On June 8, 2023, the N.C. General Assembly passed Session Law 2023-42 (H347), “An Act to Authorize and Regulate Wagering on Professional, College, and Amateur Sports and on Horse Racing in North Carolina, and to Authorize Live Horse Racing in North Carolina,” and the governor signed it into law on June 14, 2023. This law established the North Carolina State Lottery Commission as the state’s licensing body and regulator for authorized wagering on sports and horse racing. Sports betting and wagering on horse races may be conducted by licensed entities only; it is illegal for an unlicensed entity to offer sports betting or wagering on horse races. The N.C. General Assembly made changes to this law in Session Law 2023-134 (H259), “An Act to Make Base Budget Appropriations for Current Operations of State Agencies, Departments, and Institutions.” See “Sports Wagering Technical Considerations,” beginning on page 355 at Section 11.18. The law can be viewed on the N.C. General Assembly’s website under G.S. Chapter 18C, Article 9 and Article 10. Pursuant to authority granted to it in Session Law 2023-42 (H347), the North Carolina State Lottery Commission authorized sports wagering to commence on March 11, 2024. Wagering on horse racing in North Carolina will be authorized in the future; presently, no entities are licensed to offer or accept bets regarding horse racing in this state.

The North Carolina State Lottery Commission is an independent, self-supporting, and revenue-raising agency of the State of North Carolina. The Commission is also the licensing and regulatory body for authorized sports wagering and pari-mutuel wagering on horse race events. The new law directs the Commission to implement, administer, and enforce laws concerning wagering on sports and horse racing. Among other things this includes regulating wagering, reviewing licensing applications, and supporting responsible gaming. The Commission adopts rules that wagering licensees must follow and it ensures that licensees meet those requirements.

The Commission maintains its rules in the North Carolina State Lottery Commission Rules Manual for Sports Wagering and Pari-Mutuel Wagering. The Commission’s rules can also be found in Chapter 6 of the North Carolina Administrative Code, Title 24, Independent Agencies. From time to time, the Commission will engage in rulemaking proceedings in accordance with its Rulemaking Policy and Procedure. To receive future notices of the Commission’s rulemaking proceedings via email, please register to the Commission’s rulemaking interested persons list by completing this form.

The law authorizes wagering on professional sports, college sports, electronic sports, amateur sports, or any other event approved by the Commission as well as horse racing, both live and simulcast races. The Commission maintains a Sports Wagering Catalog that lists all approved sporting events and wagers in North Carolina. The Sports Wagering Catalog also lists all approved leagues and their governing bodies as well as the governing body’s website. This document is posted on the Events and Wagering web page here.

Sports wagering is permitted via online platforms and at in-person locations authorized and regulated by the Commission. Currently, eight interactive sports wagering operators are licensed by the Commission to provide online sports wagering. A list of licensed operators is here. At this time, there are no locations approved for in-person sports wagering.

All of the following persons are prohibited from engaging in sports betting or wagering on horse racing.

• Any person under the age of 21.
• Any person who has requested and not revoked a voluntary exclusion designation from sports wagering.
• Any person who has been adjudicated by law as prohibited from engaging in sports wagering.
• Any member or employee of the Commission when placing a sports wager in this State.
• Any employee or key person of an interactive sports wagering operator or service provider licensee when placing sports wagers with that interactive sports wagering operator.
• Any participant in a sporting event, including an athlete, coach, trainer, official, or any employee or staff of a participant, is prohibited from placing a sports wager on a sporting event in which they are participating.
• Any employee or staff of a sports governing body, when placing a sports wager on sporting events with which that individual or sports governing body is affiliated.

No. The North Carolina Education Lottery – which offers instant scratch-off tickets and draw games such as Powerball, Mega Millions, Carolina Cash 5, and Fast Play through retailers and its Online Play platform – does not offer or accept wagers on sports or horse racing. Only licensed interactive sports wagering operators can offer and accept sports wagers. Presently, no operators are licensed in North Carolina to offer and accepts wagers on horse racing.

Yes. The North Carolina State Lottery Commission is an independent, self-supporting, and revenue-raising agency of the State of North Carolina. Funds it generates from lottery games through the North Carolina Education Lottery are allocated by the General Assembly to support education. The Commission is also the licensing and regulatory body for authorized sports wagering and pari-mutuel wagering on horse race events. Parties licensed by the Commission to offer sports or horse race wagering generate tax revenues for the State that the General Assembly statutorily allocates to support numerous programs. The Commission oversees a professional staff that operates the North Carolina Education Lottery and that licenses and regulates wagering on sports and horse races. Each of the Commission’s nine members holds an appointive position; serves a five-year term; and receives no salary. The Commission conducts lottery business during committee and Commission meetings that are generally held each quarter. You can see a list of Commission members here.

