Guernsey vs Alderney Gaming Licence: One AGCC Route
There is no separate Guernsey online licence. The AGCC licence must sit in an Alderney company — what a Guernsey group adds, and what each route costs.
Contents
Guernsey and Alderney do not offer two competing gaming licences. Both islands sit in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, online gambling across it is licensed by the Alderney Gambling Control Commission (AGCC), and the licence itself must be held by an Alderney-registered company. So the real question behind “Guernsey vs Alderney” is not which regulator to pick. It is how to build the group around one Alderney licensee — and whether any part of that group should sit on Guernsey.
Most comparisons stop at “same Bailiwick, same regulator”. That is true, but it leaves out the rule that decides the structure: the AGCC says an application for a full eGambling licence must be made in the name of an Alderney registered company. A Guernsey company can own it, run its administration and supply its directors. It cannot be the licensee. If you are here for the licence itself rather than the island comparison, our Alderney gambling licence guide covers the AGCC process, categories and fees end to end.
- There is no standalone Guernsey online licence. The AGCC licenses online gambling for the whole Bailiwick, Guernsey included.
- The full Category 1 or Category 2 licence must be held by an Alderney-registered company. A Guernsey entity can still act as the parent or administrator.
- A company outside Alderney can take an associate certificate instead — but it costs £35,000 in year one and £50,000 on renewal, double the £17,500 first-year licence fee.
- Tax is the same on both islands: 0% standard company rate, no VAT, no CGT, with a 15% Pillar Two minimum for groups over €750 million since 2025.
One Bailiwick, one regulator
The Bailiwick of Guernsey is a Crown Dependency made up of several islands, Guernsey and Alderney among them. Guernsey proper does regulate gambling, but under the Gambling (Guernsey) Law 1971, overseen by the Committee for Home Affairs. That law governs the island’s own local gambling. It was never built to license international online operators, and there is no Guernsey remote-gaming licence to apply for.
Online licensing for the whole Bailiwick is delivered by the Alderney Gambling Control Commission, an independent regulator that also operates separately from the UK Gambling Commission. Its fees, requirements and comparison guides sit together in our Alderney licensing index. So an operator asking for a “Guernsey online licence” is, in practice, asking for an AGCC licence — and, as the next section shows, for an Alderney company to hold it.
The rule most comparisons skip: the licensee is an Alderney company
The AGCC’s own guidance is direct: an application for a full eGambling licence must be made in the name of an Alderney registered company. Alderney has its own company registry, separate from Guernsey’s, so a company incorporated in St Peter Port is not an Alderney company for this purpose.
The public register shows how groups respond. Of the 20 licensees in the AGCC register as mirrored in our Alderney licence data (snapshot of 20 September 2026), the names read like a list of purpose-built subsidiaries: Betway Alderney Limited, Greentube Alderney Limited, Kambi Sports Solutions (Alderney) Limited, Playtech Software (Alderney) Ltd, Marathon Alderney Limited. Sixteen hold Category 1 only, two hold Category 2 only, and two hold both. The pattern is consistent — the operating group lives wherever it lives, and a dedicated Alderney company holds the licence.
| Route | Who holds it | First year | After year one |
|---|---|---|---|
| Category 1 licence (B2C) | Alderney-registered company | £17,500 | £35,000–£400,000 by NGY band |
| Category 2 licence (B2B) | Alderney-registered company | £17,500 | £35,000 flat |
| Category 1 associate certificate | Company registered outside Alderney | £35,000 | £50,000 |
| Category 2 associate certificate | Company registered outside Alderney | £35,000 | £50,000 |
| Temporary eGambling licence | Alderney company, short-term | £10,000 a year | — |
Source: AGCC published eGambling fee schedule. First-year figures apply to applicants with no prior Alderney activity; other new applications pay £35,000. Each gambling business associate adds £3,000 a year.
Where Guernsey fits: parent, administrator, directors
If the licensee must be on Alderney, what is a “Guernsey base” for? In practice it is everything around the licensee. Guernsey is the larger finance centre, with corporate administrators, fiduciaries, banks and advisers who run international structures every day. Groups use it for:
- The holding company. A Guernsey parent can own the Alderney licensee and sit between it and the wider group.
- Corporate administration. Company secretarial, registered-office and accounting services are more widely available in St Peter Port than on Alderney, whose population is around 2,000.
- Directors and key persons. Local directors are easier to source through Guernsey firms. Every director and key person still clears the AGCC’s fit-and-proper checks, wherever they sit.
What a Guernsey entity cannot do is replace the Alderney licensee. The operating substance the AGCC reviews (the Internal Control System, the key persons, the gaming equipment approvals) attaches to the licensed Alderney company.
Operators sometimes read “foreign companies can take an associate certificate” as a way to skip Alderney incorporation and save money. The AGCC schedule says the opposite: a Category 1 associate certificate costs £35,000 in its first year and £50,000 on renewal, against £17,500 for a first-year Category 1 licence and £35,000 at the lowest renewal band. For most new operators without a large foreign platform to plug in, a small Alderney company is both cheaper and simpler.
