curacao was in the process of updating its e-gaming regulations and legislation, with a view to maintain its position amongst world leading e-gaming jurisdictions.
Applicants must first register with the Netherlands Antilles Chamber of Commerce as a locally formed legal entity, either onshore or offshore, and must state the island territories from which they wish to operate. Once an application is completed, the Department of Justice will conduct an investigation. If at the end of six weeks the investigation has been completed and yielded no objections then the applicant can receive a provisional license, which will be subject to a number of conditions, including a 60,000 (ANG) guarantee deposit.
Online gaming operators may also obtain sub-licenses to run Internet gambling operations from the Netherlands Antilles. Host businesses may sub-divide their existing gambling licenses for use by partner companies, provided the arrangement complies with applicable fees ranging from USD $2,000 to USD $4,000.
License holders pay 10,000 (ANG) per month in license fees during the first two years. A new license fee can be determined after the first two years.
The island territory on which a license holder is located is entitled to demand a contribution of up to 2% of the license holder's net gains from interactive gaming.
While the licensing regulations used by the Netherlands Antilles are not the most stringent in the business, they do a decent job of ensuring their licensees run safe and reliable online gambling sites. There are several extremely reputable sites licensed there, and the region has one of the longest track records in the world for dealing with online gambling licenses.
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