Playing at an offshore casino: what the law covers and what you risk

Since November 2019 the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has blocked 1,708 illegal gambling and affiliate websites, according to its update of 21 May 2026. The figure shows what the regulator’s powers are aimed at: websites. For a player the risk is different. You may not be able to log in to an account on a blocked site.

Is it illegal to play at an online casino in Australia? The Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (the Act) makes it illegal for gambling providers to offer online casinos to people in Australia, and its offences are written for whoever provides or advertises the service. The ACMA’s warning to players is about something else: Australian regulators will not be able to help you if an illegal service withholds your winnings.

If money is already stuck on a site, go to the steps for recovering it. If gambling is affecting you or someone close to you, the National Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858 offers free and confidential support, and the last section lists other options.

What the Act prohibits – and for whom

The ACMA describes the Act as a law that ‘sets the rules for companies that offer or advertise gambling services’. According to its guidance on the Act, as of 5 October 2026, the banned services include online casinos, in-play sports betting, sports betting services that do not hold an Australian licence and betting on the outcome of a lottery. The ACMA puts it this way: the Act ‘makes it illegal for gambling providers to offer some online services to people in Australia’. The subject of that sentence is the provider.

The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts is more specific. On its interactive gambling page it lists three offences under the Act:

• providing a prohibited interactive gambling service to customers in Australia
• providing an unlicensed regulated interactive gambling service to customers in Australia
• providing an Australian-based interactive gambling service to customers in designated countries

Each of the three is about providing a service.

The text of the Act follows the same pattern. Under section 15(1) of the Act as compiled by the Federal Register of Legislation, a person commits an offence if they intentionally provide a prohibited interactive gambling service and the service has an Australian-customer link. The penalty is 5,000 penalty units. Section 8 says a service has that link if any or all of its customers are physically present in Australia. The offence provisions in sections 15 and 15AA are written for the person who provides the service.

Two limits apply. The compilation read for this guide (C2024C00646, dated 14 October 2024) was still the latest version on 5 October 2026, so the 2026 reform is not in it. And this is a reading of the offence wording, not a legal analysis of the whole Act.

For the full list of what is licensed and what is banned, see which online gambling services are licensed and which are banned.

Where that leaves the player

There are two questions here, and they are easy to confuse. The first is who the offences describe, covered above. The second is the position of the person playing, and the official sources are thinner there.

The clearest official statement on this comes from a 2012 review by the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy. Its interim report says on page 20: ‘However, the IGA does not make it an offence for Australian customers to access and use prohibited interactive gambling services.’

Note its age, though. It is more than 14 years old, and the Act has been amended since, most recently by a reform bill passed in August 2026. The ACMA’s page on checking whether an operator is legal does not repeat it. It advises: ‘Before you use any online wagering service over the internet, make sure it is legal.’ That page points to the register of licensed interactive gambling providers. Online casinos are among the banned services.

State and territory laws were not checked for this guide, and the text of the 2026 reform was not available. So this guide describes what the Act says, not what is allowed for you. This guide gives general information and is not legal advice. A person who needs to know their own position can seek independent legal advice.

What you risk at an offshore casino

The ACMA’s own warning to players is short: ‘If you gamble online using a company that operates illegally, you risk losing your money.’ Its page on protecting yourself from illegal gambling operators adds that some services ‘look like they’re legal in Australia and some even target Australian players’. You might be able to access them, but they ‘will not give you the same customer protection as a licensed service’.

According to the ACMA, Australian regulators will not be able to help you if you believe the provider has treated you or another player poorly, or if it withholds your winnings. It describes three situations it sees in complaints:

• a deposit goes through, but the winnings cannot be withdrawn
• the operator closes or moves, and ‘your money disappears’
• after a player leaves, the service ‘continues to withdraw funds from your bank account, without your permission’

The ACMA’s conclusion is plain: ‘Unfortunately, you are unlikely to see your money again in these situations.’ Its 21 May 2026 update adds that ‘even if a service looks legitimate, it’s unlikely to have important customer protections’.

GambleAware NSW makes the same point on its online gambling page: ‘Using illegal gambling sites means no protection under Australian law.’ It adds that offshore gambling operators ‘are not allowed to offer services to Australians’. The risk these sources describe is lost recourse and lost money.

