Norway has launched a new national action plan on gambling harm for 2026 to 2029, with children and young people moved closer to the center of the country’s prevention work. The government presented the plan on March 27 and said the next four years will focus on education, treatment, and research rather than new gambling limits or other regulatory changes.
The concern is not limited to traditional betting. Ministers said the new plan puts extra weight on young people who spend heavily on digital games, especially those exposed to loot boxes, skins, and skin betting. The government pointed to a 2025 study from the University of Bergen’s Spillforsk unit covering 9,000 people aged 12 to 17, which found a higher risk of gambling problems in those groups.
Schools and youth clubs will become part of the prevention push
One of the main new steps is a prevention program for schools, youth clubs, sports teams, and other organizations that work closely with children and teenagers. The government said it wants gambling harm spotted earlier, before it turns into a longer-term problem, and sees those settings as the right place to start.
The plan also puts more emphasis on giving families, relatives, and local health services better information about the help that already exists. The government said children and young people should not be left alone with gambling-style mechanics in digital products, and that support around them needs to be easier to find and easier to use.
Norway also wants treatment services to be easier to reach
The other side of the plan is treatment. Health minister Jan Christian Vestre said low-threshold services and specialist treatment both need to become more accessible, with services expected to keep up with changes in the digital gambling market and the way people now use games and betting products.
The plan is the seventh in Norway’s series of national gambling harm programs and sets out three headline goals: fewer people with gambling problems, earlier identification and better treatment, and more shared knowledge about gambling and gambling harm. It was prepared by Lotteritilsynet in cooperation with the Directorate of Health and the Media Authority, and the measures will be funded through Norsk Tipping profits.
