The Swedish gaming regulator, Spelinspektionen, has faced criticism from the Parliamentary Ombudsman for practices regarding self-exclusion.
Spelinspektionen runs and manages Spelpaus.se, the national gambling self-exclusion register. It was designed so that it could run automatically, with Spelinspektionen not needing to handle suspensions manually.
This is possible through the use of e-identification; however, before mid-2024, people had no way to self-exclude with the register without e-identification.
For certain groups of individuals, including the elderly, people without online access and others, this meant having no way to use the service. In Spring 2024, Spelinspektionen began work to rectify this.
However, a report to the Parliamentary Ombudsman shared one story that, in mid-2024, when an individual attempted to sign up for Spelpaus.se without e-identification, it took Spelinspektionen roughly a month to address the request.
The Parliamentary Ombudsman criticised Spelinspektionen for not acting on the request sooner, and for not providing an alternative solution for someone looking to self-suspend without e-identification.
Spelinspektionen regulates licensed gaming in Sweden. Recently, it passed new advice for those holding casino licences, which will come into effect from 1 December.
The regulator's new advice replaces LIFS 2018:9, with the new SIFS 2025:1. Changes include placement of slot machines and ATMs in restaurants and bars, how much a restaurant or bars must earn to operate certain numbers of machines, and so on.
Spelinspektionen's decision to reject Kornhults Idrottsklubb's public benefits gaming (bingo) licence application was recently approved by Sweden's Administrative Court
