Antigua & Barbuda is not on the list of foreign remote gambling jurisdictions approved to be white listed by the UK Gambling Commission, released yesterday, and has begun the bid to join jurisdictions approved.

The list gives the countries or jurisdictions pre-approval to advertise gambling services in the UK from September. In February, Minister of Finance and the Economy Errol Cort announced an overhaul of the country’s gaming regulations, citing the desire to be white listed among the motivations for the move. „Antigua and Barbuda’s exclusion from the list does not mean that it has been rejected, however.”

He continued: “(We) remain confident that Antigua and Barbuda’s application to the UK’s “white listing” will receive approval in due course, given that Antigua and Barbuda’s regulatory and licensing objectives are parallel to the United Kingdom’s intended remote gaming regulatory regime …”

Applications from Antigua and Barbuda and are still being considered. Three other jurisdictions, including the Netherland Antilles, were rejected by the UK’s Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport James Purnell.

The Act will exclude all online gaming operators operating in jurisdictions outside of the European Economic Area (EEA) from advertising in the UK. The white list currently contains only two names, Alderney and the Isle of Man.