- A wagering requirement is the total amount you must stake for bonus funds or winnings to become withdrawable.
- In Great Britain the maximum allowed is 10 times the bonus amount from 19 January 2026.
- Game weighting can slow progress, for example roulette at 30% means each £1 staked counts as 30 pence toward the requirement.
- Promotions must not mix product types like betting and casino, and terms must be clear, fair and prominently displayed.
In Great Britain, an online slot bonus is bonus money or free spins offered as an incentive. A wagering requirement means you must stake bonus funds a set number of times before winnings become withdrawable. From 19 January 2026 the Gambling Commission caps this at 10 times the bonus amount and requires terms to be fair and transparent. No evidence was supplied about other countries.
What a bonus and a wagering requirement are
Many betting sites and apps offer free incentives such as free spins or bonus money when you open a new account. Where a licensee offers an incentive or reward scheme under which a customer may receive money, goods, services or other advantage, this is treated as a benefit or incentive under Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice Social Responsibility Code 5.1.1.
A wagering requirement is defined as where a customer is required to make wagers totalling a particular value for funds to become withdrawable. In practice it applies to bonus funds in promotional offers: you must play through the bonus a specified number of times before the bonus or winnings from it can be withdrawn.
Sources: Opening accounts – Free offers and bonuses; Codes of practice – 5 – Marketing – Gambling Commission; Free offers and bonuses – Gambling Commission; Bingo and casino technical requirements – Proposal 1 – Ban or limit the ….
How the calculation works in practice
The total amount you must stake is the bonus amount multiplied by the wagering multiplier. Hypothetical illustrative example using evidence-supplied figures: a £10 bonus with a 50 times wagering requirement requires you to play through £500 before winnings can be withdrawn. This type of high multiplier was cited by the regulator as confusing and likely to lead to longer and faster gambling.
The same calculation method applies under the current cap. Hypothetical illustrative example: a £20 bonus with a 10 times requirement would require £200 of total wagers before funds become withdrawable. The regulator consulted on options to ban wagering requirements or cap them at 1, 5 or 10 times, and decided on a maximum of 10 times.
Some operators previously applied up to 60 times, while one operator reported that 75% of its offers already fell within 1 to 10 times. The 10 times limit was chosen as a proportionate response that removes extreme levels while maintaining consumer choice and reducing risk of displacement to the illegal market.
| Bonus amount | Wagering multiplier | Total amount to stake before withdrawable |
|---|---|---|
| £10 | 50 times | £500 |
| £20 | 10 times (current GB cap) | £200 |
Sources: Bingo and casino technical requirements – Proposal 1 – Ban or limit the …; Gambling promotions to be safer and simpler.
Game weighting and contribution restrictions
Even with a cap, how quickly you meet the requirement depends on game weighting, also called game contribution restrictions. A bonus might carry 10 times wagering on all slots but be weighted at 50% for blackjack and 30% for roulette.
Hypothetical illustrative example supported by evidence: a £100 bonus with 10 times wagering normally requires £1,000 of wagers. If you play roulette weighted at 30%, each £1 you wager contributes only 30 pence toward the £1,000 target, so you would need to stake more in total to meet the requirement. The regulator stated that from current evidence it was not necessary to review rules on weightings at this time, but expects terms about weightings to be clear and transparent.
Sources: Bingo and casino technical requirements – Proposal 1 – Ban or limit the ….
Rules on fair and transparent promotions in Great Britain
Great Britain applies additional structure rules from 19 January 2026. Licensees must not include more than one type of gambling product, such as betting, casino, bingo and lottery, within a single incentive. The rationale given is that gambling on multiple products and mixed promotions with complex terms increase risk of harm and consumer confusion.
All terms must be clear, transparent, fair, readily accessible and not misleading. Significant conditions must be presented prominently at the point of sale and in advertising, or if space is limited online, indicated as applying and displayed in full no further than one click away. The full terms must remain available for the whole promotion.
Guidance for companies includes: let you walk away at any time, let you keep what is left of your deposit and winnings earned from that deposit, make clear whether you are playing with your own money or bonus funds subject to restrictions, and be clear about restrictions such as bet size limits with bonus funds. Companies should not use personal data for publicity without consent or change deal details after you have accepted and started playing.
Sources: Codes of practice – 5 – Marketing – Gambling Commission; Gambling promotions to be safer and simpler; Bingo and casino technical requirements – Proposal 1 – Ban or limit the …; Autumn 2023 consultation on proposed changes to … – Gambling Commission; Opening accounts – Free offers and bonuses; Free offers and bonuses – Gambling Commission; Fair and transparent terms and practices – Gambling Commission.
Sources and further reading
- Opening accounts – Free offers and bonuses
- Codes of practice – 5 – Marketing – Gambling Commission
- Free offers and bonuses – Gambling Commission
- Bingo and casino technical requirements – Proposal 1 – Ban or limit the …
- Gambling promotions to be safer and simpler
- Autumn 2023 consultation on proposed changes to … – Gambling Commission
- Fair and transparent terms and practices – Gambling Commission
Related reading
Community questions behind this article
These discussions helped identify the question. Player comments are not used as evidence for game rules or odds.
Prepared with AI assistance and automated checks against the cited research brief. Human review is not implied. Source research date: 2026-09-26.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to complete wagering requirements before I can withdraw?
In the Great Britain evidence, yes for bonus funds. Funds subject to a wagering requirement only become withdrawable after you have staked the required total value. Companies should let you keep your remaining deposit and winnings from that deposit if you choose to walk away.
Are these rules the same in other countries?
No evidence was supplied about other jurisdictions. The 10 times cap, mixed product ban and fair terms rules described here apply only to Great Britain under the Gambling Commission Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice. Do not assume they apply elsewhere.
Do all games count equally toward wagering?
Not necessarily. Operators can apply weighting, so slots may count at 100% while table games count less, such as 50% for blackjack or 30% for roulette in the example given. Check the promotion terms to see the weighting for each game.
