Are Online Casinos in the US Legal?

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011 by admin

Many people in the United States, Canada, UK, and worldwide are still confused when it comes to the question of online gambling. Is it legal to place bets online? Can I wager on the Super Bowl in an online sportsbook? Will I get arrested if I play blackjack online? These are just some of the questions people are asking on the internet today. The answer is simple – online gambling is legal…depending on your jurisdiction.

Pretty much all of Europe has been licensed and regulated, including Ireland, the United Kingdom, and France. All of these countries have governmental agencies that regulate and tax online casinos. There are still some countries that are dragging their heels such as Spain or Italy, but they are in the process of launching legal online casinos.

For years Canada has remained truly Canadian and not passed any laws or legislation prohibiting online gambling or the use of Macs or PCs to play online casino games. We’re not even sure if the question has even come up in the Canadian parliament before. Several online casinos advertise in, and operate from Canada, so the online gambling landscape there is quite open.

This brings us to the United States – is it legal to place bets online if you live in the U.S.? The answer is…..cloudy. The UIGEA was a bill that was passed in the United States senate that prohibited banks and processors from processing online gambling transactions. It was snuck into legislation as part of an anti-terrorism bill and few law makers knew what they were voting for. In any event, the main point to take away from this is that it is illegal to PROCESS a financial transaction when the company is aware that the funds will be used to gamble online. It is NOT illegal for anyone to play casino games online, download free casino software, or place bets online.

However, some individual states have passed their own online gambling laws that prohibit placing wagers online. The responsibility is on the player to know what jurisdiction they are in, and the legalities of playing casino games online. The reality of the situation is quite funny – what’s stopping someone from Portland playing in an online casino through a proxy server on their friend’s computer in San Diego? Not much, we would say.

The one thing to remember is that no one in the United States has ever been arrested for gambling online. The District Attorney that brings that case to court will probably spend the rest of their career locked in a D.A. office broom closet. As Joe Strummer once sang, “Know your rights!”