Tax: identical on both islands
The tax comparison is shorter than most articles make it, because there is nothing to choose between. Alderney’s income tax and social security are administered by Guernsey, and the same company rates apply on both islands:
| Tax point | Alderney company | Guernsey company |
|---|---|---|
| Standard company rate | 0% | 0% |
| Higher rates | 10% / 20% for specific activities only | 10% / 20% for specific activities only |
| VAT / GST | None | None |
| Capital gains tax | None | None |
| Gaming tax | None (licence fees only) | Not applicable to online |
| Pillar Two (groups ≥ €750m revenue) | 15% minimum since 1 Jan 2025 | 15% minimum since 1 Jan 2025 |
The Pillar Two line is the one change since most comparison pages were written. From 1 January 2025 Guernsey introduced a domestic top-up tax and a multinational top-up tax so that in-scope groups, those with consolidated revenue of €750 million or more, pay an effective 15%. The 0% standard rate stays in place for everyone else. For a mid-sized operator, nothing changes; for a group at that revenue level, the 0% headline no longer describes the outcome on either island.
Where the money actually differs is the licence line, and that is set by category and yield; which island you choose does not change it. Our Alderney gambling licence cost breakdown walks through the seven Category 1 renewal bands, and the Guernsey gaming licence cost page sets out the corporate and administration layer a Guernsey parent adds on top.
Substance, banking and the 2026 digital process
Neither route is a licence you buy off the shelf. Every AGCC file demands financial stability, fit-and-proper checks on UBOs, directors and key persons, and a documented Internal Control System built to the regulator’s headings. The requirements are set out in detail in our Alderney gambling licence requirements checklist.
On banking, an AGCC licence opens relationships with tier-1 banks and specialist gaming payment providers that a pure offshore permit rarely reaches. The caveat applies equally whichever island your group management sits on: mainstream consumer processors do not serve gambling, so licensees work with specialist high-risk acquirers and an EMI or neobank account alongside their bank.
The process itself changed on 1 January 2026, when the eGambling (Amendment) Ordinance 2025 took effect and moved the application fully online. A complete file typically runs 3–6 months to a full licence. The AGCC also issues a temporary eGambling licence, priced at £10,000 a year; whether it fits your launch depends on the file, so treat it as a question for the regulator rather than a planned shortcut.
So which structure should you build?
Once you accept that the licensee is an Alderney company in every case, the decision becomes a structuring one:
- Alderney company only. The leanest route for a new operator: one Alderney company holds the Category 1 or Category 2 licence, with local administration and directors. This is what most of the smaller names on the register look like.
- Guernsey parent + Alderney licensee. Suits groups that want Guernsey’s deeper administration, banking and director market around the licence, or already have a Guernsey holding structure. Tax is the same; the extra cost is the second company and its administration.
- Existing foreign group + associate certificate. Makes sense mainly for large groups whose player-facing operation already sits in another jurisdiction and which want to work within the Alderney framework without moving it. It costs more than a licence each year.
If you are weighing the AGCC against other tier-1 regimes rather than against itself, the Alderney vs Malta gaming licence comparison and our best gambling licences 2026 ranking are the better starting points. For the Guernsey side of the structure, our Guernsey gambling licence guide explains how the island’s own gambling law and the AGCC route fit together.
We run the whole file (the Alderney company, any Guernsey parent, the Internal Control System and the AGCC application) with government fees and our fees shown separately. Book a free consultation and we’ll map the structure against the markets and banking your model needs.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a separate Guernsey online gambling licence and a separate Alderney one?
No. Guernsey and Alderney are both islands in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, and there is no standalone Guernsey remote-gaming regime. Online gambling licensing for the whole Bailiwick runs through one regulator, the Alderney Gambling Control Commission (AGCC). Guernsey's own Gambling (Guernsey) Law 1971 covers local, land-based gambling, not international online operators.
Can a Guernsey company hold the AGCC eGambling licence?
Not the full licence. The AGCC states that an application for a full eGambling licence must be made in the name of an Alderney registered company. A Guernsey group can own, administer and direct that Alderney company, but the licensee itself is incorporated on Alderney. That is why the register reads like a list of dedicated subsidiaries — Betway Alderney Limited, Kambi Sports Solutions (Alderney) Limited, Playtech Software (Alderney) Ltd.
What about a company based outside Alderney altogether?
A company registered outside Alderney can apply for an associate certificate instead. A Category 1 associate certificate covers player registration and verification, the player contract and player funds for a foreign entity. It is not a cheaper shortcut: the AGCC schedule prices it at £35,000 in the first year and £50,000 on renewal, against £17,500 in the first year for a full Category 1 licence.
How much does the AGCC licence cost?
Both categories cost £17,500 in the first year for an applicant with no prior Alderney activity. A Category 1 (B2C) licence then renews in seven bands by net gaming yield, from £35,000 (under £500,000 NGY) to £400,000 (£30m and above); a Category 2 (B2B) licence renews at a flat £35,000. Each business associate adds £3,000 a year, and there is no gaming tax.
Is the tax different between Guernsey and Alderney?
No. Alderney's income tax is administered by Guernsey, so a company on either island sits under the same system: a 0% standard company rate (10% and 20% apply only to specific activities such as banking and utilities), no VAT and no capital gains tax. Since 1 January 2025 Guernsey's Pillar Two rules add a 15% minimum for groups with revenue of €750 million or more — that applies on both islands too.
What changed for 2026?
The eGambling (Amendment) Ordinance 2025, effective 1 January 2026, moved the AGCC application fully online — an updated form and no more bound paper submissions. The Internal Control System (ICS) remains the core of the file. It applies to every applicant, whichever island the group's management sits on.
Sources
- AGCC — eGambling fee schedule (Category 1, Category 2, associate certificates)
- AGCC — FAQ: what is required to set up an Alderney registered company
- AGCC — Associate certificate
- AGCC — eGambling licensees register
- States of Alderney — Income tax and contributions
- States of Guernsey — Tax information for companies
- States of Guernsey — Pillar Two
- States of Guernsey — Gambling
This article is for general informational purposes only and is not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional before acting.
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