NC law requires three types of businesses engaged in sports wagering to obtain a license from the Commission:

• Interactive Sports Wagering Operators – businesses that offer and accept sports wagers on sporting events.
• Service Providers – businesses that provide covered services to an Operator that create sports wagering markets and determine sports wager outcomes that involve the operation, management, or control of sports wagers. Covered services is further defined by G.S. 18C-901(4).
• Suppliers – businesses that provide services, goods, software, or other components necessary for the creation of sports wagering markets and determinations of sports wager outcomes to Operators or Service Providers.

The application fee for an Operator license is $1,000,000, a Service Provider License is $50,000, and a Supplier license is $30,000. Payment of the application fee will be facilitated by Commission staff after an application has been submitted. In the event that an Applicant is denied a license, the application fee, minus 5%, will be refunded. Additionally, Applicants and their Key Persons are responsible for the cost of their background record check. The background record check fee is collected by the Commission’s vendor.

Visit ncgaming.gov/licensing to fill out a request form for an Operator, Service Provider, or Supplier application form. Only use one business email address for the entity to complete this request form and please only submit one request form. Attempts to use multiple email addresses or submit multiple requests will cause an error and delay the application process. After the request form is submitted, the Commission will respond via email with the required application forms and instructions.

Specific instructions on submitting the application forms and attachments to the Commission’s secure ShareBase portal are included in the Commission’s email response to a request for an application.

It is the Applicant’s responsibility to maintain and protect the unique link and password to the Commission’s ShareBase portal. In the event that it is lost or forgotten, please contact Licensing@ncgaming.gov as soon as possible.

The Commission will issue a provisional license to any Supplier applicant who submits an administratively sufficient application and the required written attestations provided with the application form. The Commission will continue its background investigation and due diligence and issue a final licensing determination within 180 days of issuing the provisional supplier license. The Operator and Service Providers are not eligible for provisional licenses under the law.

Possibly. The NC Sports Wagering Law authorizes the Commission to take into consideration an applicant’s licensure in good standing in other jurisdictions that have substantially equivalent licensing requirements to NC. To be eligible for this consideration, the Applicant must submit letters or certificates of good standing from each jurisdiction where they hold a license with their application form. Commission staff will review comparable licensure on a case-by-case basis. In any event, an Applicant that receives their license early will be required to wait for the Commission to authorize sports wagering in NC.

The business entity applying for a license must request a background record check through the Commission’s vendor. Additionally, all of the entity’s Key Persons, as defined in the application form, must request a background record check. It is important to start this process early. You may request a background record check as soon as you request an application form from the Commission.

Yes, an Applicant or Key Person with a criminal background check, conducted within the 12 months prior to submitting the application, may submit the completed report in lieu of requesting a background record check through the Commission Vendor. The completed report must be submitted in the application materials along with this signed Affidavit of Criminal History Record Check. The Commission reserves the right to require an Applicant or Key Person to submit to a background record check with our vendor if the prior background record check is insufficient in any way.

The Commission has established a secure ShareBase portal for each Applicant to submit their application materials. Once an Applicant uploads their application documents, they will be ingested automatically into the Commission’s secure system, and deleted from the Sharebase portal. Generally, application materials are not public record. However, NC law requires the Commission to make the following documents public record:

• The name, address, and sports wagering platform,
• The names of all Key Persons,
• The documented history of working to prevent compulsive gambling, including training programs for employees,
• The proposed sports wagering brand that the Applicant plans to hold out to the public displaying its sports wagering platform,
• The granting or denial of the application, and
• Any documents or materials that form the basis for disciplinary or enforcement action.

No, the completed application form, necessary attachments, and all key person disclosures must all be uploaded to the Commission’s ShareBase portal at one time. Your application will be found administratively deficient and possibly denied if any portion is missing or incomplete and you fail to timely cure the deficiency.

No, the completed application form, necessary attachments, and all key person disclosures must all be uploaded to the Commission’s ShareBase portal at one time. Your application will be found administratively deficient and possibly denied if any portion is missing or incomplete and you fail to timely cure the deficiency.

Instructions on how to complete and submit an amendment to the application were provided via confirmation email upon submission of your application. Please refer back to that email and contact Licensing@ncgaming.gov with any questions.

Instructions on how to complete and submit an amendment to the application were provided via confirmation email after you submitted your application. Please refer back to that email and contact Licensing@ncgaming.gov with any questions.

