What is KSA (Kansspelautoriteit)?

KSA, short for Kansspelautoriteit, is the Netherlands Gaming Authority, the independent regulator that licenses and polices all gambling in the Dutch market, including online casino and sports betting since the KOA Act (Wet Kansspelen op afstand) took effect on 1 October 2021. It issues licences, monitors operators, enforces player-protection and anti-money-laundering rules, and imposes fines or revokes permits for breaches. Under the KOA regime, only operators holding a KSA licence may legally offer remote gambling to Dutch residents. Licensees must connect to the national self-exclusion register Cruks, run affordability and identity checks, contribute to an addiction-prevention fund, and cap advertising. The KSA has been notably strict on untargeted advertising and on operators still serving Dutch players without a licence. Worked example: a KSA licence for remote games covers a five-year term, and operators pay an annual gaming levy set around 0.25 percent of gross gaming result plus fixed supervisory charges. In practice, if an operator posts a gross gaming result of 50 million euros, the levy component alone runs to roughly 125,000 euros a year, before addiction-fund contributions and one-off application costs. For players and affiliates, the practical signal is simple: a Netherlands-facing site must display a valid KSA licence number, and the operator must be listed on the KSA public register. Promoting or using unlicensed .nl-targeted brands carries real enforcement and payment risk, so verify the register before you trust any Dutch offer.