1. Can You Legally Gamble Online In The Us Citizen
2. Can I Legally Gamble Online In The Us
3. Gamble Online Legally

Great philosophers of the past came up with many wise sayings and as such, it helped to describe particular individuals, relationships and situations. One such saying crafted by the great Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, reads ‘the only thing that is constant is change’. This aptly describes the online gambling industry in most countries across the globe as the environment is constantly changing from time to time. This means that in order to gamble online legally, you have to be aware of the various factors that influence change in the online gambling industry.

Let's take a look at some of these below.

Legal Online Gambling in the United States 2021 Although the federal government has its own set of laws governing the legality of gambling activities, most states have their own legislation for age limits to whether having a friendly neighborhood poker game. Online casinos are legal in most parts of the world. Many world governments have written laws specifically addressing the legalities of real money online gambling; others like the United States depend heavily on state law and an existing legal vacuum to keep online gambling in check. The legality of an online casino has something to do with that casino.

It's All About Legislation

One of the most important factors that determines the legality and politics of online gambling is legislation. To gauge if it’s possible to gamble online legally at any genuine online gambling site such as an NJ online casino or NJ online poker site for US players, you need to be aware of the legislative frameworks that relate to online gambling in your jurisdiction. The unfortunate (or fortunate) part of these legislative frameworks is that they are neither static nor fixed, but are rather subject to change.

While gambling legislation differs from time to time, it also changes from region to region and from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Therefore, it means that you do not only have to worry about the legislative frameworks in your locale, but you also need to be concerned about the online gambling legislative frameworks in the jurisdiction where the casino you intend to play at is located or where the casino’s servers are located.

Let’s put this into perspective and see how this works in practice.

Currently, for players across the world with the exception of the USA (and a few other countries), online gambling involves placing bets or wagers on casino and sports games online using money with the intention of winning more money. In general, these two forms of online gambling are recognised and regulated by most countries which mean that players can gamble online legally whether playing casino games online for profit or wagering on different sporting disciplines.

However, in the US (and a few other regions), online gambling only entails playing casino games and excludes sports betting. What this means is that any player looking to partake in betting on sports online, will be deemed as acting out of the confines of the law and thus gambling illegally. However, with new Paspa law being reviewed in the US under Trump's administration, we may see a few changes happen in the near future with regards to sports betting.

Where are you Located?

Closely related to legislation is the location factor. What location means in the sense of legally gambling online is that it may come in different forms and can be applied differently in various jurisdictions.

The first and perhaps most common area where location is concerned is the question of where the player is playing from. Some territories prohibit all forms of online gambling such as North Korea and the Vatican. This means due to location restrictions, you cannot gamble online legally irrespective of other factors.

Further to this, some countries may have grey areas such as the US and South Africa. These regions have a robust and fixed legislative framework when it comes to gambling at brick-and-mortar casinos, but due to the ever-changing nature of the online gambling industry, their online gambling legislative frameworks have grey areas which are open to different interpretations. To some, online gambling is permitted while to some, online gambling is not permitted. If you find yourself in a country that's marked as a grey area, it's still possible to gamble online, however only at an online gambling operator that's based in a legal jurisdiction.

Offshore casino sites are open to almost all players including those in the US where online gambling is heavily regulated. If your country does not permit or prohibits online gambling, you can check if your country is not blacklisted or on the ‘restricted territories list’ at the casino you are looking to play at.

These factors will determine whether you can legally gamble online, so it's vital that you check the changes in gambling laws and legislature and also assess if your country supports the idea.

We've compiled this legal online betting reference to provide accurate and up-to-date information on the legal online gambling status and gaming options available within each American state. Our goal is to provide a comprehensive state-by-state US gambling guide which will give players all the information they need to make smart decisions about how and where to bet online.

This state-specific data will include the state laws governing Internet gambling opportunities in all relevant markets, including online casinos, online poker, and online sports betting.

Each state approaches the legalization of online gambling differently, so it's necessary to detail state-licensed options as well as legal international gambling opportunities. We also address some of the most commonly asked questions about gambling in each state and provide various helpful resources. Such information is covered in greater detail at each specific state page linked below.

