On 25 September 2026 Brazil’s federal government published Provisional Measure 1,394/2026, which prohibits the operation, offering, intermediation and advertising of fixed-odds betting across the country. Less than two years after the regulated market opened on 1 January 2025, licences are being withdrawn, deposits are already blocked, and promotion aimed at Brazilian users is banned in every medium. For affiliates and media buyers who treated Brazil as their main growth market, this is not a policy tweak. It is the end of the channel, at least for now.
This article sets out what the measure does, the dates that matter, what it means for affiliate traffic and commissions, and what could still change. It is based on the text of the measure and on official summaries published by Brazil’s Senate and Ministry of Justice. It is not legal advice; if you have exposure in Brazil, talk to a Brazilian lawyer and to every program you work with.
What the provisional measure does
According to the Senate’s summary of the text (Agência Senado, 28 September 2026) and the published measure itself (MP 1,394/2026 on planalto.gov.br):
- Betting is prohibited nationwide. The ban covers bets on real sports events and online games, physical and online, and it applies to companies based abroad that offer betting to people located in Brazil. Betting authorised by individual states ends as well. Other lottery types provided for by law are not affected.
- Existing authorisations are extinguished. All current licences end 30 days after publication, without refund of the licence fees and without compensation. No new authorisations can be granted, and pending applications fall away.
- Payments are cut off. Banks, payment institutions and instant payment systems are prohibited from processing betting transactions, except those needed to close operations and refund players. The Central Bank is to build a mechanism for rejecting and returning such transfers.
- Advertising is banned in all media. Any content that offers, promotes, publicises or facilitates access to betting and is directed at the Brazilian public is prohibited, regardless of format and regardless of whether anyone was paid for it.
- Platforms become responsible. Internet application providers must prevent and remove content that promotes betting, including content produced by third parties, and app stores must block prohibited apps.
The measure is already in force. As a provisional measure, it must be approved by Congress within 120 days to become permanent law. The government presented it together with a bill defining related crimes (Ministry of Justice announcement).
The dates that matter
| Date (2026) | What happens |
|---|---|
| 25 September | Measure published. New deposits into betting platforms are prohibited from this day. |
| Until 5 October, 23:59 | Players can withdraw their balances voluntarily. Deadline to remove existing advertising materials and sponsorship signage. |
| From 6 October | Betting sites and apps must be unavailable, including in app stores. Non-compliant platforms can be blocked. |
| 7 and 8 October | Operators report refund amounts per player to financial institutions and secure the funds. |
| Until 14 October | Financial institutions complete refunds. Unrefundable amounts go to a dedicated account at Caixa Econômica Federal. |
| 25 October | All concessions, permissions and authorisations are extinguished. |
Bets still open ten days after publication, with no settled result, are void and fully refunded. Bets settled within that window are paid out normally. Operators face a daily fine of R$200,000 if they fail their refund obligations (Agência Senado).
What this means for affiliates and media buyers
Promotion aimed at Brazil is now prohibited
The advertising ban is written broadly: it reaches any content directed at the Brazilian public that promotes or facilitates access to betting, in any format, paid or not. Affiliate review pages, comparison tables, bonus codes, streams, social posts, Telegram channels and paid campaigns targeting Brazil all fall inside that description. Advertising that breaks the rules is treated as abusive under Brazil’s Consumer Defence Code, with administrative sanctions and possible civil and criminal liability.
This extends a direction that was already visible. In July 2026, Interministerial Ordinance 73 made everyone who creates, promotes, distributes or boosts betting marketing responsible for it, affiliates and creators included, and required platforms to verify an advertiser’s authorisation (iGaming Atlas on Ordinance 73). The new measure removes the authorised market that such marketing could lawfully point to.
Existing content has a deadline
Advertising materials and sponsorship signs had to be removed within ten days of publication, that is by 5 October. The rule does not reach content produced before publication in which betting appears only incidentally, but an affiliate page built to send Brazilian players to operators is not incidental. If you run Brazilian-language pages, geo-targeted landing pages or campaigns, the safe course is to take Brazil-facing betting promotion offline now and document when you did it.
