Uzbekistan Bans Gambling and Lotteries for Security Officers and Low-Income Citizens

Photo: uz24.uz

Uzbekistan has approved new regulations and conditions for operating betting services and organizing lotteries, including a list of citizen categories barred from participating in gambling. This was reported by Norma.uz, citing the newly adopted regulation “On Licensing the Organization of Risk-Based Games on the Global Internet Network, Lotteries, and Bookmaking Activities.”

The following individuals are prohibited from participating in gambling, lotteries, and betting:

➡️ Persons legally declared incapacitated or partially incapacitated by a court;
➡️ Individuals registered in the Unified Social Protection Register and their family members;
➡️ Persons listed in the “iron,” “youth,” and/or “women’s” registries (state support programs for vulnerable groups);
➡️ Minors;
➡️ Employees of the prosecutor’s office, internal affairs, National Guard, and customs agencies;
➡️ Military personnel;
➡️ Security service officers while on duty;
➡️ Staff of Uzbekistan’s National Agency for Advanced Projects;
➡️ Foreign nationals — if requested by authorized agencies of their home countries via Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The regulation also outlines the core licensing requirements for bookmakers and lottery operators:

👉 Only Uzbek residents may operate gambling businesses;
👉 Electronic platforms must be hosted on servers physically located in Uzbekistan;
👉 Applicants must have a statutory capital of a designated amount in cash at the time of application;
👉 A separate reserve fund must be created in a dedicated account to cover potential liabilities — including winnings payouts, refunds, tax obligations, and other debts;
👉 Full compliance with Uzbek legislation on anti-money laundering, terrorism financing, weapons of mass destruction nonproliferation, data protection, and advertising regulations is required;
👉 Only one national domain name may be used per platform;
👉 All monetary transactions — both bets and winnings — must go through a unified state register of players and wagers;
👉 All gaming equipment, software, and devices must be certified by authorized bodies and testing laboratories.