Gambling operators have had plenty of new rules and legislation to comply with last 2025.
Tighter controls on Know Your Customer (KYC) mean that online casinos are having to request more information from their players, which has led to frustration as new verification requests are being made of existing customers… even if they have already verified.
For operators themselves, remaining compliant – while making the user journey as smooth and as seamless as possible – is not an easy balancing act.
Here’s a closer look at the new operator compliance in 2026, and how the most agile betting sites are adapting to ensure that they are complying with their licence requirements… while upholding the user experience of their players.
What are the New Operator Compliance Requirements for 2026?
As of October 31, 2025, all operators must prompt their customers to set a financial limit before they make their first deposit.
The new rules also mean that firms must redesign their websites and apps, where necessary, to make it easier for their customers to see the limit they have set and then alter it accordingly.
There will be reminders every six months thereafter, at which point players should also be signposted to where they can edit their limits if required.
So online casino KYC in the UK has changed, while new measures have tightened up the rules on anti-money laundering (AML), too.
Now, casinos must undertake regular risk assessments to ensure they are able to identify customers that may be laundering mfoney or attempting to fund terrorism through their games, as well as training staff to spot when a customer has falsified their KYC documents in order to beat the system.
Any operator that doesn’t comply with KYC and/or AML rules is liable for a sizable fine, so there is an urgency to ensuring that these new guidelines are being adhered to.
How AI is Helping to Accelerate KYC
Expediting the KYC process is crucial… new customers, if they are forced to wait too long between account creation and playing their favourite casino and slot games, will simply up sticks and join a different casino instead.
The goal has to be to complete the verification process within a couple of hours… something made easier by the use of AI.
We can argue all day and night about the pros and cons of artificial intelligence, but when it comes to completing account verification its worth cannot be questioned.
The onboarding process can, for the most part, be automated, with machine learning used to check a customer’s identity and proof of address documents against publicly-held resources, such as the electoral roll and credit reference agencies.
Some AI models are even able to use in-built facial recognition and biometric software to check I.D. documents against the selfies that players have uploaded. The upshot is that some elements of onboarding and KYC can be completed in a matter of seconds, while ensuring that only prospective players aged 18+ are approved.
The use of gambling ID technology enables operators to automate KYC and AML together, establishing the customer’s financial risk status at the same time as double-checking that they are who they say they are.
And customer support staff that were previously deployed to manually check KYC documents can be freed up, providing quicker and more efficient support via live chat, phone and email instead.
For the operator, speeding up onboarding – while complying with KYC and AML rules – is essential, both in terms of customer retention and in avoiding damaging fines and sanctions.
Speed is the Key for Players
The reality is that players are not going to accept lengthy delays in the verification process.
At best, they may be willing to wait a day before they can deposit and start playing their favourite games. More likely, operators have a couple of hours to fulfil their obligations before a new customer calls it a day and moves on.
That’s why they have begun to embrace AI and machine learning when onboarding new players. Artificial intelligence can accelerate parts of this process to the point that they’re completed within seconds – bringing the overall verification time down.
In many cases, players will still have to go through the rigmarole of uploading I.D. documents during verification… one day, who knows, maybe AI will be able to scan a player’s face through the camera on their smartphone, tablet or laptop.
But AI can be deployed 24/7, so even when customer support staff are sound asleep at home, their artificial colleagues are completing parts of the KYC process.
Compliance, Privacy and Speed: The Balancing Act
Players want to be verified quickly and with the minimum of fuss.
Operators want to onboard new customers as smoothly as possible, creating a hassle-free experience that also complies with UKGC requirements on age verification.
It’s a balancing act that doesn’t always go to plan, but the utilisation of AI and machine learning is certainly helping to expedite this process while ensuring that KYC and AML rules are adhered to.
The technology will allow online casinos like Prime Slots to adapt to any upcoming changes in the regulatory compliance framework, too.