Is Online Gambling Legal In My State?

It definitely might be! At this moment, at least 25 US states have legalized and regulated online gambling in some form. However, most states have limited their legalization efforts to sports betting.

Nevertheless, we expect that the majority of these states will also embrace legal online poker games and legal online casino games eventually. Of course, if they don't, you can still wager legally and safely using online overseas operators.

Online Poker & Casino

• Delaware - Online Poker, Online Casinos
• Michigan - Online Poker (launch TBA), Online Casinos
• Nevada - Online Poker
• New Jersey - Online Poker, Online Casinos
• Pennsylvania - Online Poker, Online Casinos
• West Virginia - Online Poker, Online Casinos

Online Sports Betting

• Arkansas*
• Colorado
• Delaware***
• Louisiana**
• Maryland**
• Michigan
• Mississippi*
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New Mexico*
• New York*
• North Carolina**
• Pennsylvania
• South Dakota**
• Washington**
• Washington DC
• West Virginia

*Retail only, online TBA

**Legalized but pending launch

***Retail available, online pending launch

To date, TN is the only US state that has domestic sportsbooks available exclusively online, as there are no provisions in Tennessee sports betting laws to allow for retail brick-and-mortar gambling locations.

Online Lottery

Can You Legally Gamble Online In The Us Citizen

• Illinois
• Michigan
• Pennsylvania
• Virginia

Is Licensed Offshore Gambling Legal In My State?

While the above states offer regulated online gambling, residents in most of them still have the option to use licensed offshore betting sites. Nearly all US state residents, except those from Washington or Connecticut, can legally access licensed offshore online gambling platforms to play online casino games, enter online poker tournaments, and bet on sports.

This is because no local gambling laws in any of the other 48 states specifically prohibit betting real money with an international operator.

Additionally, there are no federal laws that bar the activity, as all US betting mandates apply only to domestic sportsbooks (i.e. the Wire Act) and US-based financial institutions (i.e. the UIGEA), not to players themselves.

What Is The Minimum Online Gambling Age in the US?

There is no single minimum gambling age in the US, as these are set and regulated by each individual state. The minimum age within each state is affected by various factors such as betting markets, casino game types, venue amenities, and more.

Most states set all their gambling age minimums to 21 years of age, though a few have sports betting options and other kinds of Class II style gambling opportunities for 18+ players.

That said, licensed international online gambling sites offering casino games, poker rooms, and sports betting amusements almost always accept USA players at just 18 and up. These reputable sites also award their members bigger bonuses and perks, more varied electronic casino game options, and better sports betting odds.

U.S. States Where You Can Legally Gamble At 18 And Up

Below, you can learn more about the minimum legal online gambling age by state:

Online Gambling Laws in The United States

Gambling laws can be a complex topic these days, as there a pair of prominent US federal gambling laws to account for, and there are several local gambling laws in every single state.

The reason for this is that the US DOJ has declared that each state has the authority to determine its own destiny concerning both land-based and online gambling. This is especially true now that PASPA (1992-2018) has finally been overturned.

Since 2018's PASPA overturn, a large number of US states have legalized various forms of online gambling (mostly sports betting) within their borders. Many other states are currently in discussions to do the same.

Nevertheless, even if you live in a state without legal local gambling options, you still have them. US players outside of WA and CT are permitted access to multiple licensed, certified, and regulated online gambling sites hosted outside of the United States. This is a nice alternative allowing those players aged 18 and up to enjoy real online gambling while their states get their ducks in a row.

States With Pending Online Gambling Legislation

• Iowa
• Kentucky
• Michigan
• New York
• Virginia

US States That Offer Active Domestic Sportsbooks

• Arkansas
• Colorado
• Delaware
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Michigan
• Mississippi
• Montana
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• Tennessee
• Virginia
• Washington DC
• West Virginia

Can I Legally Gamble Online In The Us

US States With Legal Sports Betting Pending Launch

Gamble Online Legally

• Louisiana
• Maryland
• North Carolina
• South Dakota
• Washington