The Generalitat Valenciana has opened a formal public consultation on a draft decree to replace the region's gaming room framework dating back to 2015. Operators and industry stakeholders have 15 days to submit objections and suggestions — either through the GVA Participa portal or by email to the relevant sub-directorate general.
The move is framed around guaranteeing "legal certainty," but the substance of the draft introduces several structural changes that will affect how gaming and recreational rooms operate across the Valencian Community.
Stricter Physical Requirements for New Venues
The proposed regulation tightens minimum surface area requirements depending on venue type and location. Gaming rooms in municipalities exceeding 120,000 inhabitants must have a minimum usable floor space of 130 square metres; in smaller populations, the threshold drops to 100 square metres. Recreational rooms face a separate minimum of 50 square metres.
Machine requirements are equally prescriptive. A gaming room operating in a large-population municipality cannot function with fewer than 12 type B machines. Additionally, gaming activity and related elements must not be visible from public thoroughfares — a measure with clear implications for shopfront design and venue layout planning.
Bar service remains permitted within gaming rooms, but the draft caps that area at no more than 25% of the total venue surface, with no outdoor terrace allowed.
Digital Obligations and Admission Controls
The table below summarizes minimum area and machine-count requirements for different venue types under the draft decree. These parameters directly affect site selection and operational planning.
| Venue type | Municipality size | Minimum area | Minimum number of type B machines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaming room | More than 120,000 residents | 130 m² | 12 |
| Gaming room | Up to 120,000 residents | 100 m² | Not specified |
| Recreational room | Any | 50 m² | — |
| Bar area (within the gaming room) | Any | Max. 25% of total area | — |
Planning Ahead for Physical Compliance
Operators planning new venues near the 120,000-inhabitant municipality threshold should verify current population figures with official regional census data — boundaries can shift between regulatory cycles. The visibility restriction on gaming activity from public thoroughfares may require architectural modifications such as frosted glazing, recessed entrances, or internal layout redesigns that go beyond simple signage changes.
Digitalisation is no longer optional under the proposed framework — it becomes a structural legal obligation for all licence holders.
The draft mandates exclusive electronic processing for all administrative files submitted by licence holders, on the assumption that operators already have the technical infrastructure to comply. This builds on a requirement previously applied only to new venues.
On the security side, venues will be required to deploy admission control systems that query the Registro de personas excluidas de la Comunitat Valenciana in real time — a meaningful compliance burden that demands reliable IT integration with the regional exclusion registry. This mirrors the real-time registry access controls already being deployed in La Rioja's new biometric verification framework.
Financial Guarantees and the Removal of a Prior Authorisation Step
The draft establishes mandatory financial guarantees: €12,000 for gaming rooms and €5,000 for recreational rooms. Operators seeking to install machine interconnection systems face an additional surcharge of €10,000 per system.
One deregulatory element stands out: the draft eliminates the requirement for prior administrative authorisation to operate sports betting within gaming rooms — a joint application previously required from both the venue operator and the betting operator.
The draft decree sets mandatory financial guarantees depending on venue type and the presence of machine interconnection systems. The table below organizes these requirements for planning purposes.
| Venue type / condition | Mandatory guarantee |
|---|---|
| Gaming room | €12,000 |
| Recreational room | €5,000 |
| Machine interconnection system (each) | +€10,000 |
Warning
Operators running gaming rooms with machine interconnection systems face a stacked financial obligation: the €12,000 base guarantee plus €10,000 per interconnection system installed. A venue with multiple interconnected systems could therefore face guarantee requirements well above €20,000 before a single machine is activated. The draft does not appear to specify a cap on the number of systems subject to the surcharge.
Compliance Implications for Operators
The 15-day window is tight for an industry that will need to assess the cumulative impact of these changes. The shift to mandatory electronic processing affects administrative workflows across all existing licence holders, not just new entrants. Meanwhile, the real-time registry query requirement raises practical questions about system integration costs and vendor readiness that the draft does not appear to address directly. Operators with bar spaces currently exceeding the 25% cap will also need to consider whether physical reconfiguration is required before the new rules take effect. The Valencia gaming framework approved earlier this year already signalled the regional government's direction on venue density controls, making this consultation a continuation of that broader regulatory push.
Under the draft decree, mandatory electronic processing of administrative files applies to all licensees, not only new venues. However, the source does not disclose details on a transition period or the time allowed for technical adaptation; operators should clarify this during the 15-day consultation window.
The draft sets a clear limit: the bar area may not exceed 25% of total usable floor space, and outdoor terraces are prohibited. Operators whose premises do not meet this requirement may need physical reconfiguration; the source, however, does not specify whether additional time will be granted to bring existing venues into compliance.
The access-control system must integrate with the Valencian Community regional register of excluded persons in real time, implying a stable API connection and a reliable IT supplier. The draft decree does not detail backup requirements for technical failures or operator liability if the connection is interrupted; these are critical issues to raise during public consultation.
According to AzarPlus.
