Netherlands · Guide
Is Polymarket legal in the Netherlands?
No. Polymarket has no licence from the Kansspelautoriteit (Ksa), and Dutch licences don't cover bets on elections or other events anyway. On January 20, 2026 the Ksa ordered Adventure One QSS Inc., which runs Polymarket, to stop offering bets to Dutch players, under penalty payments of €420,000 a week up to €840,000. Polymarket broke the order and forfeited €420,000, which the Ksa decided to collect in May 2026, and its objection was rejected on June 23, 2026.
Key takeaways
- Polymarket isn't licensed in the Netherlands and can't be: Dutch licences only cover casino games, sports bets and horse-race bets.
- The Ksa found that Dutch players could bet on Polymarket markets about Dutch politics, and on January 20, 2026 ordered it to stop, under penalty payments of up to €840,000.
- Polymarket broke the order: €420,000 was forfeited, and the Ksa decided on May 19, 2026 to collect it.
- The Ksa rejected Polymarket's argument that prediction markets are financial products, not gambling, on June 23, 2026.
- Knowingly betting on an unlicensed platform is prohibited for players too, under article 1 of the Wet op de kansspelen.
The short answer
No. Polymarket isn’t licensed by the Kansspelautoriteit (Ksa), and it couldn’t be: a Dutch licence only covers casino games, sports bets and horse-race bets, not bets on elections or other events. The Ksa has formally ordered Polymarket to stop serving Dutch players, and Polymarket has already forfeited €420,000 in penalty payments for breaking that order.
What the Ksa found
Ksa supervisors placed bets from the Netherlands on Polymarket on November 12, 2025 and January 7, 2026, on markets about Dutch politics, such as who would become the next prime minister and when a new cabinet would be sworn in, after depositing €10 with a card linked to a Dutch bank account. The Ksa concluded that Adventure One QSS Inc., the company behind Polymarket, was offering a game of chance through polymarket.com without a Dutch licence.
The order and the penalty
- January 20, 2026: the Ksa ordered Adventure One QSS Inc. to stop within four weeks, or forfeit €420,000 for every week, up to €840,000.
- February 17, 2026: the Ksa announced the order. “Whoever doesn’t have a licence from the Ksa has no business on our market,” its director of licensing and supervision said, “and that also goes for this kind of new gambling platform.”
- May 19, 2026: having found that Polymarket broke the order, the Ksa decided to collect the €420,000 it had forfeited.
- June 23, 2026: the Ksa rejected Polymarket’s objection. Polymarket had argued that prediction markets are financial products, regulated as such in the US, and that the Dutch financial regulator, the AFM, would be the competent authority; the Ksa didn’t follow that argument.
Polymarket can still appeal to the courts. The Ksa also said in February that a turnover-related fine could follow.
Why the Ksa sees it as gambling
According to the Ksa, each market on Polymarket is settled by an external, objectively uncertain event; that players can take and trade positions before the outcome doesn’t change the chance-based nature of the result. And even licensed operators may not offer bets on events: the Ksa said on March 26, 2026 that bets on political elections aren’t allowed in the Netherlands.
What it means for you
- Using Polymarket from the Netherlands isn’t legal. Article 1(1)(c) of the Wet op de kansspelen prohibits players from knowingly using an unlicensed game of chance.
- No Dutch protection. Polymarket doesn’t check Cruks, and no Dutch regulator handles complaints about it.
- No legal alternative for elections. No licensed operator may offer bets on elections or other events. For sports, see our ranking of the best betting sites in the Netherlands.
For the wider picture, including Kalshi and betting exchanges, see are prediction markets legal in the Netherlands?
Frequently asked questions
Can I use Polymarket in the Netherlands?
Not legally. Polymarket has no Dutch licence, the Ksa has ordered it to stop serving Dutch players, and article 1(1)(c) of the Wet op de kansspelen prohibits players from knowingly using an unlicensed game of chance.
Why does the Ksa see Polymarket as gambling?
Because the settlement of each market depends on an external, objectively uncertain event. Being able to buy and sell positions before the outcome doesn't change that, the Ksa said in its order.
Isn't Polymarket a financial product?
That was Polymarket's argument in its objection: it said prediction markets are regulated as financial products in the US and that the Dutch financial regulator, the AFM, would be competent. The Ksa rejected that argument on June 23, 2026.
Is there a legal alternative to Polymarket in the Netherlands?
Not for elections or other events: no licensed operator may offer them. For sports, Ksa-licensed bookmakers are legal; see our ranking of the best betting sites in the Netherlands.
Keep reading
Sources
We verify facts against primary sources (regulators, court records, operators’ own terms) wherever possible.
- Last onder dwangsom voor illegaal kansspelaanbod Polymarket — Kansspelautoriteit , 2026-02-17
- Adventure One QSS Inc. (Polymarket) — Kansspelautoriteit , 2026-07-08
- Last onder dwangsom Adventure One QSS Inc. — Kansspelautoriteit , 2026-01-20
- Beslissing op bezwaar Adventure One QSS Inc. — Kansspelautoriteit , 2026-06-23
- Ksa wijst aanbieders op grenzen vergunning voor sportweddenschappen — Kansspelautoriteit , 2026-03-26
- Kansspelwijzer — Kansspelautoriteit , accessed 2026-10-23
- Wet op de kansspelen (article 1) — wetten.overheid.nl , version in force from 2025-02-12; accessed 2026-10-23