The legislation will create a regulated online gambling market in Ireland. The sector will be subject both to taxes and to a new statutory authority which will act as the sector’s regulator, the Gambling Regulatory Authority.

While currently online gambling is not locally regulated, many Irish citizens regularly place bets due the popularity of offshore unregulated offerings. Under Irish law, there is as of yet no unified governance structure for the regulation of gambling.

The administration of the sector is the responsibility of a patchwork of ad-hoc agencies and authorities; including the district courts, Irish Tax Authority revenue commissioners and the department of justice and equality.