Malta-licensed casino complaints: operator, ADR and the MGA

For a gambling site licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA), complain to the operator first. The MGA's FAQs say operators must investigate promptly and give you the outcome within ten days, extendable by ten more if they tell you why. If the dispute is still unresolved, the operator must refer you to its ADR entity, free of charge. The MGA itself stopped examining the merits of player disputes on 1 April 2019; that job belongs to the ADR entity. You can still lodge a complaint with the MGA about a licensee (MGA guidance, checked October 2026).

Who regulates MGA-licensed sites?

The Malta Gaming Authority licenses and supervises gaming operators based in Malta. Many MGA licensees serve players in other countries. Before you complain, check that the operator really holds an MGA licence: the MGA keeps a licensee register and a list of unauthorised URLs that falsely claim a link to it. Our guide to the MGA licence explains what to look for.

Step 1: complain to the operator

According to the MGA's FAQs, you should be able to complain to the operator, which must look into the complaint promptly and tell you the outcome within ten days. It may extend this by a further ten days if it explains to you why it needs more time. The MGA's ADR Directive (Directive 5 of 2018) requires the operator's complaints procedure to be available to players and included in its general terms.

Before you write, use our gambling complaint evidence checklist. If the issue is a withdrawal, start with what to do when a casino won't pay out.

Step 2: refer the dispute to the operator's ADR entity

ADR means alternative dispute resolution: an independent body that decides a dispute without going to court. Under the MGA's ADR Directive (applicable from 3 December 2018):

• Licensees must engage an ADR entity before going live. The MGA's FAQs warn that failing to engage and maintain one may lead to enforcement action.
• The ADR entity must be established in the EU or EEA and listed under the EU Consumer ADR Directive, and must offer a service whose outcome binds both sides.
• ADR must be free of any charge to the player.
• If a licensee uses more than one ADR entity, it must refer you to the one relevant to your dispute.
• If a licensee has no ADR arrangement in place, it must refer you to a compliant ADR entity within twenty days of you saying the dispute was not resolved.
• Licensees must explain to players the potential consequences of the ADR entity's decision.

We did not find a player-facing list of ADR entities on the MGA's site. The operator's terms or final response should name its ADR entity; open that body's own website from the link in the operator's terms and check the name matches.

What the MGA will and will not do

The MGA said that "as of 1 April 2019, the MGA's Player Support Unit will no longer be delving into the merits of a dispute", since that function is reserved for the ADR entity. Its Lodge a Complaint form remains open for complaints about licensees, with categories including payment and withdrawal problems, bonuses, KYC (identity checks), technical errors, account closure and responsible gaming. The MGA strongly recommends trying the operator first, may ask for identification, and rejects complaints with fabricated details, threats or abuse.

Treat an MGA complaint as information the regulator can use about the licensee, not as a way to have your claim decided. The MGA's FAQs say operators must comply fully with ADR decisions and have 20 days to comply with one in the player's favour.

What does this mean if you live outside Malta?

The MGA's complaint form has a country-of-residence field, and nothing on the MGA pages we reviewed limits the complaint or ADR route to Maltese residents. Two points matter:

• Check which licence covers your account. Some groups hold an MGA licence and a licence in your country. If your account is with a locally licensed entity, that market's complaint route may apply instead; for Great Britain, see our page on UK gambling complaints. This is our reading; the operator's terms name the licence holder and the ADR entity for your account.
• The ADR entity sits in the EU or EEA. Check its own rules for language, format and any filing deadline before you submit.

What time limits apply?

What should your complaint include?

The MGA form asks for the website, the operator, your username, the game, the disputed amount, the date and time of the incident and a short description. Give the operator the same facts in date order, with bet or game round IDs. Our guide on how to write a gambling complaint timeline shows a clear layout.

How do you keep track of reference numbers?

Save the operator's complaint reference, its final response naming the ADR entity, the ADR case number and the copy of your MGA form (the form can email you one). What happens after a gambling complaint covers the waiting stages.

What if the site only claims to be MGA-licensed?

The MGA warns that unlicensed entities are unregulated, do not provide the necessary safeguards and are risky for consumers. If a site's MGA claim does not check out on the register, or the domain appears on the unauthorised URLs list, the MGA ADR rules do not protect you. Report it through the MGA's complaint form.

Watch out for paid "recovery" services

The operator's process and its ADR entity are free to you. Be wary of anyone offering to recover money for a fee, claiming special access to the MGA, or asking for your banking login. Hub of Luck cannot recover funds or influence any operator, ADR body or regulator. Our guide on why people who have lost money are often contacted again explains how these approaches work. If gambling is costing more than you planned, our safer gambling page lists support.

In practice

1. Confirm the MGA licence on the register and check the unauthorised URLs list.
2. Complain to the operator in writing and note the date and reference.
3. Expect an outcome within 10 days, or 20 if extended with reasons.
4. Ask the operator to name its ADR entity, and check the name in its terms.
5. Refer the dispute to that ADR entity with your timeline and evidence.
6. Optionally lodge a complaint with the MGA, in English or Maltese, knowing it will not decide the merits.