Nowadays online gambling is increasingly gaining social acceptance, being regulated on a federal level. That’s why players have a greater feeling of mental peace when it comes to online gambling than in the previous years. Online casino players don’t need to be worried about the legality of the games anymore. They have the possibility to play with the safety of their personal identity and finances.
Nevertheless, online gambling regulation still needs to be improved, because no form of international regulatory system has been created yet. Our team has compiled a quick guide to help you figure out how online casinos are regulated in a number of various countries and what you should pay attention to when picking a place to play.
Global Distinctions
Same as in land-based casinos, online gambling rules differ a lot depending on the country. According to the data of May 2022:
- 39 countries have a total prohibition against online casinos (this includes playing in them or their activities).
- 32 forbid operations on the territory of their borders (but do not mind gambling with external operators).
- 61 permit the operation of online casinos under the condition of obtaining the appropriate licensing from the government.
- 93 do not directly prohibit or license them.
Generally, you are likely to notice that the majority of online casinos are all licensed and regulated in the same few countries including the UK, the Isle of Man, Curacao, Cyprus, Gibraltar, Malta and the Kahnawake territory in Quebec.
And to obtain certification from any of these authorities, an online casino is required to do all the processes starting from completing rigorous quality control tests to submitting a hefty registration fee in advance of being allowed to operate.
In Certain Locations
Both in the United States and Canada, online gambling tends to enter a grey area. Most perceive the existing legislation in America to imply that players are free to gamble online wherever their money is welcomed, and that it is the operator’s fault for acting illegally, but not the player’s own. This certainly doesn’t concern inhabitants of Nevada or New Jersey, the states where online gambling is legal to a certain measure. The laws are very alike in Canada, and mainly only gambling providers have to worry about legal penalties.
As for Australians, it must be said that they are fine with gambling online unless they are taking advantage of an operator that is based within Australia’s territory. When it comes to Europe, the laws there can deviate between countries, thus you are advised to learn about the particular laws of each country before you begin playing.
Certification Authorities
Online casinos are usually approved and regulated in at least one of three possible ways. Being certified indicates the standards of quality, security and legality to guarantee that online casinos don’t actually take advantage of gamblers (either on purpose or by accident).
- By government or jurisdiction – virtually every online casino that has existed for a certain amount of time has a permission from the local gaming jurisdiction (or else it will probably be banned). The criteria for obtaining approval from local authorities do differ (and a few are fairly liberal about who must be given a license), therefore it’s wise to seek out an online casino that is also certified by one of the next two types of testing bodies.
- Security testing company – the presence of a certification seal from a security testing agency is a green flag. Such companies conduct regular audits of online casinos, testing encryption and security systems to verify that your payment information and personal data is protected and not subject to hacking. Check an icon at the base of the casino homepage with a caption like “SSL secured” – this is exactly the kind of technology that banks use to safeguard confidential information.
- Software testing agencies – organizations like eCOGRA and Canadian Technical Systems Testing give their seal of approval to those online casinos whose software complies with stringent quality guidelines. Through software testing, items such as the site’s random number generator and payout odds are scrutinized to ascertain fairness of all games.
All this information may seem a complicated thing to memorize in order to find an appropriate online casino. But you should be aware that we always present those online casinos that comply with all of these regulatory standards in all of our casino reviews. Finally, relax, find one you enjoy, and start entertaining!