Payment Processing for Gambling Operators in Costa Rica and Panama

Costa Rica has no gambling regulator for online operators and issues no online gambling licence. Sportsbooks and casinos based there typically operate with a municipal business permit, often described as a data processing licence, and pay a tax under Law 9050 of 2012 that applies to companies processing electronic bets. That tax is set by the number of employees, not by revenue.

Neither the permit nor the tax is a gambling licence, and presenting them to a bank or acquirer as one is a mistake. The setup is meant for players abroad; it does not authorise gambling for players in Costa Rica.

Since a 2017 reform of Law 7786, casinos operating from Costa Rica, including virtual casinos, must register with SUGEF, the financial supervisor, and are subject to anti-money-laundering obligations. Failing to register can mean losing access to the Costa Rican financial system. Whether a given sportsbook falls under the registration duty depends on what it does, so take local legal advice and keep the answer in writing for your acquirer.

Proposals to regulate online gambling for Costa Rican players have been debated, but none has become law. A bill against illegal gambling, expediente 25.057, was rejected in committee in January 2026, and a bill to modernise the national lottery board, expediente 25.600, was still under debate in mid-2026.

In Panama, gambling is supervised by the Junta de Control de Juegos under Decree-Law 2 of 1998, and online betting falls under its authority. Since 2022, online betting sites have had responsible gaming and self-exclusion obligations.

Law 527 of May 2026 tightened the rules for digital platforms. It lets the Junta order the blocking of unlicensed sites and apps, requires biometric age verification and spending and time limits, and sets fines of up to one million balboas. The government has six months from publication, until about late November 2026, to issue implementing regulations.

Gambling operators in Panama, physical and online, are subject to anti-money-laundering rules supervised by the Superintendency of Non-Financial Entities. Panama was removed from the FATF grey list in October 2023 and from the EU list of high-risk third countries in 2025, which has made banks and acquirers more willing to look at Panamanian businesses than a few years ago.

Online casinos and sportsbooks are processed under merchant category code 7995. Mastercard requires acquirers to register gambling merchants and to be satisfied that the gambling is lawful where the merchant is and where its players are, with players blocked in places where it is not. For an operator in Costa Rica or Panama, that puts the focus on your player countries, not on your base.

Players in the United States are the hardest case. Online sports betting is legal in a majority of states and online casino in only a handful, in each case only with a state licence that offshore operators do not hold, and US federal law, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, requires card networks and banks to identify and block payments for unlawful internet gambling. Latin American markets vary: several, including Brazil and Colombia, now require a local licence, while others have no clear rules. An acquirer will expect a market list that reflects this.

• What your business actually holds: a Panamanian licence, or for Costa Rica, your municipal permit, tax registration and any SUGEF registration.
• Any gaming licence held elsewhere, such as Curaçao, by the entity that will sign the merchant agreement.
• Your player countries, the countries you block, and how geo-blocking works.
• Who runs the business and from where: office, directors and key staff.
• Your AML controls: player due diligence, source of funds, sanctions screening.
• Payment methods offered, including crypto, and how withdrawals are paid.
• Processing history: volume, approval rates, refunds and chargebacks.

• A recognised gaming licence for the contracting entity, such as Curaçao under its new regime, rather than relying on a Costa Rican permit.
• A market list without countries that require a local licence you do not hold.
• Deposits by country that match that list.
• Local payment methods, offered only in markets where you are permitted to serve players.
• Written legal advice on the markets you serve.

Ecompayer is not a payment provider. You add your company, licences, player markets, volumes and payment methods once, and your profile is matched with a payment provider whose gambling programme accepts that combination. Your account is then prepared with that provider so you can go live and take deposits. Final approval and terms are always the provider's decision.

• Costa Rica, Law 9050 of 2012 on the tax on casinos and electronic betting companies; Law 7786 as amended by Law 9449 of 2017.
• Costa Rica Legislative Assembly, expedientes 25.057 and 25.600, as reported by Focus Gaming News and iGaming Expert, 2026.
• Panama, Decree-Law 2 of 1998; Resolution MEF-RES-2022-2900; Law 527 of 2026, as reported by La Estrella de Panamá.
• Panama, Law 124 of 2020 on the Superintendency of Non-Financial Entities; FATF, October 2023 plenary; EU high-risk third countries list, 2025.
• United States, Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act and Regulation GG, 31 CFR Part 132.
• Mastercard, Security Rules and Procedures, Merchant Edition, section 9.4.2.

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