India Online Casinos [2020]

Welcome to the India online gambling guide. For many players looking to start gaming online, you will be pleased to know that the online gambling market is not regulated and therefore many online casinos are permitted to accept players from India.

There are some exceptions in which the market is regulated and only licensed providers are allowed to operate. These include the licensed State lotteries, as well as Future Gaming Solutions in Sikkim.

Gambling is regulated through Federal and State law with regulations varying significantly from State to State.

If you are looking for the best India Online Casinos, then choose from our recommended list below:

---

Top India Online Casinos

RANK	INDIA CASINO	CASINO BONUS
1		250% up to $12,500	PLAY NOW
2		220% up to $1,000	PLAY NOW
3		225% up to $1,000	PLAY NOW
4		400% up to $10,000	PLAY NOW
5		100% up to $3,000	PLAY NOW

Features of Top India Online Casinos

The best online casinos share features that include, safety and security, excellent customer “round the clock” service, rewarding bonuses, game variety and quality, and reliable and trustworthy payment methods.

Safety and Security

Cyber crimes is prominent, and therefore all players should be aware of an online casino’s ability to protect a their data. In general, the risk is extremely low of cyber crime for online casinos. The quality of technology implemented is usually quite high, because online casinos understand the important of protecting player information and their transaction data.

All online casinos (I have yet to see one that doesn’t) use state of the art SSL (Secure Socket Layer) bit 253 technology. This technology protects the conduit from the player’s browser through to the casino’s server – it repels any unwanted attacks.

Rewarding Bonuses

Naturally players are looking for the best casino bonuses. And certainly, the top online casinos all feature competitive bonuses. Some bonuses are by far market winners. The best, can extend up into the tens of thousands and easily out rank other. Bonuses come in the form of Welcome Bonuses and ongoing deposits.

We should not forget that there are also regular “door” prizes and jackpots that any player can win, by simply playing. These features add that special touch, that make playing so exciting.

Game Quality and Variety

There are a lot of players that are searching for quality slot games. You will be happy to know, that there are many online casinos that have a massive library of slot games. They partner the best in game software providers, with the big names of RealTime Gaming, Science Labs and UbiSoft. These providers continually produce fresh and exciting new content, to keep the fun going for players.

Payment methods

Payment methods is a tricky one to assess. On one hand, we understand that some players are looking for payment methods that may not be common. Understandably, the majority of online casinos won’t except a cryptocurrency other than bitcoin (BTC). Or they won’t accept through an unknown new e-wallet. Online casinos want to keep to the common and trusted payment methods to be confidence of processing player monies. Be assured that our recommend online casinos all offer payment methods that are trusted and commons. Yes, you may be questioning if fees can be lowered by choosing different payment methods, however, there is a reason why fees are incurred by the safest. The safest have the technology and customer services to ensure funds are process correctly and promptly.

Customer Service

All online casinos offer email and online chat. Some even offer a phone hotline. Is this important? Yes it is. There will be a time when customer service is needed to help guide you through playing, answering generic game queries, or help with processing a deposit or withdrawal. The best customer service, is prompt, professional and clear with the process.

India Online Casinos are all professional with their customer service and strive to provide the best playing experience for their players.

---

Overview of India Casinos

India gambling laws are dispersed to the States. In doing so, some states have more liberal gaming laws than others. In the majority of states, you will find that there are some casinos. I would class them as between small to medium, so don’t expect any gigantic Vegas style gaming opportunities.

---

India Gambling Legality

Federal law prohibits all forms of gambling, with the exception of lotteries and games of skill.

Federal legislation does not expressly cover online gambling. Online gambling sites and gambling advertisements are tolerated.

Foreign exchange transactions for gambling purposes are prohibited; IP and Software blocking of interactive sites is operational. Direct foreign gambling investment is illegal in India.

Lotteries are operated in nine states:

• Kerala
• Sikkim
• Goa
• Maharashtra
• Punjab
• West Bengal
• Nagaland
• Arunchal Pradesh
• Bodoland

Certain States, such as Maharashtra have criminalized interactive gambling. The State of Sikkim authorized interactive gambling within the territory for PlayWin Lotto on a five (5)year license. Advertising is permitted with strict rules. Goa has legalized land-based casino gambling in hotels and cruise ships.

