Message 001
Communication from the Commission - TRIS/(2026) 2921
Directive (EU) 2015/1535
Notification: 2026/0558/BG
Notification of a draft text from a Member State
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MSG: 20262921.EN
1. Notification Message: MSG 001 IND 2026 0558 BG EN 15-10-2026 BG NOTIF
2. Country: Bulgaria
3A. Department Responsible: Министерство на икономиката, инвестициите и индустрията
Дирекция "Европейски въпроси и законодателство на ЕС за стоки и услуги"
ул. "Славянска" № 8, 1052, София
Tel.: +359 2 940 7522 / +359 2 940 7336
Fax.: +359 2 987 8952
infopointBG@mi.government.bg
3B. Originating Department: Министерство на финансите
ул. ”Г.С.Раковски” № 102, София - 1040
Tel.: +359 2 9859 2851
FAX: +359 2 9859 2852
E-mail: taxpolicy@minfin.bg
4. Products/Services 2026/0558/BG - H10 - Games of chance
5. Title: Draft Act amending the Gambling Act
6. Product/Service Details: The draft Act amending the Gambling Act provides for a ban on the advertising of games of chance, including the advertising of online betting, and aims to significantly restrict the advertising presence of the gambling activities.
7. Notification under another EU act
8. Summary: Opinion
Subject: The applicability of the exception referred to in Article 6(7)(a) of Directive (EU) 2015/1535 concerning the ban on gambling advertising and, more specifically, the ban on online betting advertising (Section 8 of the Draft Amendment to the Tax and Social Security Procedure Code)
1. Subject of the opinion
This Opinion presents the legal basis of the ban on gambling advertising, and in particular the ban on online betting advertising, provided for in the draft Act amending the Gambling Act, and justifies the need for an assessment of this regime as regards the applicability of the exception referred to in Article 6(7)(a) of Directive (EU) 2015/1535 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 September 2015 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical regulations and of rules on Information Society services.
2. Legal nature and public purpose of the proposed legislative amendment
The draft Act amending the Gambling Act provides for a ban on gambling advertising, including the advertising of online betting, and aims to significantly restrict the advertising presence of gambling activities in the public and digital spaces; it should be considered in the context of the legitimate goal of protecting public health, preventing gambling addiction, limiting the impact of gambling on minors, and ensuring effective control over the provision and promotion of gambling.
That goal is of particular public significance and cannot be reduced solely to the protection of the economic interests of consumers or to the usual regulation of commercial communication.
Games of chance are associated with a particularly high risk of developing an addiction, losing financial control and suffering adverse consequences for one’s personal, family and social life. Advertising exacerbates these risks by attracting new participants, encouraging repeat participation and creating the impression that it is easy to make a profit, or that gambling is a normal form of entertainment and a means of financial success.
These particular characteristics are substantial in online betting. Unlike gaming games, access to which requires a physical visit to a gaming hall or casino, online gambling services can be used at any time, from various devices and without direct physical contact with the gambling operator.
Advertising messages reach consumers through websites, social media, electronic media and other digital channels, including in situations where the consumer is not actively seeking information about gambling.
Therefore, the ban on advertising constitutes a stand-alone regulatory instrument to reduce the impact of gambling services on society. Its role is not limited to regulating the way in which gambling operators communicate with consumers; it also includes preventing risky behaviour and protecting vulnerable individuals, particularly children and minors.
There is a legitimate and objectively justified need to adopt targeted and effective regulatory measures to protect the public from the adverse effects of gambling by limiting the systematic presence of gambling messages in the public and digital spheres and preventing their influence on public attitudes, consumer behaviour and vulnerable groups of the population.
The unrestricted and widespread circulation of gambling advertisements creates conditions for gambling to be perceived as a common, socially acceptable and easily accessible form of entertainment, whilst at the same time creating conditions for the financial, psychological and health risks posed by gambling to be underestimated.
Therefore, a ban on gambling advertising constitutes a preventive instrument of significant public importance aimed at reducing incentives to participate in games involving a financial risk, limiting the likelihood of developing problematic gambling behaviour and ensuring a high level of attention to
9. Brief statement of grounds: The draft Act amending the Gambling Act provides for a ban on gambling advertising, including the advertising of online betting, and aims to significantly restrict the advertising presence of gambling activities in the public and digital spaces; it should be considered in the context of the legitimate goal of protecting public health, preventing gambling addiction, limiting the impact of gambling on minors, and ensuring effective control over the provision and promotion of gambling.
There is a legitimate and objectively justified need to adopt urgent and effective regulatory measures to protect the public from the adverse effects of gambling by limiting the systematic presence of gambling messages in the public and digital spheres and preventing their influence on public attitudes, consumer behaviour and vulnerable groups of the population.
