GAMING LICENCE IN GHANA: REQUIREMENTS, COSTS & TIMELINE FOR PROCESSING

Gaming business has been active in Ghana since 1960. The number of gamers in Ghana including Casinos, Sports Betting and other Games of Chance spread across the country. The Covid-19 pandemic encouraged the use of technology to drive the industry and the Gaming Commission of Ghana has also come up with policies to promote the growth of the industry. These policies and regulations, amongst other things, regulate the kind of persons that can apply for a grant of the licence, the types of games that can be considered for licensing etc.

WHO CAN OPERATE A GAMING BUSINESS IN GHANA?

A person qualifies to run a gaming business in Ghana where the person in question meets two conditions, i.e., being;

i. A Limited Liability Company partly or wholly owned by Ghanaians and;

ii. Licensed by the Board to run a specified Game of Chance.

The requirements for being licensed by the Board are found somewhere below.

WHAT KIND OF GAMES OF CHANCE CAN BE LICENSED IN GHANA?

There are five (5) categories of Game of Chance which can be licensed in Ghana. They are as follows;

i. Casino also known as Class One (1).

ii. Sports Betting (Land based or Online) also known as Class Two (2)

iii. Route Operations also known as Class Three (3).

iv. Marketing promotional gaming with elements of Games of Chance i.e. Bingo, Raffles, Virtual Gaming, Digital Gaming etc., also known as Class Four (4)

v. Mobile or Interactive game also knowns Class Five (5).

WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR A GRANT OF THE GAMING LICENCE?

Section 14 of the Gaming Act provides that A person qualifies for the grant of a license if that person;

(a.) Has an identifiable office,

(b.) Has a service mark or logo registered with the Registrar of Companies,

(c.) Has the required minimum stated capital and has agreed to maintain the amount of cash or cash equivalents determined by the Commission under section 23,

(d.) Has submitted a criminal clearance certificate in respect of all the directors of the company.

(e.) Agrees to permit the Commission to have access to the records of its bank accounts and other financial records.

(f.) Has submitted a tax clearance certificate or proof of registration with the Ghana Revenue Authority,

(g.) Is partly or wholly Ghanaian owned. Where the business is partly owned by a Ghanaian, the Ghanaian interest should not be below a minimum of 10% stake in the company.

(i.) agrees to provide any other information that may be required by the Commission.

WHAT ARE THE DOCUMENTARY REQUIREMENTS FOR A GRANT OF THE LICENCE?

Upon meeting with the conditions as stated in Section 14 of the Gaming Act, the Applicant shall write officially to the Commission to apply for a Licence. The Application will be addressed as follows:

The Commissioner
Gaming Commission of Ghana P.M.B. 195
Kotoka International Airport Accra.

The following documents are required to be attached to the Application:

1. Business Proposal which must include:

i. Address of registered office

ii. proposed branches and locations

iii. Name and profile of directors

iv. Tax clearance certificate of all Directors

v. Description of operations and management structure

vi. Onlinesports betting industry analysis

2. The passports or any National ID of the principal officers of the applicant(s).

3. Details of sports betting/online sports betting which must include

i.  Approximate odds to be used

ii. Number and frequency of games/sports

iii. Prize and Prize structure

iv. Operator game rules and participant code of practice

4. Certificate of Incorporation

5. Certificate to Commence Business

6. Shareholders Agreement.

7. Financial and marketing plan. Must include:

a.  Evidence of financial capability to operate the business.

b. Capital budgets

c. Five (5) year financial projection and the assumptions made in considering the figures

d. Marketing and Financial Plan.

Please note that further to the Application made to the Commission, the directors and of the company shall be required to complete a Personality Note (PN) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) form which shall be submitted to the Security Agencies for background checks and vetting. The Commission would thereafter introduce applicants to the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for criminal checks to be conducted. In the case of foreign applicants/directors, introduction shall be made to INTERPOL, Research Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration and the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC). The PN and AML forms will be supported by passport photographs of the directors and shareholders of the Company.The Commission may also carry out further due diligence beyond Ghana’s boarders on Applicant company having foreign shareholders and directors.

The investigations no doubt come at a cost and the Applicant shall be responsible for the cost of carrying out whatever investigations that needs to be conducted by the Commission.

Also, the following additional requirements must be fulfilled:

1. Details of game software system/information on software providers (i.e. Name and country of origin).

2. Illustration of the Applicant’s gaming interface/platform.

3. Detailed information on technical solution providers.

4. Details of planned Corporate Social Responsibility (This is applicable to Sports Betting and Online operations only).

ARE THERE OTHER REQUIREMENTS TO BE CONSIDERED?

1. Not-withstanding, the Commission shall satisfy itself with, but not limited to the following:
2. The identity (ies) of new applicants
3. The business registration documents.
4. Conduct further due diligence on senior managements

• Details of game software system, information on software providers(i.e.Name and country of  Origin), Certification of software. Illustration of gaming interface/platform, Detailed information on technical solution providers.

• Details of planned corporate social responsibility.

WHAT IS THE MINIMUM AUTHOURSIED SHARE CAPITAL FOR A GAMING LICENCE?

The required minimum stated capital for the different categories of licences issued by the Gaming Commission of Ghana are as follows:

(i) Minimum of 2,500,000 USD for Casino licence;

(ii) Minimum of 2,000,000 USD for Sports Betting Licence

(iii) Minimum of 1,500,000 USD for the Route Operations Licence.

(iv) The other classes of licence are issued by the Commission to organizations who wish to carry out a Game of Chance for defined period of time or purpose. In this case, the required share capital will be determined by the type of Company in question.

See also FAQs on Requirements, Costs and Timelines for Registering a Company in Ghana.

WHAT ARE THE APPLICABLE COST TO BE CONSIDERED IN OBTAINING THE LICENCE?

The applicable cost to be considered in obtaining the Licence are as follows:

(i.) Cost of Investigations which is to be determined by the Commission in conjunction with the investing Agency.

(ii) Incorporation costs which is dependent on the share capital and the type of licence the company is seeking to obtain (See also FAQs on Requirements, Costs and Timelines for Registering a Company in Ghana); and

(iii) Licence fee and operational fee. The licence fee and operational fee for the different categories of licence are as follows:

(iv) Professional fees for documentation and processing the incorporation and licensing the gaming licence.