Taxation

• There is no commercial market across the majority of India;
• Casino activity in Sikkim is taxed at 10% of gross gaming revenue; and additional 1% gross win tax is due by the 15th of the following month. Failure to pay amounts in a 20% fine.
• Lottery tax is set at 28% of all tickets sold

Regulatory Bodies

• Government
• State governance

Key Legislation

• Indian Constitution, 7th Schedule; Public Gaming Act 1867;
• State legislation
  

Summary

• The Government of Sikkim passed the Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Act in 2008, to regulate interactive gambling within its territory, which also permits interactive sports betting sites;
• In 2012, a court in Deli ruled interactive gambling sites should be considered illegal and that poker was a gambling activity. Gambling portals and/or affiliates were not considered illegal;
• Black market land-based casino operations are common. There is a high level of corruption within the market;
• A number of countries, including the United Kingdom have previously lobbied for Indian gambling regulation. Match fixing, and corruption are the primary reasons behind this activity.

---

India Gambling Market Developments

Background

The Government of Sikkim passed the Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Act in 2008, to regulate online gambling within its territory, which also permits online sports betting sites;

In 2012, a court in Deli ruled online gambling sites should be considered illegal and that poker was a gambling activity. Gambling portals and/or affiliates were not considered illegal;

Black market land-based casino operations are common. There is a high level of corruption within the market;

A number of countries, including the United Kingdom have previously lobbied for Indian gambling regulation. Match fixing, and corruption are the primary reasons behind this activity.

March 2011

Sikkim amended casino tax rules to make taxation 10% of gross gaming yield or a minimum of INR10m. Rules will apply to online, as well as land-based sites.

September 2012

A Deli court that ruled poker and skill game sites (which take commission [rake]) were illegal, despite the fact Indian law permitted games of skill and that such games were predominantly skills based. The court found the rake commission taken by the house was unlawful as bets taken on a game of skill make the game ‘gambling’. Banks were given permission to block such transactions.

August 2014

Goa announced plans to streamline its casino industry introducing a regulatory oversight body. It would provide a redress framework and stipulate the casino take out;

The Supreme Court would decide on an appeal regarding the classification of certain online games as games of chance or games of skill (including rummy and other card based games; reports suggest poker is included). A lower court previously ruled that they were games of chance, making them illegal in India. However, prior to this two other courts had ruled them as legal. The companies appealing the ban are Infotech India (P) Ltd and Play Games 24 X 7 Pvt Ltd (websites Ace2Three.com and RummyCircle.com). The organizers claim to only profit from the number of players with the winners keeping the vast majority of stakes as prizes.

October 2014

An online gambling software developer (individual) was raided. He was accused of creating software to accept and process betting wagers and selling use of the software to at least 12 Indian bookmakers. He allegedly continued to manage the sites and keep a share of revenue generated by the platform as well as charging bookmakers a fixed fee.

The State of Sikkim awarded an online gaming license to Future Gaming Solutions PvT Ltd, to operate sports betting, casino, bingo and poker. The license was operable in the State territory only. This was the first online license awarded within India. This would act as a precedent for other States to follow.

January 2015

Goa state government announced it would not authorize any new licenses for land-based casinos but would permit existing land-based casinos to continue operations.

June 2015

Legislation was drafted by the Goan government to ban local citizens from entering casinos. The draft laws seek to give police powers to arrest any Goan, or person under the age of 21, found gambling in casinos.

July 2015

Nagaland government introduced the Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Bill, 2015. The bill provides for the establishment of a body to regulate and license real money online games of skill to be provided within any territory in India that has exempted games of skill from respective prohibitions on gambling. Online games of skill not classified under gambling prohibitions would be defined in the bill. Full contents of the bill are yet to be published.

The Legislative Assembly referred the Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Bill to a selection committee for full review. The legislative committee comprised of 5 panel members, who would deliver the findings of its report into the implications of the bill within three months. The bill would then either be passed, subject to further amendment, or withdrawn from legislative session; the government is not however bound by the selection committee’s final recommendations.

