Sweden is set to go through significant new changes to its slots framework, specifically around leisure and hospitality businesses.
The new licensing restrictions will see limitations on their hosting of slot machines, with new rules detailing that restaurants will only be permitted to host slot machines if their annual food and beverage turnover exceeds SEK 1m (€100,000 including VAT), with one additional machine allowed for every extra SEK 250,000 in verified turnover.
As well as this, slot machine revenue must never exceed the restaurant’s dining turnover, a safeguard designed to reduce over-reliance on gaming income.
The reform comes off the back of the Spelinspektionen, Sweden Gambling Inspectorate making moves to end the former rules (LIFS 2018:9) applied by the Swedish Lottery Authority on casino gambling and slot machine games.
The intervention sees venue rules switched to a “modernised framework” – titled: “Regulations and General Advice on Slot Machine Gaming.”
Adopted from 1 December 2025, the new framework introduces clearer operational conditions for licensees servicing värdeautomater (slot machines) in hospitality and leisure venues, as defined under Chapter 5, Section 1 of the Gambling Act (2018:1138).
Machines must also remain in full view of staff and under active supervision, as safeguarding intensifies. They must be located within the licensed serving area, disconnected outside licensed serving hours, and cannot be positioned near ATMs or obscured spaces.
Similar provisions apply to bingo halls, where slot machines may only operate during bingo sessions and up to one hour before and after play, always under staff supervision.
Operators are also instructed to improve player-facing information, providing clear contact details, licence information, game fees, and references to responsible gambling resources such as Stödlinjen. Staff acting as spelombud (gaming attendants) must be trained in the Gambling Act, responsible gambling protocols, and player protection procedures.
Spelinspektionen’s Director General Camilla Rosenberg said the reforms promote “greater alignment between land-based and online gaming environments” and reflect the regulator’s ongoing efforts to modernise gambling oversight.
“These changes clarify the responsibilities of licensees and venues, ensuring slot gaming takes place in safe, supervised, and socially responsible environments,” the Inspectorate stated.
It comes after the Ministry of Finance has endorsed a memorandum proposing the removal of the “directional criterion” from the Gambling Act — a long-standing provision that excluded games not specifically aimed at the Swedish market from domestic law. Its removal will allow authorities to pursue operators simply for allowing Swedish players to participate, regardless of geographic targeting.
Governance of Sweden’s gambling market will also be reinforced through new enforcement powers and a penalty framework granted to Spelinspektionen, giving the Inspectorate broader authority to issue sanctions, revoke licences, and increase penalties for non-compliance and conduct.
It means that Sweden will become the first EU nation to implement a complete ban on gambling with credit. Scheduled from 1 April 2026, all licensed operators will be prohibited from processing payments funded by credit cards, overdrafts, personal loans, or buy-now-pay-later services. The reform, championed by the government as a consumer-protection measure, aims to curb gambling-related indebtedness and strengthen responsible gambling safeguards.