Countries Where Online Gambling is Legal

Online gambling is becoming more and more popular every day, and people from all corners of the world are drawn to the appeal of exciting web-based casinos. However, it is important to know that gambling is not equally regulated in all countries. So while some embrace it and support it fully, others actually forbid it. Therefore, before you get involved with online casino games, you should know a bit more about the legalization in your country, as well as some useful points about responsible gaming. 

How to Stay Responsible While Gambling Online

First and foremost, before you sign up with an online gambling site, you need to make sure you’re aware of all the security and legalization aspects. As the number of players continues to grow, there are also more who skip reading the terms and conditions of the operators they’re interested in. In order to make sure that no law is violated, you should always look into the platform’s legalization policy and the rules it adheres to. When you want to gamble, you have to share your personal and financial information. As you would like to do that on a gambling website, you want to pick a website that is licensed by one of the leading regulatory bodies like the UK Gambling Commission, the Malta Gaming Authority, and others. 

Areas Where You Can Gamble Legally

Let’s go over the main parts of the world where online gambling is allowed by the authorities:

The Americas

Online gambling is a very common practice in North American countries, where the United States make up up to 70% of the total number of players. As for Canada, web-based gambling is allowed in some regions of the country, while in others it’s illegal. However, the government isn’t that strict when it comes to actually enforcing the law, and players do it more or less freely in all of North America. When it comes to Central America and the Caribbean, gambling is allowed in countries like El Salvador, Trinidad and Tobago, Costa Rica, and Honduras. In Mexico, it is allowed to some extent, while in Cuba, it is strictly forbidden. Some countries in South America have legalized online wagering, including Panama, Argentina, and Peru. Ecuador, on the other hand, banned all kinds of gambling activities, while Brazil, Uruguay, and Chile only banned it on paper.

The European Countries

Online gambling is properly regulated and legal in the majority of European countries, including France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Denmark, Belgium, Norway, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Portugal, Russia, Gibraltar, Poland, Malta, and Hungary. However, each country has its own set of rules and regulations that the locals should be aware of in order to stay compliant with the law at all times.

Parts of Asia

When it comes to Asian countries, some of them allow online gambling to some extent. Those are Thailand, Macao, China, and Singapore. On the other hand, the Philippines, Kazakhstan, and Japan have regulated the industry, and they allow local punters to play legally. As for India, the situation is pretty complex. Namely, online wagering is strictly forbidden within the country, except in two states called Goa and Sikkim. However, some states have legalized alternative lotteries and scratch card games. Finally, there are countries like the UAE, Taiwan, Indonesia, and Bangladesh where all sorts of online gambling are banned with no exceptions. 

The African Countries

Even though Africans are quite interested in different kinds of online gambling, especially sports betting, it is actually banned in many countries on the continent. In fact, due to limited access to stable internet connections in certain areas, some countries do not even mention online wagering in their laws. However, there are some regions like Kenya, South Africa, and Mauritius where the practice is allowed, and the countries have even found ways to use it to their advantage by using it to earn significant revenue. Furthermore, there are some areas in Africa where web-based gambling is only partially welcomed. Countries like Morocco, Algeria, Ivory Coast, and Cape Verde only support some basic online casino games or sports betting. 

Australia and New Zealand

Both Australia and New Zealand have proper legal frameworks that support, control, and monitor online gambling activities in the area. However, in New Zealand, the locals are only allowed to engage with online wagering sites that are based in the country and regulated by its authorities. Joining international platforms in order to play online casino games is considered illegal in New Zealand, and therefore it is forbidden by the government. 

Online gambling is about to become the most popular type of entertainment on the web, and people from different parts of the globe are interested in trying their luck with internet wagering. However, each country in the world has its own gambling rules and regulations, and before you get into such activities, you should learn about the current laws in your area.