August 2015

Chief Minister of Sikkim introduced the Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Amendment Bill 2015 stipulating that online gambling activities must take place online via the internet, to avoid any ambiguity under license conditions. The bill also made minor amendments to amend requirements on bank guarantees, licensing payments and taxation payments. The Legislative Assembly passed the bill.

October 2015

The Bombay High Court directed the Maharashtra State Government to make a decision on whether to uphold the Maharashtra Casinos Control and Tax Act of 1976. The act, which seeks to regulate casino activity in the state, was enacted in July 1976 but was never notified. It was re-discovered in December 2014 through a freedom of information request and brought to the attention of the state government, but no action was taken.

The High Court has given the state government six months to reach a decision on how to proceed with the act.

November 2015

The Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Kerala government to ban online lottery products offered in the state. Chief Justice HL Dattu expressed concern over the prevalence of online instant lotteries and asserted that the Kerala government had every right to ban the sale of such products.

The State Government of Goa approved, in principle, draft laws which seek to ban local citizens from casinos and grant the police powers to arrest any Goan, or person under the age of 21, found gambling in casinos. The draft laws also contain provisions to implement a permit system to identify people eligible to gamble at the states casinos. A gaming commissioner will be appointed to oversee the issuance of the permits;

The Punjab State Government announced it was investigating the possibility of permitting online lotteries.

January 2016

A governmental committee recommended legalizing sports betting across India. The committee was set up by the Supreme Court to highlight measures to reduce fraud and match fixing in cricket. Among other legislative changes the group proposed a complete liberalisation of the sports betting market which would be governed by a specific regulatory body as well as making match fixing a punishable offense. The recommendations were received by the Supreme Court for consideration.

February 2016

The State Government of Kerala approved a replacement for the ‘Dhanasree’ lottery. The ‘Sthree Shakthi’ lottery will cost Rs10 more per ticket than its predecessor with the proceeds going to support the empowerment of women is selected sectors.

The Goan Government announced plans to create a gaming commission to oversee the operation of the state’s offshore casinos located on the Mandovi River. The Government did not provide a timeline for when the commission is expected to be established;

President Mukherjee announced he intends to add online gambling to the Indian Penal Code which, he stated, is in need of thorough revision. Whilst federal law already prohibits all forms of gambling, online gambling is not currently specified in the penal code, its addition would clarify the activity’s definitions and punishments and streamline the implementation of the ban;

The Punjab government increased the number of lottery draws permitted each day to 48 for the state lottery. There are also plans to establish a turf club and racecourse in the state, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal is said to be leading the project.

March 2016

The select committee charged with evaluating the Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Bill, 2015, recommended that the bill be passed into law. The committee was assigned the task in July 2015 and, despite lengthy delays, unanimously approved the bill, which now requires the signature of the governor to become law.

April 2016

The Governor of Nagaland, PB Acharya, signed the Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Bill into law. The bill authorizes online games in which skill predominates chance, such as poker, in all states that have exempted games of skill from prohibition. The Nagaland Government intends to limit licenses to companies incorporated in India and are in the process of establishing complete licensing criteria. The licensing process is expected to commence before the end of July 2016.

May 2016

The State Government of Goa confirmed it would go forward with the draft laws announced in November to ban Goan citizens who do not hold special permits from entering both on and offshore casinos. It is as yet unclear when the ban will officially begin;

The first online sports betting center was opened in Sikkim by Golden Gaming International. The company was the first of three license holders to open this kind of venue, unique to Sikkim, they allow customers to access online betting sites through an intranet which is not accessible from any other state.

June 2016

The Maharashtra government began discussing the possibility of legalizing casino gaming in the state. The talks were initiated following an order from the Bombay High Court in October 2015 which gave the government six (6) months to decide on how to proceed with the Maharashtra Casinos Control and Tax Act of 1976.

The Keralan State Government began discussions regarding the reclassification of poker and bridge as games of skill. Language in the Kerala Gaming Act (1960) allows the government to exempt games of skill from the prohibition on gambling if skill outweighs chance in determining the result of the game.