Given the ever-increasing influence of the internet and social media on young people’s daily lives, the uncontrolled proliferation of gambling advertisements, including those promoted by influencers and popular online personalities, poses a real risk that gambling will be perceived as an easily accessible route to quick profits and financial success. This trend calls for urgent, consistent and effective actions to limit the harmful impact of such messages. Protecting young people cannot be limited to warnings and formal restrictions alone – it requires a clear and unequivocal regulatory policy, including a ban on gambling advertising in all its forms and across all distribution channels.
9a. Suitability of the measure to attain the pursued objective The protection of minors is of paramount importance in the regulation of online betting and the ban on its advertising, and demonstrates that European Union law allows for the possibility, under certain circumstances, urgent measures relating to information society services to be adopted under a special procedural regime where it is necessary to safeguard an overriding public interest.
In accordance with the Gambling Act, the National Revenue Agency maintains a register of vulnerable individuals who believe they have a gambling problem. At the end of September 2026, a total of 46,318 individuals were listed in the register, of whom:
18,892 persons up to 24 years of age, of which 6,856 persons are up to 20 years of age;
17 910 persons are between 25 and 30 years old.
The data from the register clearly show that young people under 30 are the most vulnerable persons suffering from gambling addiction with a relative share of 79.4% of all persons registered in the register.
Official statistics outline a concerning trend that requires an immediate and decisive response – young people are among the most vulnerable groups to the risk of developing gambling addiction. The increasing use of the self-exclusion mechanism is a serious indication of the scale of the problem and of the need to take preventive measures to protect the younger generation before gambling becomes an addiction with long-term consequences for their personal, social and financial lives.
Given the ever-increasing influence of the internet and social media on young people’s daily lives, the uncontrolled proliferation of gambling advertisements, including those promoted by influencers and popular online personalities, poses a real risk of normalising gambling behaviour and portraying it as an easily accessible route to quick profits and financial success. This trend calls for urgent, consistent and effective actions to limit the harmful impact of such messages.
The ban on advertising online betting will limit the possibility for minors to be exposed to advertising messages that manipulatively portray gambling as an easy way to win substantial sums of money, without adequately disclosing the real risks of financial loss, addiction and serious personal and family consequences.
Protecting young people cannot be limited to warnings and formal restrictions alone – it requires an urgent and unequivocal regulatory policy, including a ban on gambling advertising in all its forms and across all distribution channels.
9b. Necessity: Elimination of the harmful effects of advertising and promoting games of chance, operators of games of chance and their distinctive logos/signs on society, and in particular on young people and other vulnerable groups.
9c. Excessive burden in relation to the objective pursued: These particular characteristics are substantial in online betting. Unlike games of chance, access to which involves a physical visit to a gaming hall or casino, online gambling services can be used continuously, from different devices and without direct physical contact.
Advertising messages reach consumers through websites, social media, electronic media and other digital channels, including in situations where the consumer is not actively seeking information about gambling.
The main objectives of the draft act are eliminating the harmful impact of advertising and promoting games of chance, organisers of games of chance and their logos/signs on society, especially on young people and other vulnerable groups, and engaging organisers of games of chance to a greater degree in overcoming and limiting the adverse social consequences associated with gambling.
The ban on gambling advertising, and more specifically the ban on online gambling advertising, does not constitute a goal in itself to restrict the provision of services, but is a targeted protective measure dictated by the need to counter the risks arising from the expansion of the online gambling market, the widespread dissemination of advertising messages in the digital environment and their potential impact on public health, public policy and, in particular, on children and minors, who are most susceptible to and vulnerable to developing a gambling addiction.
Effective protection cannot be reduced solely to warnings about the risks associated to gambling, to providing consumers with formal information, or to measures taken after adverse consequences have already occurred. When the advertising influence itself contributes to encouraging participation in games of chance, prevention requires that the mechanisms through which this influence is exerted be restricted. In this sense, the ban on gambling advertising envisaged in the draft act addresses a significant source of risk and should be assessed in the light of its protective function, the public objective and the need for effective enforcement.
10. References of the Basic Texts: Basic texts have been forwarded within the framework of previous notifications:
2026/0536/BG
11. Invocation of the urgency procedure: Yes
12. Please provide the grounds for the urgency: The draft Act amending the Gambling Act provides for a ban on gambling advertising, including the advertising of online betting, and aims to significantly restrict the advertising presence of gambling activities in the public and digital spaces; it should be considered in the context of the legitimate goal of protecting public health, preventing gambling addiction, limiting the impact of gambling on minors, and ensuring effective control over the provision and promotion of gambling.
The protection of minors is of paramount importance in the regulation of online betting and the ban on its advertising, and demonstrates that European Union law allows for the possibility, under certain circumstances, urgent measures relating to information society services to be adopted under a special procedural regime where it is necessary to safeguard an overriding public interest.
Detailed reasons for the urgency of the measure are provided in the supporting documents section.
13. Request for Confidentiality: No
14. Is it a Fiscal Measure? No
15. Has an Impact Assessment? No
16.
TBT aspects: No
SPS aspects: No
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European Commission
Contact point Directive (EU) 2015/1535
email: grow-dir2015-1535-central@ec.europa.eu
