France’s Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) has adopted new technical requirements for operator checks against the national register of persons banned from gambling, setting a transition deadline of 15 July 2027.
Decision No. 2026-141, adopted on 2 July and published on 8 July, replaces the existing 2020 framework governing how licensed operators query the register. The measure was notified to the European Commission in March under the EU technical regulation procedure.
The register is one of France’s main player-protection tools. It covers people who are prohibited from gambling, including those who have requested voluntary exclusion.
Under France’s Internal Security Code, operators must check the register before allowing relevant gambling participation or account access.
The new requirements define how operators connect to the consultation service, how queries are formatted and how responses must be processed. The technical document specifies use of the main API, authentication certificates, authorised server IP addresses and continuity procedures if the main service becomes unavailable.
Where a player is identified as banned, the operator must prevent the relevant gambling activity. Where the response shows no ban, the operator may lift suspension of participation or authorise the account opening process, subject to its other legal obligations.
The update comes during a wider regulatory cycle focused on gambling harm. ANJ’s 2024-2026 strategic plan places the reduction of excessive gambling and the protection of minors at the centre of its programme, alongside enforcement against illegal gambling.
The regulator has also expanded its use of data and technical supervision. Its English-language materials state that ANJ regulates licensed gambling online, at points of sale and at racecourses, while also overseeing responsible gambling policy for casinos.
The register has become more significant as self-exclusion demand has increased. France has more than 85,000 people registered on its exclusion list, more than double the 2021 level, according to reporting on ANJ’s prevention work.
The decision follows Global Gaming Insider’s report that ANJ warned players that esports betting remains illegal in France during the Esports World Cup in Paris, with the regulator also citing 1,290 blocked illegal gambling sites or related adverts in 2025.
The 2026 technical requirements include a fallback process for exceptional cases where the main register consultation API is unavailable