July 2016

The Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Bill was notified by the government who have begun accepting applications from operators. License applications cost IND50k with license fees set at INR10 lakhs per game or 25 lakhs for multiple games for a five (5)-year license. The tax rate for licensees is 0.5% of gross gaming revenue;

The Government of Sikkim enacted a number of amendments previously introduced to the Sikkim Casino Control and Tax Act. The amendments prohibit local citizens from entering any casino in the state and double casino entry fees for non-Sikkim residents to RS 1k.

August 2016

The Goan Government implemented a measure that increased license fees for land-based casinos. Fees for properties with an area of up to 100 square metres were increased by 1 crore Rs whereas properties occupying a maximum of 500 square metres were increased by 1.5 crore Rs.

September 2016

The Goa Pradesh Congress Committee demanded the government impose an immediate ban on casino advertisements in Goa. The Congress also called for an opinion poll on the casino industry in Goa following claims the industry has made the State the “vice capital” of India.

October 2016

The Government of Andhra Pradesh received a proposal to establish a casino on an island in the Krishna river. The government had received several proposals from potential operators since 2014 and were still considering 6 of them. The Government would need to amend the Andhra Pradesh Gaming Act, 1974, which prohibits the operation of casinos, before it could continue with any of the proposals;

The High Court of Gujarat has requested the state government clarify if poker is classified as gambling and therefore prohibited under the Gujarat Prevention of Gambling Act.

December 2016

The Government of Nagaland awarded the first online skill game licenses to K365 Web Assets and Club Empire Tech for the operation of online poker.

February 2017

The Goan draft amendments to ban local citizens from gambling in casinos were submitted to the state’s Advocate General for final approval. The draft legislation was announced in November 2015 but was subject to significant delays.

March 2017

Local media sources reported the Law Commission of India was considering draft legizlation to authorize and regulate land-based and online gambling. Whilst the legizlation was not released, the authorization of sports betting and casinos was included in the draft;

The Maharashtra Government included a 43% increase in tax on lottery draws in its 2017- 18 budget. The increase would bring the tax per draw to INR100k and is scheduled to take effect on 1 July 2017;

The Government of Nagaland awarded the first multi-game online license to Sachar Gaming allowing the operator to offer a range of games including rummy, poker and virtual fantasy sports games;

Goan Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar announced a package of increased casino fees in the State’s 2017/18 Budget. Annual recurring fees for land-based casinos were increased by INR5m whereas offshore casinos will be charged at an incremental rate dependant on passenger capacity. License renewal fees were increased by 50% to Rs 3m whilst the cost of transferring an offshore casino license to an onshore license increased by 100% to Rs 200m.

April 2017

The Goan Home Department revisited legislation to ban local citizens from entering casinos. The draft laws were first introduced in June 2015 and approved in principle in November 2015 but were never enacted. The legislation was submitted to Chief Minister, Manohar Parrikar for approval.

May 2017

The Supreme Court of India held a hearing to consider public interest litigation regarding the authorization of sports betting. A Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court, R S Suri was among petitioners who proposed the legalisation and regulation of sports betting as a method of reducing crime related to illegal betting and protecting consumers who are at risk by using illegal bookmaking services;

Local media reported the Indian Government are evaluating proposals to increase the tax on lottery tickets by including them in the goods and services tax which stands at 28%.

The new categorisation is expected to come into force on 1 July 2017;

Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley announced that all legal gambling verticals would be included in the 28% goods and services tax bracket;

The Law Commission of India launched a public consultation process inviting views on the possibility of legalizing betting and gambling. The consultation sought to assess the public’s opinion on a number of issues including the morality of gambling in India, how gambling could be regulated and if foreign operators should be allowed to operate in the country. Gambling regulators from around the world were also asked to submit their views.

June 2017

The Goods and Services Tax Council agreed a two-tier lottery tax regime. Lotteries operated solely by local governments will be taxed at 12% whereas lotteries operated by private companies on behalf of local governments will be taxed at 28%. The new regime was scheduled to come into force on 1 July 2017;

The State Governments of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu enacted legislation to specifically prohibit all online gambling, including games of skill.

