Brazil reportedly preparing presidential decree to tighten online betting rules

Brazil’s federal government is reportedly drafting a new presidential decree that would impose fresh restrictions on online betting operators, with Casa Civil coordinating the work alongside the Ministries of Finance, Planning and Justice as Brasília shifts toward a tougher consumer-protection phase in the sector.

According to recent reports in Brazil’s betting press, the decree is being prepared under the coordination of Casa Civil and is expected around mid-May. The stated goal is to close loopholes that, in the government’s view, still make access to online betting too easy despite the formal launch of the regulated market last year. Because the decree has not yet been officially published, its final wording and legal scope remain unconfirmed.

The two measures most widely reported so far are both aimed at social protection. First, the decree is expected to bar participation by people enrolled in a new federal debt renegotiation programme. Second, it is expected to introduce stronger action against betting advertising considered manipulative or capable of encouraging compulsion and addiction. Reports also note that the government has not yet explained exactly how these restrictions would be enforced in practice.

The proposal comes amid a visibly harder political tone from President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. In an interview reported by AP on 8 April, Lula said he personally favours a national ban on online betting platforms and described online gambling as a “massive tragedy” for many families, though he also acknowledged that a full ban would require congressional approval. That makes a presidential decree a more immediate route for tightening controls without dismantling the legal framework outright.

The wider context is important. Brazil’s fixed-odds betting regime is built on the 2018 law and the broader framework established by Law No. 14,790 of 2023, while the Ministry of Finance says the regulated fixed-odds market entered into force on 1 January 2025. Since then, only companies authorised by the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting may operate nationally, and federally authorised brands use the “.bet.br” domain structure.

That means the new decree would not be creating regulation from scratch, but tightening a market already under active supervision. The Finance Ministry’s own 2025–2026 regulatory agenda says the government is already working on excluded-person databases, bettor protection and additional rulemaking, showing that Brasília’s approach has been moving steadily from market creation toward more detailed oversight.

If the decree is issued in the form currently being reported, it would mark a meaningful change in emphasis for Brazil’s betting industry. The market would still remain legal, but operators could face a narrower advertising environment, more limits on player access and greater political pressure around responsible gambling. In practical terms, that would signal that Brazil’s next regulatory phase is likely to be defined less by expansion and more by containment, enforcement and reputational control.