Nevis is leaner than Curaçao. It is not a hands-off licence.

Named individuals, not local infrastructure

Nevis substitutes physical-presence requirements with two named roles. Both have to be in place before issuance and for the duration of the licence.

Compliance Officer

Independent of the licensee. Cannot be a director, shareholder, or ultimate beneficial owner. Responsible for AML / CFT oversight, responsible-gambling enforcement, and internal escalation when notifications are triggered.

Local Reporting Officer

Must reside in Nevis and be registered with the Financial Services Regulatory Commission. The formal contact point with NOGA. Handles event-driven notifications, periodic reporting where prescribed, and acts as the substantive local presence in lieu of an office.

What Nevis does not require

• No physical office in Nevis.
• No local directors.
• No local employees.
• No minimum share capital.

These are the absences that make Nevis materially cheaper than Curaçao to operate. They are not absences of compliance — they are absences of local-substance theatre that does not improve outcomes.

KYC thresholds

NOGA expects standard offshore-grade KYC with two anchor points:

• Standard KYC before first payout to a player. Identity and address verification at minimum.
• Enhanced KYC once aggregate deposits hit USD 10,000. Source-of-funds documentation, additional identity checks, and risk-based ongoing monitoring.

Player protection

Two non-optional pieces: maintain an alternative dispute resolution provider for the duration of the licence, and geo-block restricted jurisdictions. Both are checked at renewal.

• ADR provider. Must be live throughout the licence term, not just at application.
• Geo-blocking. Restricted jurisdictions must be enforced at the platform layer, not relied on through T&Cs alone.

Annual renewal

The licence runs one year and renews annually. Practical guidance: start the renewal workflow six weeks before expiry. Renewal mirrors the original application due-diligence cycle on a smaller scale — updated KYC on directors and UBOs, updated projections, refreshed policies.

Event-driven notifications

These are the tight deadlines. Missing them is the most common way operators get into trouble between renewals.

• Ownership changes: notify within 10 business days.
• Serious incidents (security breach, funds at risk, regulatory action elsewhere): notify within 3 working days.
• Material changes to platform, key personnel, or product mix: notify as soon as reasonably practicable.

The honest summary

Nevis takes the substance overhead out and pushes accountability onto two named roles plus event-driven discipline. For operators with mature internal compliance, this is a much lighter regime than Curaçao. For operators who treat licensing as a checkbox, it is more demanding than Anjouan.