Liberia’s NLA adopts Regulation No. 005 for gaming and lottery oversight

Liberia's National Lottery Authority (NLA) has adopted Regulation No. 005 of 2026, a framework for oversight of the country's gaming and lottery sector. The NLA Board of Directors adopted the regulation on 29 April 2026, and it was published in the Official Gazette on 1 October 2026 after being signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, according to the NLA. It takes effect upon adoption and publication.

The NLA describes the regulation as a response to how digital platforms, online lottery services and mobile-money gaming have expanded. It was issued under the National Lottery Authority Act of 2014 and carries out the NLA's Five-Year Strategic Plan.

A Central Lottery Management System (CLMS) is to be procured, deployed and administered by the NLA so that gaming transactions can be monitored, audited and reported in real time. The system should satisfy internationally recognized standards, among them those of the African Lottery Association, the World Lottery Association and the Gaming Regulators European Forum. Connection to the CLMS becomes mandatory for holders of every operating licence once the Director General declares it operational. The window for operators to connect is 180 days, and the Board can shorten that transition period.

What an operator pays for CLMS access is meant to match the integration work its setup demands, and those who feed the required data from a centralized server through one integration avoid per-terminal charges. Cybersecurity must align with ISO/IEC 27001 or an equivalent standard. Material data breaches, system failures and unauthorized interference have to be reported within 24 hours of detection. Records covering finances, transactions, anti-money-laundering, player accounts, licensing and compliance are kept for no less than five years.

Anyone importing gaming machines has to submit a commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading or airway bill, together with a Clean Report of Findings. The machines themselves must satisfy NLA standards, and the Authority's guidelines govern how they are run and kept up. Holders of licences are expected to draw up maintenance schedules at regular intervals that cover inspections, software updates and prompt repairs. According to the regulation, the purpose is to uphold integrity and fairness in gaming operations and to prevent tampering.

The regulation's advertising standards reach across many channels, from broadcast and print to digital, social, SMS, email and materials inside venues. Prohibited practices include aiming ads at minors, promising guaranteed winnings, framing gambling as a fix for money troubles, urging compulsive play, misrepresenting odds and manufacturing false urgency. Every ad must also carry a responsible-gambling notice, a truthful figure for the top-prize odds or a statement that odds differ between games, and contact details for the NLA player-support helpline or a comparable approved resource.

Further rules deal with age-gating of digital advertisements, disclosure of paid influencers, sponsorships and events directed at under-18s, and shielding licensed brands from impersonation. An annual advertising permit is required of licensed operators. Random audits may be carried out by the Authority, and where prior clearance applies it has five business days to decide an application.

The fee schedule in Regulation No. 004 is superseded by Appendix III-A. Minimum paid-up capital is fixed per licence class in Appendix III-B, which also obliges operators to hold a bank balance of no less than 25% of paid-up capital when a licence is issued or renewed.

A Good-Cause Levy is created at a rate the Board sets, capped at 1% of an operator's gross gaming revenue (GGR). Operator revenue is the base for the levy; player deposits, stakes, wagers and winnings are excluded. Payment falls due each month, and the gaming activities and licences of one legal entity are treated together as a single operator. The money goes to the Responsible Gambling and Social Contribution Fund.

Money from the Fund may go toward assisting people with disabilities, older people and orphans, funding treatment and counselling for gambling-related harm, studying gambling's social impact, developing communities that host significant gaming operations, and running public-awareness campaigns. In any financial year, administration may consume no more than 5% of levy receipts. Audited accounts of the Fund are to appear on the NLA website and be sent to the Board and the relevant government authority.

Under the regulation, the Director General may seek out, negotiate and run strategic partnerships covering the national lottery, prediction markets and related products the Board has approved. Draw-based, instant, scratch, numerical and keno-style games fall within the national lottery scope, alongside a national online lottery platform. Any partnership must hold an NLA licence or appointment, and it must leave intact the Authority's statutory regulatory powers and the Government's residual interest.

Selection is expected to be competitive and documented, unless the Board approves a different route through a reasoned resolution. An agreement only binds once the Board has ratified its material terms. Fit-and-proper vetting applies to partners, directors and owners holding 10% or more, and it includes disclosure of politically exposed individuals. Partnerships report to the Board every quarter.

Prediction markets are permitted solely through a Prediction Market Operator Licence or a partnership ratified by the Board. Contracts are barred if they concern a named individual's death, a criminal act, or how a Liberian election turns out. Operating capital and player funds have to be kept apart.

The NLA's management has authority to develop a Corporate Social Responsibility and Welfare Policy for licensed operators, run consultations on it, and deliver it to the Board within 90 days of the regulation taking effect, a window that may be extended. Among the subjects the policy must address are yearly CSR and welfare plans, public reporting, priority areas and independent checks on results. Listed priority areas include disability support, responsible gambling, youth and education, community health, sports development and economic localization. The policy cannot bring in any further mandatory levy or percentage-based contribution past what the regulation already permits.