Casino Gambling Laws

The biggest problem with developing a page for a web site that deals with casino gambling laws is that almost as soon as you put it up some of the information has changed. There are literally thousands of jurisdictions around the world and they each have their own rules, laws and regulations about online casinos.

Some countries have specific laws regulating the running and licensing of online gambling establishments, some countries have specific laws against online gambling and some countries don’t have any laws about online casinos at all. In addition, if you just included a few lines about each jurisdiction in the world you would end up with a page that was miles long.

There are often many different jurisdictions within each country that may have their own set of laws. The United States is a perfect example of this with laws on the federal level, state level, city level and county level. Sometimes you need a law degree just to figure out who has the authority to do what in any given situation.

Because of the ever changing legal landscape and different jurisdictions I have included many tips, tricks and methods for finding out what the casino gambling laws are where you live or where you are planning to visit.

Gambling Law Disclaimer

Before continuing you need to understand that I am not offering legal advice and you are responsible for determining if any actions you take online are legal where you live. This page is simply for educational purposes and to help you find the answers you need.

The Best Advice about Casino Gambling Laws

By far the best place to learn more about casino gambling laws is to speak with an attorney who specializes in online gambling laws. There are not many of these types of lawyers around, but they do exist.

If you want to be 100% sure you are receiving the best advice possible this is your only option. Plan to spend a fair amount of money, because these lawyers are in demand and they charge for their services.

Learn About Casino Gambling Laws Cheaply

This is the way most players and potential players approach online casino gambling laws. They may do a quick search online, but for the most part if they can make a deposit and play at an online casino they assume it is legal. Searching on the Internet for questions concerning the law and legal advice can be dangerous.

You need to realize that just about anyone with Internet access and a few dollars can launch a web site that says anything they want, whether true or not. In addition, just because you find multiple sources reporting the same things as fact you can’t be sure they are true.

Often a site will make a statement of fact and other sites will start saying the same things and presenting them as factual without verifying them. Remember the old saying that says you often get what you pay for. By reading free advice you may be setting yourself up for an unpleasant experience.

If you must research gambling and casino laws using the Internet make sure to verify any information you find with reputable sources.

Just as a word of caution, Wikipedia is not a trusted or reputable source. It often does have good information, but just about anyone can edit there so many times the details can be incorrect. You can often find solid sources referenced at the bottom of the page in Wikipedia, so if you must use it at least follow the links to find credible resources.

Is Anyone in Jail for Gambling?

This is the test I often use to help me determine if it is legal in a certain jurisdiction to gamble online. I try to find out if anyone has ever been sentenced to jail for doing what I want to do. For example, if I want to play at an online casino I see if anyone where I live has ever went to jail for doing so.

While this is far from a solid defense if you ever get charged, it does make me feel better if no one has done jail time. In other words, you can’t say “Well no one else got in trouble for doing it so I should be allowed to do it” as a defense in a court of law. (I guess you can say it, but if you broke the law it will not help you get the charges dropped.)

You can even take this a small step further to see if anyone has even been charged with a crime for playing at an online casino.

Can You Trust Advice on Online Forums?

While it’s dangerous to say anything is 100% certain one way or another when it comes to sharing information online, I can say that most advice that you find on online forums is suspect at best, and much of it is just plain wrong.

Do not ever base your safety and protection from possibly breaking the law based on anything you read on an online forum or message board. Anyone with Internet access can post on most forums and act like they are an expert.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking just because someone has a bunch of posts they know what they are talking about either. I have seen people with thousands of posts tossing around completely inaccurate information. I don’t know if all of these people are bad or intentionally trying to spread bad information, but some of it is close to criminal and can cost people money and / or get them hurt. Just like anything else you find online, make sure you verify the important details.

Is Any Place Safe to Gamble?

I realize that so far I have painted a discouraging picture about online gambling and the law. The good news is there are plenty of jurisdictions that have specific laws in place to make online gambling and casino play legal for companies that operate with the correct licenses and for players.

This information can often be found on the government owned web sites in your country. Local attorneys are also likely to have this information if you live in one of the countries that have specific laws allowing online casino play.

However, don’t make the mistake of thinking online gambling is legal just because you have land based casinos in your country. Often the biggest opponents of online gaming are the land based casinos. There should either be specific laws allowing online gambling in your jurisdiction or at the very least no laws that prohibit it.

There are often different laws concerning owning an online casino and playing at an online casino. In many jurisdictions you can play legally but you can’t own an online gambling establishment. There are even a few places where you can own one but citizens are not allowed to play in one.

How Do Banks Factor Into Gambling Laws?

The online casino and gambling industry is fueled by the movement of money into and out of the online casinos and other gambling businesses. Without a safe and secure way to move the money around the online gambling business would quickly go away. So in some jurisdictions the law makers try to either control online gambling through banking laws or try to do away with online gambling by making banking with online casinos illegal.

The UIGEA passed in the United States is an example of this. It doesn’t make gambling online illegal, but it tries to target the banking industry to get them to stop dealing with online casinos. But it hasn’t been very successful at driving the online casinos out of the market. There are still plenty of places for United States citizens to play at online casinos, poker rooms and sports books.

Getting money into and out of these establishments may be a little more challenging than it used to be but it is still fairly easily accomplished. There were many e-wallets, casinos, sports books and poker rooms that left the US market, but just as many stayed or entered the market after the UIGEA.

I Want to Start an Online Casino

If you want to start an online casino then the only advice you need from this entire page is to seek the help of a qualified attorney. There are jurisdictions where you can do this in a legal and safe manner, but there are also places where you will go to jail for running one.

In addition, once you find a legal jurisdiction you will need to find reliable banking solutions, a solid software provider and possibly a local person who you can trust to help you set everything up without being taken advantage of. You may also need to move to whatever country you plan to run your online casino from so you can watch over the day to day operations.

Conclusion

With all of the different laws around the world governing gambling and with the possibility of many of them changing at any time, it can be quite a challenge to know what is right and wrong. In addition, the existing laws in many places are not well worded or thought out and create more questions than answers.

Other places have laws that were put into place well before the Internet even existed and people are trying to determine how these laws fit with the online world. The only thing you can do is find a group of trusted sources to keep up to date and / or use the services of an attorney.