Traffic has nowhere legal to go
From 6 October licensed platforms must be offline, and payment providers cannot process betting transactions. Any operator still accepting Brazilian players after that point is unlicensed, faces blocking orders coordinated through Anatel, and cannot legally take deposits through Brazilian payment rails. Sending traffic there exposes you to the same advertising sanctions and gives you a commission stream that can disappear overnight.
Commissions: ask your programs in writing
The measure keeps operators’ regulatory, tax and financial obligations for the period in which they were authorised, but it does not regulate affiliate contracts. How programs settle September and October commissions depends on your agreement. Questions worth sending to every program with Brazilian traffic:
- Will CPAs for players who deposited before 25 September still be paid, and on what schedule?
- How will voided bets and refunds affect NGR, and therefore RevShare, in the final period?
- Does negative carryover apply to the closing month, or will the Brazilian balance be settled separately?
- What happens to commission that is still in a hold or review period when the licence ends on 25 October?
Our guides to CPA, RevShare and hybrid terms and to negotiating affiliate deals explain the clauses these answers depend on.
How big a shock is this for the market?
Brazil was the largest newly regulated market of the decade. Industry reporting put regulated betting gross gaming revenue at R$20.07 billion in the first half of 2026 alone (iGaming Brazil), and the national press counted more than 180 betting brands in the country (Estadão). In its explanatory memorandum the government acknowledges the fiscal cost: it estimates lost tax revenue of R$1.541 billion in 2026, R$5.150 billion in 2027 and R$5.330 billion in 2028, and justifies the ban with the harm it attributes to betting, from household debt to problem gambling.
For affiliates, Brazil had also been one of the most attractive ratios of payout to acquisition cost. Published 2026 CPA ranges for Brazil sat around $50 to $150 per depositor (Track360 CPA rates by GEO), below Tier 1 markets but with far cheaper traffic. That arbitrage is what closes now.
What could still change
A provisional measure is law from the day it is published, but it is not final. Congress has 120 days to approve it, and it can be amended along the way. Until then, three scenarios are realistic:
- Approved as published. The ban becomes permanent and Brazil leaves the map for betting affiliates.
- Approved with changes. Congress could alter scope, timelines or the treatment of specific products. Watch the text that comes out of the joint committee, not headlines.
- Not approved in time. A provisional measure that is not converted loses effect, but reopening a market whose licences were extinguished would take new rules and new authorisations. Do not plan traffic around this scenario.
The Senate’s public consultation portal showed close to 199,000 people in favour of the measure and 70,600 against at the time of its 28 September report. That is not a vote count, but it indicates the political climate the measure enters.
What to do this week
- Pause all campaigns and placements targeting Brazil for betting and casino offers, across paid, social, SEO and Telegram.
- Take Brazil-facing promotional content offline or strip it of betting promotion, and keep a record of when you did it.
- Write to every program with Brazilian players and get the commission settlement answers above in writing.
- Reallocate budget deliberately. Neighbouring LatAm markets have their own rules and very different economics; check advertising rules by country and what each market pays before moving spend. Our GEO guide was written before this measure; its Brazil section no longer applies.
- Follow the text in Congress, not social media summaries. Official updates come from the Senate and the Ministry of Finance’s Secretariat of Prizes and Bets.
SOHO works with partners on GEO selection and compliant traffic every day. If Brazil was a large part of your volume and you want to plan the next move with a media buying team, talk to us on Telegram.
Frequently asked questions
Is online betting now illegal in Brazil?
Yes, under Provisional Measure 1,394/2026, published on 25 September 2026 and in force immediately. It prohibits the operation, offering, intermediation and advertising of fixed-odds betting nationwide, including by companies based abroad. Congress has 120 days to convert it into permanent law.
Does the ban cover online casino as well as sports betting?
The Senate’s summary says the measure covers bets on real sports events and online games, in physical and online form. Other lottery types provided for by law are not affected.
Can affiliates still promote betting to Brazilian users?
No. The measure bans any content directed at the Brazilian public that offers, promotes, publicises or facilitates access to betting, in any format and whether paid or not. Existing advertising had to be removed within ten days of publication.
When do licensed betting sites in Brazil shut down?
Deposits were blocked from 25 September 2026. Players could withdraw balances until 23:59 on 5 October, platforms must be unavailable from 6 October, and all authorisations are extinguished on 25 October 2026.
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