Romanian lawmakers have submitted two parliamentary proposals for amending the online gambling law. The draft bills propose increasing the legal betting age from 18 to 21 years and imposing restrictions on online gambling advertisements. The measures aim to protect the younger, more vulnerable population from the dangers of gambling harm and align Romania’s gambling regulations with wider European legislation.
Romanian MPs Submit Parliamentary Proposal to Amend Gambling Legislation: Quick Overview
- Romanian MPs Raluca Turcan and Diana Stoica submitted two draft bills to the parliament. The bills propose to raise the legal gambling age from 18 to 21 years and introduce advertising restrictions.
- The proposal aims to restrict gambling ads on digital and social platforms between 6 p.m. and 12 a.m., prohibit celebrities, athletes, and influencers from promoting gambling brands, and display clear warnings on digital and physical campaigns.
- Lawmakers explain that these measures are necessary for consumer protection, especially for the younger generation that is prone to gambling addiction. Furthermore, the amendments will align Romanian gambling laws with EU standards.
MP Emphasises the Importance of Protecting Younger Generations from Gambling Harm
On Wednesday, November 5, Romanian MPs Raluca Turcan (PNL) and Diana Stoica (USR) submitted two parliamentary proposals for amending the gambling legislation (Emergency Ordinance no. 77/2019). The first draft bill recommends increasing the legal gambling age from 18 to 21 years. Meanwhile, the second bill recommends banning gambling advertisements on digital and social media platforms between 6 p.m. and 12 a.m.
USR MP Diana Stoica, in a parliamentary statement, explained that gambling harm is a significant concern, especially among the younger generation. With online gambling growing popular globally, there is an immediate need for stronger gambling regulations. She cited research showing teenagers lack impulse control and decision-making capabilities and called for strict measures to ensure their emotional and financial well-being.
MP Diana Stoica said:
We have an obligation to protect our children from the scourge of gambling. We already know that slots destroy lives and destroy families. The latest study conducted in Romania shows us once again the magnitude of the national drama we are experiencing – 1 in 4 teenagers played these death machines before the age of majority, and the debut in gambling takes place very early, before the age of 14.
Science has shown that by around the age of 21, children’s brains are not yet developed, especially the area responsible for impulse control and decision-making. And addiction makes you lose control and reason. This means that they are even more vulnerable than adults to this addiction. And this obliges us, as legislators, to take all the necessary measures to protect them.
The latest measures are part of Romania’s broader regulatory efforts to decentralise the gambling industry. In August, the government introduced several legislative reforms, including revised tax brackets and restrictions on gambling commercials. Lawmakers also referenced several European Union members, including Portugal, Moldova, and Greece, raising the legal age for gambling.
MP Raluca Turcan noted:
Between the ages of 18 and 21, young people are at the beginning of adult life; they are just starting their university studies, they enter the labour market, and they are faced for the first time with their own responsibilities and financial decisions. At the same time, it is an age marked by increased impulsivity, the need for social validation and the tendency to experiment without fully understanding the consequences.
In the face of the highly persuasive marketing mechanisms of the gambling industry, these young people become an easy target. By raising the age threshold, we protect them at a vulnerable stage, giving them time to mature emotionally and financially. Countries such as Portugal, Greece or the Republic of Moldova have already applied this measure, noting a significant decrease in cases of early indebtedness and the onset of gambling addictions.
Digital and Social Media Advertising Restrictions on the Cards
The second draft bill proposes restrictions on gambling advertisements, especially on digital and social media platforms. Lawmakers believe this will allow them to regulate the evolving gambling market more effectively, given the “digital reality of the current generation”.
The bill recommends that gambling commercials on digital and social platforms be restricted between 6 p.m. and 12 a.m., since teenagers are most active online between these hours. Additionally, the draft bill proposes limiting the involvement of celebrities, athletes, influencers, and other public figures in gambling-related promotional campaigns.
Turcan added:
Specifically, it is forbidden to broadcast gambling advertisements online between 06:00 and 24:00; that is, exactly in the interval when children and young people are active on social networks and digital platforms. In addition, the bill prohibits the involvement of influencers, athletes and public figures in campaigns to promote the gambling industry. Why? Because, obviously, young people do not react to classic commercials but to the models they follow daily on the internet.
When a popular figure recommends or ‘normalises’ betting, the message conveyed is a toxic one: that gambling is an acceptable, cool, even profitable behaviour. The law thus extends the current ban existing only in the audiovisual space, valid until 23:00, and takes it to where children are really present: in the online environment.
In June, the Romanian gambling regulator, Oficiul National pentru Jocuri de Noroc (ONJN), cracked down on Meta-owned Facebook and Google for displaying ads promoting illegal gambling platforms. Following widespread criticism from multiple gambling regulators worldwide, Meta updated its advertising rules in July, restricting gambling ads on Facebook and Instagram.
Romania’s new draft bill aims to align gambling advertising rules with those in other EU member states, including Finland, which introduced laws to protect minors from untargeted gambling commercials. It also requires that warning messages highlighting the risks of gambling addiction be displayed on digital and physical marketing campaigns, similar to those mandated for the alcohol and tobacco industries.