Lithuania’s Ministry of Finance has proposed introducing mandatory ‘player cards’ to monitor individuals’ gambling activities across both online and physical venues.
This initiative, set to come into force on 1 January 2029, would require every gambler to hold a physical card that will facilitate tighter controls over gambling behaviour and enable government authorities to monitor deposits and winnings across different operators
A draft amendment to its gambling law outlined several critical changes including the card proposal. According to local reporting the cards will link gambling transactions to individual identities. The legislation envisaged a gradual phase-out of cash payments within gambling venues. This will be replaced with non-cash transactions connected to the player card.
The Gaming Control Authority will be granted clearer and enhanced powers to oversee compliance across both land-based and remote gambling operations.
A three-year transition period will be enforced to allow operators sufficient time to upgrade or replace equipment to comply with new requirements.
However certain operational and market supervision changes are scheduled to take effect even earlier, from 1 May 2027.
Minister Vaitiekūnas emphasised the phased three-year approach: “A three-year transition period is being set to give gambling operators time to upgrade existing equipment or replace it with systems that comply with non-cash payment requirements from 2029.”
‘Strengthens the prevention of problem gambling’
According to Minister of Finance Kristupas Vaitiekūnas, the player card represents a core instrument for responsible gambling policy.
“It strengthens the prevention of problem gambling and ensures that the main objective, reducing access to gambling and its potential harm to health, is actually achieved,” the minister said.
The legislation will require operators to integrate identity verification, transaction monitoring, and exclusion-list checks with the player card system.
The player card proposal forms part of a broader government strategy to curb gambling-related harms.
From 1 July 2025, tighter restrictions on gambling advertising were introduced, including raising the minimum legal gambling age from 18 to 21, effective from 1 November 2025.
Gambling operators additionally need to deploy systems capable of detecting risky play patterns and intervening to prevent problem gambling.
The global move to sustainability
Lithuania’s proposed reforms align with a growing European trend towards the implementation of tougher player protection and regulatory enforcement.
Last week, the Australian government announced a package of gambling reforms including gambling ads to be banned on television and radio during live sports streams and during the hours that children could be watching..
In the same vein, Ukraine recently implemented an automated system to block military personnel from accessing online gambling services.
Kathryn Evans
Kathryn covers bitesize breaking news with a primary focus on EMEA and US legislation. A proud North Walian, fluent Welsh speaker and lifelong Wrexham FC fan – long before Hollywood came calling.
Original article: https://igamingbusiness.com/sustainable-gambling/lithuania-proposes-mandatory-gambling-player-card-from-2029/
