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Occasional Use Notices (OUNs)

Occasional Use Notices allow licensed bookmakers to provide betting facilities at genuine sporting events for a short period of time, without needing a full betting premises licence.

For example, at point-to point racecourses or major golf tournaments.

The event must be temporary or infrequent.

Serving an Occasional Use Notice

An occasional use notice (OUN) must:

  • be made in writing
  • sent in advance to the local authority
  • copied to the local chief of police (or chief constable in Scotland).

An OUN cannot be used for more than eight days in a calendar year for any one venue.

The person administering the gambling under an OUN must hold a Gambling Commission operating licence. Search our Public Register to check if a bookmaker is licensed.

Misuse of Occasional Use Notices

There are some cases where venues wanting to become tracks have engineered sporting events and misused their OUN to offer betting taking place away from the identified venue.

We have not introduced a new licence condition limiting the betting to the outcomes of a race, competition or other sporting event taking place at the track in question whilst the OUN is in force. However, we are monitoring the situation closely.

Make sure the betting you offer takes place:

  • at a genuine sporting event
  • within the boundaries of the identified venue
  • on a specific date.

Last updated: 27 February 2023

Show updates to this content

Following an audit corrected link formatting issues only.

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