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Are online casinos legal where you are?

In recent years, the number of online casinos has grown enormously. As the number of casinos has grown, so has the popularity of this form of gambling. However, not everywhere allows online casinos to operate. So, are online casinos legal where you live and how can you find out? Read more here.

Legality in the UK

Many countries still don't know how to control online casinos, but the UK is not one of them. In fact, the United Kingdom was one of the first to properly license and legalise online gaming to great effect. The country regulates online casinos requiring them to follow these criteria in order to operate:

  • Must hold a licence with the UK Gambling Commission
  • Must register with Gamstop

In order to retain the UKGC licence, online casinos in the UK must have strict gaming protocols in place. The online casino must employ responsible gaming protocols to help players with gambling problems. These casinos must also ensure fair gaming is available and be regularly audited otherwise they risk losing their licence.

Legality in the US

One of the largest countries in the world is also one of the slowest to legalise online gambling and casinos. The change is actually only recent too, with the Federal law only changed in 2018. Prior to this, states were not able to allow online gambling, and in some states gambling were not legal either.

Since the new law, each state is now able to put laws and regulations in place to govern online gambling in their own state. Some of the first states to legalise online casinos include New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Michigan. More and more states are joining this trend, though players need to be within the state to play.

Legality in Europe

Online casinos, like in the UK, have been relatively accessible and legal throughout Europe for quite some time. However, the specific laws and regulations for online casinos do depend on the country you are in. With this in mind, it is very important to check the legality of online casinos where you are.

Interestingly, there are no specific rules in place from the EU either regarding online gambling options. The majority of countries within the EU allow some chance games like lotteries to be played online. The differences come in relation to more games such as poker or skilled casino games. Some of the countries that offer full access include:

  • Sweden
  • Denmark
  • Austria
  • Italy
  • Estonia
  • Switzerland, Poland and Lichtenstein prohibit online gaming completely

Legality in other countries around the world

Other countries are slowly coming around to online gaming. For instance, Canada has started legalising online gaming with the Kahnawake Gaming COmmission in charge. Players can also access sites based outside of Canada perfectly legally. This type of access is employed by many players around the world where online gambling is not legal.

Many countries in Asia are also slowly starting to come around to legalising online gaming — it's the second-largest internet gambling market. NZ and Australia also have been slower in this area. Like Canada, players can access online casinos based outside the country rather than ones operating within the country, the same issue for countries like India.

  • China, Thailand and Japan both outright ban online casinos and gambling
  • NZ, Australia and India allow access to overseas online casinos
  • The Philippines legalised all online casinos

Final thoughts on legal online casinos

Whether online casinos are legal really does depend on where you are in the world. In Europe, you have a good chance of being able to access legal sites. Like other countries though, where gambling online is a little more confusing, players can still access online casinos that are based in other countries.

Where online casinos are legal, there are differences in the requirements. Generally though, there are main similarities. The casino must be registered and licenced with the local governing body. They must also have KYC protocols, responsible gaming and money laundering prevention in place in order to operate. At the end of the day, check local laws.