What the ACMA actually checks

The ACMA enforces the Act, and its powers are aimed at services. Its investigations page lists the tools: a formal notice, an infringement notice, referral to the police or the Director of Public Prosecutions, reporting the directors and principals of offending companies to Australia’s border protection agency, which may place them on the Movement Alert List, and asking internet service providers to block a website. All of them are aimed at services that provide or advertise illegal online gambling.

The page also sets civil penalties per day, running to millions of dollars for a corporation, and says liability includes ‘anyone who helps someone break the rules’. The list contains no tool for recovering a player’s money.

Blocking has its own legal basis, section 313 of the Telecommunications Act 1997. The ACMA’s blocked gambling websites page gives three grounds: providing a prohibited service, providing an unlicensed regulated service, or publishing advertising for either. As of 21 May 2026 the ACMA had blocked 1,708 sites since November 2019, and over 230 illegal services had also pulled out of the Australian market.

For a player, the effect is practical. The ACMA warns: ‘There is also a risk that these websites will be blocked. This means you may not be able to log in and access your existing account.’ A blocked site is a sign the ACMA has already acted. How blocking works in more detail is covered in how the ACMA blocks illegal gambling websites.

Protections that stop at the border

Most of the protections Australians know about attach to licensed providers. The table sets out four of them and what the sources say about each, using only what those sources state.

BetStop is the National Self-Exclusion Register, and its own site describes it as covering licensed Australian providers. The sources do not list what it leaves out, so this guide says only that BetStop applies to licensed providers.

A block set up with your bank works on payments, not on websites. NAB, for one, says its gambling restriction blocks ‘most (but not all) gambling transactions’. A block of that kind is a tool for gambling more safely, not a substitute for the protections above.

If your money is already with an offshore site

The ACMA lists three options if you have problems recovering money from an overseas gambling website: seek independent legal advice, complain to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), or contact the relevant licensing authority. None comes with a promise of a refund. A practical order of steps:

1. Keep every email, screenshot and payment record, and note the date of each.
2. Check the provider against the ACMA’s register of licensed interactive gambling providers.
3. Tell your bank at once about payments you did not authorise. This guide does not promise that a bank can reverse a payment.
4. Make a complaint to the ACMA about the website. You do not have to give your name, and a complaint can lead to an investigation. The ACMA’s guidance does not describe it as a way to get money back.
5. Seek independent legal advice about your options, especially if the amount is large or the operator is still taking payments.

Chargebacks and complaints to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority are not covered here, because the sources do not say whether they apply to payments to offshore sites.

What changes from 1 January 2027

The ACMA says that on 19 August 2026 the Australian Parliament passed the Interactive Gambling Amendment (Gambling Reform) Bill 2026. Among other things it is ‘boosting enforcement action against illegal gambling services including the ability to takedown advertisements and illegal gambling services’. ‘Most of the reforms commence on 1 January 2027.’

Published summaries say banks and payment systems will be able to block payments to illegal operators. They describe new rules for providers, advertisers and payments. The text of the changes was not available for this guide, so it does not say whether anything changes for players.

Where to complain and where to get help

The ACMA invites complaints about websites: ‘Make a complaint if you think a website offers illegal gambling services.’ A complaint does not return a deposit.

If gambling is affecting your life or the life of someone close to you, the National Gambling Helpline on 1800 858 858 offers free and confidential support, and Gambling Help Online has information and counselling. If losses at an offshore site have led to debts, the National Debt Helpline on 1800 007 007 can help with the money side. If you are in distress, Lifeline is on 13 11 14.

BetStop is the register for people who want to exclude themselves from licensed providers. You can read how it works on the BetStop site. Practical limits and other options are set out in tools for gambling more safely.

So is it illegal to play at an online casino in Australia? The offences in the Act describe the provider, and the sources read for this guide describe the player’s risk as lost money and lost recourse. Anyone unsure of their own position can start with independent legal advice.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

All sources below were checked on 5 October 2026. Last updated 5 October 2026.

• ACMA: About the Interactive Gambling Act
• ACMA: Protect yourself from illegal gambling operators
• ACMA: Check if a gambling operator is legal
• ACMA: Blocked gambling websites
• ACMA: Investigations into online gambling providers
• ACMA: Latest illegal online gambling websites blocked (21 May 2026)
• Interactive Gambling Act 2001, Federal Register of Legislation
• Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts: Interactive gambling
• Review of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001: Interim Report for Consultation (2012)
• GambleAware NSW: Online gambling
• BetStop: the National Self-Exclusion Register
• NAB: Gambling restriction
• Gambling Help Online