Applicants will be notified via email each time the status of their application changes. The email will be directed to the Primary Contact provided in their application form. Frequent requests for status updates may delay the investigation and review of your application.

It is the goal of the Commission to complete the licensing process efficiently. NC law provides that the Commission will review and make a licensing determination within 60 days from receipt of a completed application. The Commission may extend the review period for an additional 30 days if the background investigation is outstanding.

Any licensee whose business provides determinations on sports wager outcomes needs to have a Service Provider license.

Yes. A licensed Service Provider is deemed to also hold a Supplier license for services, goods, software, or components provided in-house. The Commission recommends that any business that plans to provide services that could fall under both license types seek a Service Provider license so that all their sports wagering related services are covered and authorized under their licensure.

Yes. A licensed Interactive Sports Wagering Operator is deemed to also hold a Service Provider license and a Supplier license for services, goods, software, or components provided in-house.

The Commission cannot approve the scope of an Applicant’s Key Person disclosures based on limited information prior to its application submission. The Applicant bears the ultimate burden of identifying Key Persons for its organization, based upon the statute, Commission Rules, application requirements. The Commission is unable to evaluate the sufficiency of an Applicant’s Key Person disclosures until the full application has been submitted for review.

Generally, no. Commission staff does not provide advisory opinions to Applicants or potential Applicants; general guidance, however, appears in this FAQ. The Commission encourages Applicants and potential Applicants to seek private legal counsel to assist them in determining which license, if any, to apply for. The Commission is unable to provide legal advice.

A business entity that conducts advertising, market, or branding on behalf of, or to the benefit of, an Operator does not need to obtain a license from the Commission. However, an Operator must ensure that any individual or entity that undertakes such activities at its direction or for its benefit adheres to statutory requirements, Commission’s rules, and the Operator’s applicable internal controls. An Operator may be held responsible for any affiliate marketer’s failure to do so. The Commission encourages Applicants and potential Applicants to seek private legal counsel to assist them in determining which license, if any, to apply for. The Commission is unable to provide legal advice.

• Is a business-to-business entity;
• Directs its services to members of the general public or, specifically, registered players with sports wagering accounts;
• Holds funds in player accounts;
• Can access or utilize player data outside of data needed to conduct payment processing activities;
• Can access, view, influence, or change player accounts, profiles, bets, or odds; or
• Advertises on behalf of an Operator.

The Commission encourages Applicants and potential Applicants to seek private legal counsel to assist them in determining which license, if any, to apply for. The Commission is unable to provide legal advice.

A business entity that provides necessary services to the creation of sports wagering markets in NC, such as geolocation services, needs to obtain a supplier license. The Commission encourages Applicants and potential Applicants to seek private legal counsel to assist them in determining which license, if any, to apply for. The Commission is unable to provide legal advice.

A business entity that provides necessary services to the creation of sports wagering markets in NC, such as customer identity, age verification, or “know your customer” services, needs to obtain a supplier license. The Commission encourages Applicants and potential Applicants to seek private legal counsel to assist them in determining which license, if any, to apply for. The Commission is unable to provide legal advice.

Generally, no. Businesses providing general purpose telecommunication services, internet services, and other similar services or goods not specifically designed for use in connection with sports wagering that have no direct or indirect influence on sports wagering activities, do not need to obtain a supplier license. The Commission encourages Applicants and potential Applicants to seek private legal counsel to assist them in determining which license, if any, to apply for. The Commission is unable to provide legal advice.

Yes. A business entity that provides the operating system or virtual environment used to offer sports wagering over the internet, including websites and mobile devices, on behalf of an Operator, needs to obtain a supplier license. The Commission encourages Applicants and potential Applicants to seek private legal counsel to assist them in determining which license, if any, to apply for. The Commission is unable to provide legal advice.

Yes. Please request an Interactive Sports Wagering Operator License Application. In Section B of the application form, where information regarding the written designation agreement is requested, please respond with “Not Applicable” or “N/A.”

In response to this application question, please provide in the application submission a statement that the organization has never conducted business in North Carolina or has not incurred any state tax liability. If the applicant obtains a sports wagering license in North Carolina, the Commission may request further documentation of tax compliance after the organization’s first tax filings with NC.

The application form and the Multi-Jurisdictional Personal Disclosure may be signed using an electronic signature program that complies with the ESIGN Act, 15 US Code, Chapter 96, or by printing, signing, and scanning the signature page. However, the Statement of Truth at the end of the Multi-Jurisdictional Personal Disclosure must be signed in accordance with the state notary laws in your area. All signature pages must be saved in PDF format and clearly titled and identified.