Casino verification in German online casinos

As part of the know-your-customer (KYC) process, gambling providers verify the identity and age of players. For this purpose, users usually have to present a valid ID document and, depending on the verification option, take a selfie or provide the provider with other personal documents. But which casino verification options have now become established in Germany?

If you are active in the German online gaming market, you will notice that every provider implements or carries out the legally required identity verification differently. Casino verification via IDnow GmbH, based in Munich, is now widespread. As recently as January 2024, we at GambleJoe reported that the GGL had approved the new IDCheck.io identity check. SCHUFA Holding AG is also involved in the market and offers providers a corresponding service. In the following, I present the three most important options for casino verification in detail.

Casino verification with IDnow

Quite a few online casinos currently rely on casino verification via the Munich-based IDnow GmbH. The Spinz online casino, for example, provides identity confirmation via IDnow. IDnow began developing video identification for the German market back in 2012 and IDCheck.io was founded a year later. Today, the company is one of the big players on the market. IDnow has set itself the goal of preventing fraudulent activities such as money laundering or identity theft and at the same time guaranteeing data protection in full. But how does the KYC process via the third-party provider work in practice?

1. First of all, you can register as usual in the respective online casino (e.g. Spinz). Once you have gone through the registration process, you will see the message "Verification status". You should now have your ID and smartphone ready. You will be redirected directly to the IDnow website.
2. The quickest way to verify your casino account is to download the free IDnow app for iOS or Android. Next, open the app and enter your personal ID.
3. All you have to do now is follow the instructions in the IDnow app. To do this, you first need to take a photo of the front and back of a valid ID document (e.g. ID card). Then you need to take a selfie as a 3D photo - done.
4. In the final step, you just have to wait for IDnow to confirm the verification and you can proceed with your first depositor at the online casino. Experience has shown that it takes around 12 hours for the casino verification to be confirmed by IDnow.

Casino verification with SCHUFA

SCHUFA Holding AG is now also involved in the casino verification market. The private-sector credit agency based in Wiesbaden offers the products "SCHUFA Birth Data Check" and "SCHUFA Identity Check Premium" in this area. This enables identity and age checks to be carried out in a matter of seconds, as the personal data provided at the online casino is automatically compared with the data stored at SCHUFA. This ensures that only one player account is set up per player. Back in February 2022, we at GambleJoe answered the question of whether online gambling can also result in a negative SCHUFA entry. But how does the SCHUFA identity check for gambling work?

1. In the first step, you can register as usual with your personal details at the online casino of your choice.
2. In the second step, you must also complete the casino verification in the online casino. At JackpotPiraten and BingBong, for example, you have the option of completing theverificationprocess with "1 Click" via SCHUFA. To do this, you must enter your maiden name and place of birth, whereupon a comparison is made with the data stored at SCHUFA.
3. After a few seconds, the casino verification process is complete and you can use the functions of the respective online casino without any restrictions.

Casino verification via 1 cent bank transfer

A third option for casino verification is to carry out a so-called 1 cent transfer. Here, a third-party provider transfers the amount of 1 cent to the player's bank account. The purpose of the transfer contains a PIN, which must then be transmitted.

This KYC process is also approved by the German gambling authorities, as identity is of course also established when a bank account is opened. Of course, the 1 cent transfer only works with fully-fledged current accounts, not with e-wallet accounts. The LeoVegas online casino, for example, currently offers the option of casino verification via 1 cent bank transfer. The following is a brief summary of the necessary steps:

1. Register at the online casino of your choice and then decide on the desired verification option.
2. With the "1 cent bank transfer" option, you will receive a credit of 1 cent by bank transfer within 1 minute to 24 hours. You will find the PIN required to complete the casino verification in the purpose of payment. At LeoVegas Casino, for example, the credit comes from Insic GmbH, a high-tech compliance platform for ensuring money laundering prevention, player protection and youth protection.

Are online casinos without verification an alternative?

No, by no means. Since the new GlüStV 2021 came into force, only online casinos that adhere to the legal regulations, which include a strict KYC process, are permitted. In Germany, it is only legal to play in online casinos with a German license from the Joint Gambling Authority of the Federal States (GGL). At GambleJoe, we only recommend online casinos with a German license.

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If you opt for online casinos without verification instead, you are choosing illegal providers without a German license. In this case, the worst-case scenario is criminal prosecution and a fine or even imprisonment. In an article from 2023, we already answered the question of how verification generally works in German online casinos.

Conclusion

Online casinos licensed in Germany are required by the Interstate Treaty on Gambling to verify the identity of the player before the first depositor. To this end, the third-party providers IDnow, SCHUFA and Insic in particular have now positioned themselves on the market and offer appropriate solutions to carry out the KYC process securely and quickly. The fact is that casino verification in German online casinos is usually completed very quickly and that the data is of course encrypted and therefore transmitted securely.

Research sources:

https://www.idnow.io/de/blog-de/kyc-online-casino-verifizierung/

https://www.schufa.de/newsroom/schufa/sportwetten-schufa-geburtsdatencheck/

Source of the image:

https://pixabay.com/de/vectors/lizenz-identität-label-2859796/