Globally, poker has experienced a massive increase in attention over the last decade. With tech advancements emerging daily, several countries are joining the league of those supporting online casino games within their borders.
Australia and poker have a long history, including a record of some WSoP champions emerging from the country. However, a lot has changed for Australian poker sites and players in the country in the past few years. As a new player or someone who wants to visit the nation, you might be wondering if it’s legal to gamble on online poker in Australia.
Currently, internet poker isn’t legalized in Australia. However, there are other ways to go about the activity in the country. This article provides all the information you must know about accessing online poker within the country. Read on for more information.
Legal Status Of Online Poker In Australia Explained
Internet gambling in Australia is currently in a gray area. This is so because the country prohibits home-based internet poker rooms. While Australians can’t access these sites, they can do so on licensed and regulated foreign casino websites. However, the IGA (Interactive Gambling Act of 2001) has also banned these foreign platforms from allowing Australian gamblers. Not that this has worked so far.
The subregions in Australia are responsible for regulating domestic casino gambling, but the IGA has set the bar on internet poker countrywide. However, after the outright ban of online gambling in 2017, the government has permitted regulated and licensed foreign casino portals to provide services to the natives of the country.
Also, while the Australian government has banned online casino sites, poker inclusive, it allows regulated sportsbooks to provide gambling services for bettors in Australia. On the good side, gamblers don’t need to pay taxes for profits from overseas casino platforms.
Australian Online Poker Before 2017
In 2001, the Australian legislative (Australian Commonwealth Parliament) signed the Interactive Gambling Act (IGA). The law banned internet gambling owners and operators from advertising and providing real cash internet interactive betting on casino and poker games.
Moreover, the law didn’t categorize Australian users accessing and using these sites and their services as illegal. In fact, the Australian internet poker industry still boomed. Some big brands like PokerStars and 999Poker even signed contracts with the Aussie Millions, providing their online satellites to renowned exclusive events.
Australian gamblers advanced and claimed global recognition for themselves. These include the events that saw former World Series of Poker champion Joe Hachem claim poker’s largest cash prize in 2005. In addition, there are two other WSOP champions from Australia, including Jeffrey Lisandro (2009 winner) and Robert Campbell (2019 winner).
As stated earlier, while the Australian Feds didn’t permit domestic poker sites to offer their services to Aussies, it didn’t restrict overseas platforms from making it available to them. Australian online gambling sites were only allowed to offer their advertisements and services to non-residents.
The problem evolved around Luke Brabin and his online poker site—“Poker Asia Pacific,” which began as a news site for all poker events and activities in the country. The site evolved and offered online satellites to real-time Cash Games and poker shows in the country. The Australian government discovered what he was doing through a small website and terminated operations. Thus, this resulted in a massive scandal in 2016.
As a result, Brabin rallied users and the community to protest the exclusion of poker from the Interactive Gambling Act (IGA) law, accusing the government of allowing overseas casino operators to offer services unrestrained in the country. Therefore, this led to the next big step by the Aussie federal government.
The Australia Internet Poker Ban In 2017
The following year, the Australian parliament signed the IGA Bill. This cut the relationship between players in the country and overseas online betting platforms. Notably, Australians weren’t declared banned from accessing these foreign sites. But when caught, they are made to pay unbelievably huge fines.
Some people could be charged up to $1.35 million in one day, whereas legal entities such as companies and corporations could receive fines of about $6.75 million in one day. Eventually, many big brands in the industry had to shut down operations in the country to prevent these surreal fines and other possible problems.
The big brands that left Australia following the ban are 888Poker, PartyPoker, and PokerStars. While these top dawgs left the market, Ignition Poker and other newer brands stepped up to embrace the challenge within the country.
Regardless, poker fans and operators, or former operators living in Aussie, have been protesting since the inhibition of the game. While poker communities in Australia have been dogged about their request for the government to regulate online poker, the Feds haven’t changed their stance concerning the game.
The Battle Continues
The main aim is to regulate and legalize poker and other casino games for millions of Australians and residents to access and play freely. The community’s main challenge is that to legalize the game, the government will need to amend the IGA, as the law has a large part to play in the inhibition.
Alternative to the other renowned casino and poker brands that left the country are Ignition Poker, Bodog88, and others which aren’t regulated by the Australian government but by the CEZA (Cagayan Economic Zone Authority).
Ultimately, while bettors can’t play on domestic online gambling platforms, they can access regulated overseas poker rooms. This way, they can still gamble for real money while avoiding getting in trouble with the country’s laws.
