Costa Rica Bingo Site Blacklist

The country of Costa Rica does not offer an online gambling licence, yet many online bingo sites claim they are “licensed in Costa Rica.” This claim is very misleading and is very likely to lead to trouble for online bingo players. 80% of the player complaints we receive through our “1tg bingo player advocacy programme” involve a so-called “Costa Rican licenced” bingo site. The rate of complaint pointing towards bingo sites residing in small Central American country are far too high to ignore. There can be no coincidence. Players are not simply “picking on” Costa Rican bingo sites.

When a player makes a deposit to play at an online bingo site, they are reasonable if their expectations are to deposit, play in fair games, and cash out when appropriate. If the player feels cheated in any way, they “should” have the right to complain to the site.

They “should” have the right to go over the site’s head and file a complaint with a credible regulatory body or agency. This means that the bingo site “should” be registered with a credible licencing agency. In the UK and in Europe, it is required that any bingo site targeting English or European players carries a “white listed” gambling licence. The organizations that issue gambling licences are part of the government and provide useful services ranging from ensuring the games that are offered are fair, to making sure player deposits are segregated and safe, on through establishing protocol for handling player complaints or disputes. Regulators also ensure that certain policies and procedures are in place to protect the players and their rights. Bingo sites licenced in Costa Rica do none of the above.

What does a Costa Rican Licence Mean?

A bingo site claiming they are licenced in Costa Rica means nothing. In fact, there is not a true Gambling Licence in Costa Rica. Bingo sites and casinos often misrepresent their actual Costa Rican licence to imply they are licenced to offer bingo and casino games by the Costa Rican Government just like Malta, the Government of Gibraltar, or the Isle of Man (all reputable, EU “white listed” licencing agencies) do. In all actuality, the Costa Rican licence they speak of is a “Data Processing License”. The Costa Rican Data Processing Licence is nothing more than a piece of paper stating that a Costa Rican company is set up and approved to do business online. This piece of paper does nothing for the site’s online customers and does even less for online bingo players that play on Costa Rican bingo sites. There is no complaint procedure in place and nothing about this licence is gambling or bingo related. In fact, gambling of any fashion is not legal in Costa Rica.

Why Do Bingo Sites Claim They Are Licenced in Costa Rica?

Setting up a business in Costa Rica is very inexpensive and government involvement is minimal. Because it is so cost-effective, businesses find Costa Rica to be a financially attractive place to set up shop. Additionally, the Costa Rican Government keeps their hands out of most businesses. This means that there is not an insane amount of taxes levied against Costa Rican businesses. Online bingo sites that are registered for business in Costa Rica often are unable to secure legitimate licencing with reputable, gambling specific licencing agencies, as most gambling regulatory bodies require that the operator set up shop within the borders of the jurisdiction where they are registered. This means that a Costa Rican company is unable to secure licencing in Gibraltar because they need to be Gibraltar-based. Thus, in order to create the illusion that the bingo site is licenced and credible, they claim they are licenced in Costa Rica. In reality, the company is licenced to process data and operate online. They are not licenced to provide bingo games, casino games, or other games of chance. As a result, players are not afforded any type of protection when playing at these unregulated Costa Rican bingo sites.

What Bingo Sites Claim They Are Licenced in Costa Rica?

The following bingo sites claim they are licenced and regulated by Costa Rica to provide bingo games. Whilst we are not saying that all of these Costa Rican listed bingo sites are scams, we STRONGLY ADVISE players avoid these bingo sites. Many of the bingo sites listed below, however, are in business to take advantage of unsuspecting players. Whether pure in intentions or “wrong minded”, there are no protections afforded to bingo players and the formal player dispute process is non-existent. Players valuing their money and personal information are best avoiding these bingo sites in favour of reputable, sound, safe, and properly licenced bingo sites. For a list of safe bingo sites at which to play, visit our Guide to Playing Online Bingo Safely. Alternatively, you can click on any of the featured bingo sites listed on the right side of this page, as we have taken the time to compile a list of safe alternatives to Costa Rican bingo sites.