Spelinspektionen strengthens regulations for national self-exclusion checks

(AsiaGameHub) –   The Swedish Gambling Authority (Spelinspektionen) has rolled out new regulations that raise the technical requirements for licensed gambling operators active in Sweden. These updated rules clarify and standardise the technical processes operators must follow to connect to Spelpaus, Sweden’s national self-exclusion scheme.

Finalised on 23 April and made public on 29 April, the revised rules will come into force on 1 August 2026.

What do the new rules include?

• Every licence holder will be issued a unique Actor ID and API Key. These credentials are mandatory for all queries made to the self-exclusion register. What is more, these checks must be completed before any direct marketing communications are sent to users.

• Verification is required during new player account registration, and operators must also check a user’s self-exclusion status whenever a player attempts to log into their account.

• All marketing-related checks must be processed via a dedicated marketing API, while checks carried out as part of player registration and login workflows must use a separate, distinct login API.

• A self-exclusion check is only considered complete once it provides a definitive confirmation of whether a given individual is registered as self-excluded.

Spelpaus, Sweden’s national self-exclusion register, was introduced in the wake of the country’s 2019 gambling regulatory reform. It mandates all licensed operators to block access to their services for people who have chosen to self-exclude. Under Swedish law, all operators holding a local licence are required to integrate the register into their service offerings.

Players can opt to self-exclude for a number of pre-set time periods. These options include one, three and six-month breaks, while users can also choose to block their access for 12 months or longer if they prefer.

The register was updated in 2023 to make guidance and information related to problem gambling more easily accessible. The 2023 update also added a feature that allows players to extend their existing self-exclusion period.

Licence holders retain full responsibility for compliance

The regulations explicitly state that full responsibility remains with the licence holder, even if technical check processes are delegated to third-party service providers. Licence holders must ensure their assigned Actor ID and API Key are used for all checks, stressing that outsourcing work does not absolve operators of their compliance obligations.

While the regulations lay out the overarching technical framework, they do not yet include detailed API specifications, response formats, or service performance standards – all information that is critical for operators to plan their integration work.

Spelpaus came under public scrutiny just last year, after a documentary series alleged that the register had suffered a data breach.

The regulator moved quickly to reject these claims, and emphasised that all information stored on the register is fully encrypted.

“The register holds no information indicating whether a person who has self-excluded has a gambling addiction or not,” a spokesperson for the authority noted at the time.