Author: Maria Letizia Mancini
With the implementation of the remote gaming reform introduced by Legislative Decree No. 41 of March 25, 2024, the “Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli” has introduced more stringent rules for topping up gaming accounts at Points of Sale for Top-ups (PVRs).
The regulatory framework aims to achieve two key objectives:
- Traceability of financial flows, whereby top-ups may only be carried out using traceable payment instruments registered in the name of the account holder, while withdrawals will be allowed exclusively through banking circuits or authorised institutions (postal services, payment institutions, electronic money institutions);
- Systematic control of weekly top-up limits, ensuring compliance with the prohibition on exceeding the overall weekly top-up limit of €100.
In this context, the testing phase in the Sogei environment began at the beginning of March 2026, and licensees have recently had access to the “production environment.” This phase, which simulates real sales transactions, is intended to ensure proper integration of licensees’ systems and the transmission of data without anomalies or technical errors before the system goes live on May 13, 2026, when communication between the licensee and the PVR will become mandatory.
From a technical standpoint, the ADM – in collaboration with Sogei – has updated the PACG protocol (version 3.2), introducing new specifications for managing top-ups, including:
- Inclusion of the PVR ID in account transaction messages;
- Introduction of payment method “17” for PVR top-ups made in cash or other non-traceable means.