A modern regulatory bill has been formally introduced to the Legislative Assembly of Costa Rica, seeking to fundamentally restructure the jurisdiction’s online betting and lottery frameworks to neutralize sophisticated black-market networks.
Titled “Strengthening and Modernization of the Social Protection Board (JPS),” the piece of legislation was presented under file number 25.600 by Esmeralda Britton, the Vice President of the Legislative Assembly.
Addressing Massive Revenue Leakage
According to exhaustive financial telemetry embedded within the bill, unauthorized platforms currently capture an estimated 53% of Costa Rica’s total gambling and lottery volume. This massive gray-market exposure triggers an annual economic leakage approaching USD 300 million, capital that the state intends to recoup to directly finance vital public health initiatives and localized social protection programs.
The modern statute equips administrative bodies with real-time digital surveillance systems, automated software audit controls, and predictive algorithms to proactively eliminate game manipulation.
Furthermore, the bill tightens anti-money laundering (AML) boundaries by hard-coding data-sharing channels between the JPS and key intelligence networks, including the Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF), the Costa Rican Institute on Drugs (ICD), and the General Superintendency of Financial Institutions (CONASSIF).
The rollout arrives after a turbulent legislative cycle. Near the end of 2025, the Security and Narcotics Commission approved Bill No. 25.057, built with technical assistance from the JPS to implement an open-market licensing regime for digital gambling and mobile platforms. However, in early 2026, the commission ultimately voted to reject that initial proposal due to political friction regarding the monitoring of offshore corporate capital.
Protecting Social Purpose Funds
Rosario Masís Pérez, Coordinator of Communication and Public Relations for the JPS of Costa Rica, previously emphasized that failing to modernize local gambling laws directly threatens public welfare resources:
“The lack of regulatory updates leaves unchanged a market where illegal platforms and structures work, which neither contributes nor pays taxes. Nor are they subject to control standards, minors’ protection and, therefore, they are contributing resources for social use. These illegal structures generate economic flows that can be exploited by organized crime.”
Vice President Esmeralda Britton highlighted that deploying high-end technical supervision is mandatory to protect vulnerable demographics from organized digital networks:
“Today we are taking a necessary step to protect the resources of Costa Rica’s social purpose. We cannot allow organized crime and illegal platforms to exploit the void left by the law, while thousands of people are waiting for their support and opportunities. This law will modernize Costa Rica. Regulating with technology means to also protect people, especially minors and vulnerable populations. We need serious, modern, and transparent regulation.”
