Armenia will introduce strengthened controls targeting unlicensed online gambling and lottery websites from 8 February 2027, according to the State Revenue Committee.
The measures follow amendments to the country’s Law on the Regulation of Gambling Activities and related legislation. They will revise existing mechanisms used to prevent offshore operators without Armenian licences from reaching consumers in the online market.
Under the new framework, telecommunications operators will be required to restrict access to unlicensed gambling websites through a technical blocking system. The rules will also limit the distribution of advertising connected to unauthorised platforms.
The State Revenue Committee said the changes were prompted by the availability of foreign gambling services and related marketing within Armenia’s digital environment. It argued that existing administrative measures had become insufficient because the businesses concerned operate outside the country’s legal framework.
The regulator presented the amendments as a means of improving the effectiveness of Armenia’s licensing regime, protecting compliant operators and creating more equal competitive conditions.
Licensed gambling activity will not be restricted by the new controls, according to the committee. The measures are directed at organisations offering online gambling or lottery products without the required Armenian authorisation.
The February commencement date gives licensed operators, telecommunications providers and advertising businesses five months to assess the requirements and prepare their compliance procedures.
The changes form part of an Armenian effort to increase oversight of digital gambling, strengthen the regulated market and reduce access to unauthorised operators.
In recent weeks, Armenia has also appointed Random Systems International to implement a digital gambling-monitoring system under a 15-year agreement. Separately, lawmakers are considering restrictions for vulnerable groups, a gambling-spending limit equivalent to 20% of declared annual income and changes to self-exclusion.
The State Revenue Committee says the measures will not restrict gambling activity conducted by licensed operators
