Mozambique: Gambling laws, betting and lotteries

Legal overview

Legal overview

Mozambique uses two connected regimes: Law 1/2010 and Decree 64/2010 govern casino games of chance, while Law 9/2012 and Decree 33/2018 govern social games including lotteries, mutual betting, pools and virtual games. The Inspecção-Geral de Jogos is the central supervisory authority.

Regulatory developments

The database records only published or regulator-confirmed rules. Reports of further electronic-gaming reform in 2026 are not treated as effective law until an identifiable decree is published in the Boletim da República.

Responsible gambling

Responsible gambling

The framework excludes persons under 18 and the IGJ publishes detailed online safeguards, including self-exclusion, deposit and betting limits, session controls, addiction warnings, secure access and support contacts.

Regulated

Casino

Current position

Mozambique separates casino games of chance from social games. A physical casino first needs a concession and then specific licensing for its approved premises and games, with IGJ technical oversight. The 2010 regulation also contemplates virtual casinos under strict national controls, but this is not permission for every offshore website. A Mozambique casino page should verify the concessionaire, licence, approved channel and current regulator record before displaying any ranking or outbound commercial link.

Licensing

Casino operation requires a government concession, a specific tourism-sector licence and IGJ assessment and supervision.

Online availability

Decree 64/2010 permits authorised virtual casinos when control systems are based in Mozambique, transactions use the national banking system and minors are excluded.

Advertising and commercial links

Only authorised games and operators should be promoted; licence and channel scope must be verified with IGJ.

Responsible gambling

Casino content must be 18+, explain loss risk and game rules, provide limits and self-exclusion guidance and avoid presenting local banking access as proof of authorisation.

Regulated

Sports betting

Current position

Mozambique regulates sports wagering through its social-games system rather than the casino concession alone. The IGJ lists mutual betting, Totobola and virtual games among regulated categories and publishes concrete requirements for online delivery. Those technical requirements help verification but do not replace the licence itself. A betting guide should record the legal entity, authorised game, website domain and current approval, and should not infer legality from Portuguese content, mobile-money support or popularity.

Licensing

Sports betting is licensed within social games, including mutual betting and football-pool categories, under IGJ supervision.

Online availability

Online operators must use an .mz domain, secure connections, approved Portuguese-language platform certification, local backups and unrestricted IGJ system access.

Advertising and commercial links

Promotions should identify the authorised operator, game category and licence and include responsible-gambling treatment.

Responsible gambling

Betting pages should enforce 18+, offer clear deposit, stake and session controls, provide self-exclusion and support contacts and reject guaranteed-return or loss-recovery claims.

Restricted

Predictions

Current position

In Mozambique, a sports forecast may sit on either side of a clear functional line. Free analysis can discuss evidence and probability, while Totobola, mutual betting, paid pools and certain virtual games are regulated social games. The page must describe what the product actually does rather than rely on the word prediction. Editorial statistics should remain separate from the wager, and every monetised route should be checked against the operator’s specific IGJ authorisation and approved online channel.

Licensing

Independent free forecasts are editorial; paid pools, mutual bets and virtual prize games require the corresponding social-game authorisation.

Online availability

Any stake-taking or operator-integrated forecast must run through an approved online system and authorised game category.

Advertising and commercial links

Sponsored predictions should be disclosed and link only to a licence and domain verified with IGJ.

Responsible gambling

Predictions must be framed as uncertain analysis. Where wagering is available, access should be 18+ and accompanied by deposit and time limits, self-exclusion and warnings against chasing losses.

Regulated

Lotteries

Current position

Mozambique’s social-games framework expressly groups lotteries with bingo, lotto, Totoloto, raffles, contests, mutual betting and virtual games. This means a lottery guide must identify the exact category and the authority behind the product rather than treating all random draws alike. Online presentation adds technical requirements such as an .mz domain, secure connection, Portuguese certification and regulator access. An offshore draw or promotional contest should not appear as locally licensed without direct IGJ evidence.

Licensing

Lotteries, lotto, raffles, bingo, Totoloto and related social games require authorisation under Law 9/2012 and Decree 33/2018.

Online availability

Online lottery and virtual-game delivery must meet IGJ technical, security, information and minor-protection conditions.

Advertising and commercial links

The organiser, authorised category, entry rules, prizes and licence should be stated clearly.

Responsible gambling

Lottery content must be 18+, display entry and prize rules, include responsible-play information and avoid suggesting that repeated ticket purchases are a form of saving or investment.

Regulators and contacts

Regulators and contacts

Primary sources

Primary sources

• Inspecção-Geral de Jogos — Ministry of Finance Mozambique
• How to obtain a games-of-chance licence — Inspecção-Geral de Jogos
• How to obtain a social-games licence — Inspecção-Geral de Jogos
• Law 1/2010 on Games of Chance — Boletim da República via Inspecção-Geral de Jogos
• Player Protection — Inspecção-Geral de Jogos
• Decree 64/2010 — Regulation of the Law on Games of Chance — Boletim da República
• Decree 17/2012 — earlier social-games regulation publication record — Imprensa Nacional de Moçambique