TITLE: Finland's Ministry of the Interior Initiates Legislative Amendment to Lottery and Gambling Laws
BODY:
On April 20, 2026, Finland's Ministry of the Interior established a legislative project to amend the Lottery Act (1047/2001) and the Gambling Act (10/2026) concerning the redemption of winnings from rapid-draw lottery tickets (raaputusarvat).
The project aims to enable the gifting of rapid-draw lottery tickets by allowing individuals other than the ticket purchaser to claim winnings, while maintaining consumer protections. Under the proposed framework, ticket purchasers must remain registered Veikkaus Oy customers and purchase tickets while authenticated. However, winnings redemption would be permitted by persons other than the original purchaser, provided they are of legal age to prevent minors from gambling. The purchaser's authentication requirement would not apply to the person redeeming the prize.
This legislative initiative follows a parliamentary administrative committee recommendation in response to government proposal HE 16/2025 concerning gambling system reforms. The committee requested that the government investigate rapid-draw lottery gifting possibilities and implement necessary legislative measures. The Ministry of the Interior published a preliminary investigation on April 20, 2026, examining alternative legislative models and their impacts, including regulatory analysis, product characteristics, gambling harms, marketing considerations, and tax implications. The investigation also included European Union internal market and competition law assessments alongside international comparisons.
The legislative project is scheduled to run from April 20, 2026, to December 31, 2026. Jukka Tukia, Counsellor at the Ministry of the Interior, serves as the project contact. The project will proceed through consultation procedures, further preparation, government decision-making, and parliamentary review before final legislative enactment.