Is Online Gambling Legal In South Africa 2017

Posted onby

Legality of South African Gambling. In South Africa today the two main pieces of legislation that are currently in place and are the basis of the online gambling environment in the country are still the National Gambling Act of 2004 and also the National Gambling Amendment Act of 2008. Automated electronic criminal record checks south africa Afiswitch performs fingerprint clearances on behalf of the SA Police Service (SAPS) against the SAPS fingerprint database of all known convicted and/or case awaiting trial persons to determine the previous conviction and/or case awaiting trial status of an applicant relating to. Playing at an online casino gambling site that operates from within South Africa is illegal. The products and services of any given casino online gambling site, that happens to be residing within the South African borders is in fact deemed illegal and banned.

Thousands of Americans gamble online. But is online gambling legal? We break it down to show you what you can do, what you can't do, and what's still up in the air.

by Katherine Butler
updated September 03, 2020 · 2min read

The legality of online gambling is ever-changing. But one thing is constant: it makes a lot of money. Online gambling industry makes an estimated $1 billion dollars annually. This is a huge business, and a lot of people have cashed in on it. But it has led to some ambiguous legal issues, as the legality of online gambling is constantly being challenged.

Africa

There are differences in the legality of making bets, taking bets, facilitating payments to casinos, and advertising on websites. And there are constantly new legal challenges. So here is a breakdown of the law on online gambling.

Legal Forms of Gambling

There is no federal law against placing a wager online. So, you can legally place a bet online. However, a wager must not be placed on a site located in the United States. There is a small chance players might run afoul of state law, but there is little chance of prosecution. The only case cited where a person got into trouble with a state was in 2003. Jeffrey Trauman of North Dakota paid a $500 fine on over $100,000 of online sports bet winnings.

Is online gambling legal in south africa 2017 onlineOnline
  1. The gambling industry is using third-party companies to harvest people’s data, helping bookmakers and online casinos target people on low incomes and those who have stopped gambling, the.
  2. Subscription Confirmation Online Casino South Africa - Get an R11, welcome bonus free at Springbok Casino! The answer to this question real slots online yes and no. Online sports betting and mobile casinos is legal online South Africa as long as you make use of licensed bookmaking services such as Betway online sports betting.

Sites that are set up outside of the United States are legal. Therefore, gambling on websites located in areas like Australia, the Caribbean, and Latin America is legal. Just be very clear that the site you are playing on is not based on U.S. soil.

Definitely Not Legal Forms of Gambling

It is never legal to gamble on a website based in the United States. Also, if you are planning to operate an online gambling site, stay outside of the United States. You must also deal only with casino and poker wagers (not sports bets) from people in the US. And you cannot take bets over the phone from people in the United States.

Is online gambling legal in south africa 2017 online

Accepting online gambling advertising is also illegal. If you are a small publisher, you are less likely to be prosecuted, but why risk it? As of early 2009, only large and mid-size publishers had faced prosecution. In 2007, the three big search engines (Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft) each paid a fine for accepting online gambling ads, but did not face criminal charges. Other publishers, such as Esquire Magazine, have been warned by the government not to take online gambling advertising.

Facilitating the transfer of funds to online casinos is also a bad idea. As of 2006, it became illegal for American banks to process transactions originating from or directed toward any online gambling operator. Because of this, several sites then refused to take bets from American players. But as the law seems difficult to enforce, it has not turned the tide completely for American players.

Still up in the Air

Advertisers who promote sports books in magazines and on billboards may or may not face prosecution. So far, sports books have never been scrutinized for advertising online. And online casinos, poker rooms, and sports books have never been prosecuted for buying ads.

Online casinos and operators still accept American players. And international financial parties have continued to process their transactions. The legality is always changing and there have been attempts to declare online wagering against the law, but for now, U.S. citizens who simply place bets online are in the clear.

Most forms of betting and gambling are illegal in Nigeria under Chapter 22 of the Criminal Code. The exceptions are skill based card games, backgammon, our national lottery, and our nation’s three licensed casinos. The law also leaves room for the state to run betting pools and racing totes.

Other than these exceptions gambling is illegal in Nigeria.

The penalty for players engaging in unlawful gambling is a small fine up to 40 naira, up to 3-months in prison, or both the fine plus prison sentence. There are other laws that make it illegal to own gambling devices. For example, the GAMING MACHINES (PROHIBITION) ACT makes it a crime to own a gambling machine. The sentence for violation is up to one year in prison.

The penalties for operators, owners, promoters and the banks involved in unlawful gambling are far greater. However, our police force is mostly undermanned when it comes to stopping such crimes. As a result much of the gambling industry has been pushed underground where it thrives through illegal channels.

Illegal Gambling in Nigeria

Underground casinos, football mafia bookies, unauthorized lotteries and domestically operated illegal betting sites are spread throughout Nigeria. Because the players themselves are also committing a crime, there is no player protection. If a bookie refuses to pay, a casino rigs a game, or other scams are run, the player has nowhere to turn.

2018

As scams are common here, it is far safer to gamble with online gambling websites that are actually licensed and regulated in foreign countries. One of the best places to look is sites regulated in the United Kingdom or elsewhere in the European Union where gambling is legal.

The reason this is a good idea is even Nigerians can complain via post or internet when they have a dispute with a European licensed gambling site. You can complain to their gambling commission, their sanctioned arbitrators and even their local police. As these companies are legal, the channels for player protection are many. Because the sites know this – and because most are already honest – such complaints are rare.

Is Online Gambling Legal In South Africa 2017 News

Also, understand our local police have no jurisdiction over these sites. While they are violating Nigerian law, this law does not apply to them as they are not located here. The police here are not too concerned with stopping gamblers from using European licensed websites.

Is Online Gambling Legal In South Africa 2017 Full

1 Next: Online Betting Laws for Nigeria