Kasinohai Finds Bonus Terms Can Double Required Wagering
Kasinohai has found that advertised bonus multipliers can understate how much Finnish casino customers must wager before they withdraw bonus-linked funds. The comparison site tested welcome offers at 50 online casinos between 15 and 30 June 2026. Researchers opened real accounts, made real deposits, and recorded the terms shown at the point each bonus was claimed.
The research arrives as Finland moves from the Veikkaus monopoly to a licensing system under the Gambling Act (Rahapelilaki 10/2026). Operators in the new regime will not be allowed to offer bonuses aimed at new customers once licensed operations start on 1 July 2027. The Ministry of the Interior circulated draft decrees on online game features and stake limits on 10 June 2026. Public comment stays open until 5 August 2026.
Calculation Rules Doubled the Required Stakes
Twenty-two of the 50 casinos, or 44%, calculated wagering requirements on the combined value of deposit and bonus, Kasinohai reported. Another 15 casinos, 30% of the sample, did not state the calculation basis in the terms available when the bonus was claimed.
Under a 100% matched offer, a €100 deposit and a €100 bonus with a stated 30x condition require €6,000 in stakes when the rule applies to both amounts, against €3,000 if it applies to the bonus alone.
Multi-deposit packages added another layer. Offers promoted at multipliers between 20x and 30x could reach an effective 40x once a player completed every stage of the package, according to Kasinohai.
Across the sample, 12 casinos set requirements at 15x or below, 19 used conditions between 20x and 35x, and 19 required 40x or more. Kasinohai has classified the 20x-35x range as reasonable in past reports; the site now says that classification is under review. About a quarter of the tested casinos offered terms researchers considered favourable to players, and a minority applied the requirement to the bonus alone.
Maximum Bets and Withdrawal Caps Lacked Clarity
Forty-four percent of the tested casinos did not display a maximum permitted bet in the bonus terms available at the point of claiming. Where casinos disclosed a limit, it was commonly around €5 per spin.
By contrast, casinos most often voided a bonus and its linked winnings when a player exceeded this limit, Kasinohai found. Players can lose funds when a condition was not prominent during the claim process.
Bonus winnings were capped at 58% of the tested casinos, with the lowest cap identified below €100. Thirty-seven casinos restricted which games counted toward wagering, and live casino play counted for nothing at roughly a third of the tested sites. Eight casinos set no completion deadline.
Findings Do Not Represent the Full Finnish Market
Mimmi Malmström, Laura Korhonen and Lilli Partanen conducted the research. Kasinohai selected the 50 brands from casinos already listed on its own site rather than a random market sample.
The tested casinos held licences from Curaçao, Malta, Anjouan and Estonia. Kasinohai acknowledged that many may not seek a Finnish licence once the regulated market opens. The study covered welcome bonuses only, spanned a two-week period, and did not name the operators tested.
Jari Vähänen, Co-Founder and Partner at The Finnish Gambling Consultants, said the planned restrictions on affiliate marketing and welcome bonuses create particular problems for online casino operators. Another round of legislation is likely, he added: if channelisation stays lower than expected without a rise in gambling harm, he expects lawmakers to relax the rules on affiliates and possibly welcome bonuses.
💡TGJ Take
The study exposes a disclosure problem, but it also explains why Finland chose a strict starting position on bonuses. A stated 30x multiplier hides the real cost when the calculation base, game contribution and maximum bet sit elsewhere in the terms. Kasinohai itself now reviews its own past benchmark of 20x-35x as reasonable, a sign that even industry-side standards have room to tighten under the new law. The commercial risk cuts both ways: a full bonus ban could weaken licensed brands against offshore casinos after July 2027, and Vähänen’s comments suggest lawmakers could reverse affiliate and bonus restrictions if channelisation disappoints. Affiliates and operators should track the Ministry’s decree process through 5 August and watch channelisation data once the licensed market opens, since both will show if this year’s strict rules hold.
