Thankfully, several states are more liberal toward online gambling and allow online casinos to operate in their area. We only found two instances where an online gambler broke a law, and both come from politically conservative states. Thankfully, the US rarely prosecutes online gamblers. Long story short, some US players have to walk a thin line if they want to play in an online casino while remaining within the confines of the law. Other states are less strict but are still restrictive - in South Dakota, for example, anyone in “the gambling business” is not allowed to place online bets, which is a really quirky law if you think about it. State law prohibits the residents of these states from placing any kind of bet over the internet, regardless of federal regulation. So how strict are US state laws on internet gambling? Some US states have laws that explicitly prohibit all forms of online gambling. Unfortunately for US-based gamblers, US state law is sometimes more restrictive than federal law. If federal law was all that US players had to consider, the legality of web gambling would be a lot easier to talk about. Casino Laws by StateĬurrent States’ Laws That Regulate Online Casinos The latter resulted in allowing states such as New Jersey to have online casinos, but only if they are being offered to US citizens physically located within New Jersey’s boundaries. The consequences of the first were already explained.

Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act.The only two areas that the Federal Government regulates are: Thus, the Federal Government has not taken any stance related to gambling taking place within individual states - it up to individual states to do that. When it comes to lawmaking, the Tenth Amendment of the US Constitution states that anything that doesn’t have a specifically granted Federal purview and jurisdiction is up to the states. You should notice, however, that it isn’t a crime for a US-based player to make or request a transaction - it’s just illegal for the bank to process them. That was the goal of the much-grumbled-about UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act). In essence, it is illegal for your bank to handle a withdrawal or deposit to or from your casino account. The US federal law explicitly prohibits banks - or any other financial institution - to knowingly process transactions between a known web-based gambling business and US-based customers. US citizens are allowed to place wagers online, but only if the website isn’t based in the US.

However, it also doesn’t say that it is legal, which makes the market a gray area.

Here’s a statement no one was expecting - no federal law in the US says that online gambling is illegal. Current Federal US Laws That Regulate Online Casinos

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