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The way online gambling is legally handled in Australia and New Zealand is quite unusual. Here, it is not a matter of a player committing an illegal act when playing in an online casino. What is prohibited, however, is the establish Online Gambling in Australia & New Zealand: What does the law say of an online casino within the jurisdiction of the country.
Conversely, this means that Australian and New Zealand residents can certainly indulge in gambling in an online casino of a foreign provider. These foreign gambling platforms can be found, for example, at Online Casino Australia or Online Casino Real Money NZ. A lot of them are already available via app.
Gambling has a long tradition in New Zealand
Gambling has always been popular in New Zealand, even though it was not allowed for a long time. Until the beginning of the 20th century, almost everything in this sector was prohibited. It was not until the Gambling Act of 1908, for example, that betting on popular sporting events, especially horse racing, was permitted in New Zealand.
The harsh laws were not relaxed somewhat until 1961, and it took until the late 1990s for lotteries and slots to be legalized and for casinos to be legal to visit as well. The current Gambling Act of 2003 created the current status quo, allowing operators to offer casinos and non-casino services. However, this permission refers exclusively to stationary gambling, i.e. lotteries or the bookmaker at the racetrack.
Online gambling in New Zealand
In the case of games of chance where players interact via communication devices – which is how the 2003 law describes online gambling – the situation is quite different. Gambling on national platforms is prohibited for all residents of the country.
However, this does not mean that online gambling is not allowed. In turn, gambling on sites of foreign operators is allowed. Here it does not matter whether it is sports betting, slots, bingo portals or poker platforms.
If the operator is based abroad, any New Zealander can also play there, provided that the operator accepts the creation of an account by a New Zealand resident.
What are the consequences for players from New Zealand?
The platforms on which New Zealand players gamble are all located outside New Zealand and are therefore not subject to New Zealand law. Should there be any disagreement between the player and the operator, international law would therefore apply.
The question here is whether the New Zealand player is not at a disadvantage when it comes to enforcing a possible claim in court.
However, it can be stated that every reputable online casino has the appropriate licenses and certifications, which also guarantee the safe play of New Zealand players. Especially the casinos based in Europe with licenses from Malta or Gibraltar are subject to strict controls by the responsible authorities, so that it can be assumed that everything is above board.
What is the case in Australia?
The situation in Australia is comparable. Here, the current gambling law was passed back in 2001. In Australia, too, a domestic operator is prohibited from granting residents access to an online casino.
Thus, the Australian must also look for a reputable online casino operator of his choice based abroad, which allows an Australian to create an account there.
Here, however, the Australian will hardly have any problems, because statistics prove that Australians generate the largest turnover per capita, so generally very high bets are made.
Online Gambling in Australia & New Zealand: What does the law say?
