Brief Analysis of Online Gambling and Online Casinos in South Africa
The question that all players ask themselves, especially if they are not residents of countries that grant gaming licenses in their legislation, is whether or not online gambling is legal. Obviously, the same question is asked by many South African players.
Gambling is as old as mankind: since the peoples of antiquity are reported evidence of games that had as a stake if not yet money, exchange goods of decided value. Some of the table games that casinos still offer today have hundreds of years of history: just think of roulette or craps.
As nation-states developed, gambling was first considered a "primary" tax source and later an area of society to be controlled, depending on prevailing ideologies. We then move throughout history from tolerance to direct control and management to liberalization, going back one or more times.
The above still holds true today, and even more so for online gambling, which exceeds or transcends national borders. When we began our adventure in 2007, South Africa's gambling legislation was just emerging. This site was born in 2007 when the South African Parliament passed legislation regarding the legalization of online gambling. But the, after many years that no licenses based on the said 2007 legislation were ever issued. So, a ruling passed towards the end of 2011 makes it clear that online casino operators cannot accept wagers from within South Africa, and they are forbidden to even advertise their services to SA-based players.
The only legal forms of gambling in South Africa as per the National Gambling Board notice number: 002/2007 - 16 April 2007 are the following:
1) Betting/wagering with licensed operators.
2) Online betting or wagering is permitted with licensed operators.
3) Bingo conducted by licensed operators within the Republic.
4) Casino land-based gambling conducted by licensed operators within the Republic.
5) Limited payout machines conducted by licensed operators.
In 2010, the Gauteng High Court ruled on the jurisdiction of online gambling transactions in South Africa. As a result, online gambling through off-shore servers was also banned in South Africa. This means that both offering online gambling services, as well as the act of gambling online, became illegal.
However, to date, no individual citizen has ever been fined for playing online. So, as a result of what has been said, we can ask ourselves the question that everyone is asking.
Is online gambling legal in South Africa? And can South African players play in ZAR at casinos regulated by offshore jurisdictions?
The most FAQ to the editors of rand-casinos.com
Legal Aspects of Online Gambling in South Africa
The answer to such questions might be "it's complicated." Although a very restrictive regulation seemed to come into force after 2010 and has remained so on paper, it has not had any direct consequences for online casinos located in foreign jurisdictions.
To date, we can say that online gambling in South Africa is in a gray area; formally banned, but without sanctions, thousands of players regularly flock to the virtual rooms of offshore online casinos. Furthermore, some of the online casinos we list have been operating in South Africa for decades, and if they continue to do so, it means that they have not had any "real" problems whatsoever.
Online gambling in South Africa is still governed by the National Gambling Act of 2004. While online sports betting is legal, other forms of online gambling such as casino games are currently illegal. However, players are not prosecuted for playing at offshore online casinos. It's essential to ensure that the online casino is licensed and regulated by reputable authorities.
