FEDBET warns Romania could lose thousands of licensed slot machines by Jan 2027

FEDBET, the Federation of Romanian Gambling Organisers, says unresolved permit renewals could render thousands of licensed slot machines unable to operate by 1 January 2027. The federation estimates the authorised estate may fall from 43,306 machines in March to about 9,096 by the start of 2027, and it is urging the government and Parliament to introduce transitional measures to avoid an immediate shutdown of compliant venues.

The figures and the timing

FEDBET reports that 15,579 slot machines remained licensed on 1 November 2026 but warns that figure could decline to 9,096 by 1 January 2027 if local authorities do not complete required administrative approvals. The federation says that the decline follows licensing reforms introduced under Emergency Government Ordinance No. 7/2026, which give local authorities a formal role in issuing the municipal approvals ONJN requires before it can renew operating licences.

The federation states fewer than 4 per cent of Romania’s roughly 3,100 administrative‑territorial units had adopted the necessary measures by the April deadline set in the reforms. FEDBET also reports that requests for clarification it sent to local authorities have largely gone unanswered.

The legal bottleneck

The dispute centres on a sequencing problem between local councils and the National Office for Gambling (ONJN). FEDBET says city halls must adopt formal council decisions to enable the issuance of the new local permits, but ONJN will not renew operating licences until those municipal approvals exist. That legal sequencing is preventing licence renewals for land‑based slot machines and has created uncertainty across the retail market.

FEDBET wants temporary transitional provisions so operators that meet all existing legal requirements can continue trading while local councils complete their decisions. The federation argues those transitional rules would avoid shutting compliant venues before municipalities have finished adapting to the ordinance.

Local bans and municipal actions

Several local authorities have used their new powers to restrict or ban slot venues. Timișoara is cited by FEDBET as a high‑profile example that has applied explicit bans on new venues. Bucharest’s Zone Six has imposed restrictions, and Iași became the first county where every municipality voted to ban gambling venues. FEDBET says councils that continue to licence gaming venues may impose their own annual authorisation fees.

Super Technologies has told the market it will convert gambling venues into community centres in localities affected by bans. The central government previously banned gambling venues in small towns with populations under 15,000 under an order issued in 2024.

Economic and sector impact

FEDBET estimates that approximately 8,500 jobs have already been affected by the licensing uncertainty and places the potential economic impact at around RON 320m (€59.8m) by the end of 2026. The federation warns the combination of licence expiries and local bans could encourage a shift to unregulated gambling.

"Closing an authorised location does not mean that people stop playing. A large part of them end up on unlicensed sites, where no one checks age, there are no deposit limits or protective measures, and the state does not collect anything," said FEDBET president Alexandru Domșa.

Domșa added that the immediate loss is player protection. He said the state’s tax take will also be affected: the Ministry of Finance’s own 2026 budget amendment projects a RON 750m shortfall in gambling tax revenues, which FEDBET says primarily reflects losses recorded before large numbers of licences began expiring.

FEDBET’s request and next steps

FEDBET is calling on the government and Parliament to enact temporary transitional measures that allow operators who comply with existing requirements to remain operational until local councils complete their decisions. The federation frames this as a targeted fix to the sequencing problem created by Emergency Government Ordinance No. 7/2026 rather than a broader change to the underlying reforms.

The issue has already had a chilling effect on new approvals, FEDBET says, with some operators delaying investments while they await clarity on how each locality will apply its new powers. The federation’s scenario assumes no corrective action from local or central authorities before 1 January 2027; if transitional provisions are implemented, the projected decline to 9,096 authorised machines may be avoided.

What FEDBET says about enforcement and risks

FEDBET emphasises that a sudden reduction in authorised machines will not stop play but will reduce regulatory oversight. The federation argues that the first casualty in a shutdown of authorised venues is the set of protections — age verification, deposit limits and other safeguards — that licensed operators must provide. That, FEDBET says, would shift activity to unlicensed platforms and reduce state revenue.

The federation’s public statements reference the machines count of 43,306 in March, the 15,579 licensed machines recorded on 1 November 2026, the projected 9,096 figure for 1 January 2027, the estimate of 8,500 affected jobs, the RON 320m (€59.8m) economic impact by year‑end, and the Ministry of Finance projection of a RON 750m tax shortfall in its 2026 budget amendment.