July 2017

The Sports Ministry began preparing legislation to authorize and regulate sports betting.

The Ministry was understood to be in discussions with the UK to prepare a MoU in order to create an effective regulatory framework based on the UK’s model to govern the industry as well as provide support to sport in India;

The Chief Minister of Goa, Manohar Parrikar, announced a number of revisions to the State’s policy on casinos. Firstly, the five (5) ship-based casinos operating in the Mandovi river were to be relocated to a designated gambling zone on land within three (3) years and the number of casino licenses available will be capped at five (5). The new regulations would impose a ban on locals entering the proposed gambling zone and provide for a Gaming Commissioner to be appointed to oversee the industry. The Chief Minister stated the regulations would be finalised before the start of the next legislative session.

August 2017

The Government of Kerala appealed to the Ministry of Home Affairs against the launch of Mizoram lottery games in the state. The Mizoram State Lottery company began offering tickets in Kerala despite not having the necessary authorisation from the Finance Ministry who ordered all tickets to be seized;

The High Court of Punjab and Haryana ruled that daily fantasy sports are a game of skill and do not constitute gambling under constitutional law. The case had been brought by a customer of a daily fantasy sports website operating in the jurisdiction who claimed it offered illegal gambling. The Judge ruled that the operator of the website was operating legally and held the required registration and paid the necessary tax on its activities.

September 2017

The Law Department of Goa approved a package of amendments to the state’s casino laws which were announced by the Chief Minister in July. The amendments were re-submitted to the Chief Minister for his assent before progressing to the Cabinet for final approval.

October 2017

The Supreme Court of India rejected a petition to authorize real-money gambling on online and land-based games of rummy. The petition was filed by Krida Sports and Games Pvt Ltd following the prohibition of all online gambling in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu in June, and claimed the ban was unlawful;

The Telangana State Cabinet discussed the legislation enacted in June, to prohibit online gambling and H2 expect that a Bill including the banning of online rummy, would be introduced in the next legislative assembly on 27 October 2017.

November 2017

The Legislative Assembly of Telangana passed legislation to define all games involving money, including games of skill, as illegal gambling. The Telangana Gaming Amendment Bill 2017 progressed to the Legislative Council for approval.

December 2017

The Gujarat High Court rejected a petition filed to classify poker as a game of skill. The Court ruled the game is classified as a game of chance and therefore remains prohibited under the Gujarat Prevention of Gambling Act.

January 2018

Local media reported that the Law Commission of India considered authorizing online betting provided it is regulated under strict conditions. Included in the recommendations was a measure to limit the number of bets to only three (3) per person per year and a requirement for operators to obtain details of bettor’s income and property wealth to determine the maximum stake they would be permitted to bet. The Commission’s full report was scheduled to be published before the end of Q1 2018.

Local media reported that the Maharashtra Government was considering establishing an online lottery platform. The proposals were based on the Keralan Lottery system and are expected to be made public in April.

March 2018

Local media reported that the Maharashtra Government was in the process of drafting legislation to govern online and land-based gambling in the state. The legislation will primarily seek to clarify the legality and definition of different forms of gambling;

Local media reported the state Government of Goa planned to increase the licensing fees for onshore and offshore casino operators by 2.5 – 4.5 times the current rate from 1 April 2018.

April 2018

Pokerstars announced it would launch a Dot IN poker platform on 17 April 2018 accessible from all states that do not prohibit online poker;

Local media reported that onshore casino operators in Goa requested permission to operate live table games in return for paying the increased annual license fees set out by the government in March. Offshore casinos are permitted to offer table gaming and gaming machines whereas onshore facilities may only offer gaming machines.

June 2018

Local media reported Goan law minister planned to permit Matka lottery gaming across the state;

Local media reported Goan’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, demanded the state’s casinos pay an additional service tax of 15% on their license fee in respect of the period from 2014 to 2016 inclusive. The majority of casinos challenged the additional service tax;

The Government of Sikkim enacted an amendment to the Casino Control and Tax Act, to include banning of local residents to any facility offering online gaming.

July 2018

The Chief Minister of Goa reneged on amending the State’s policy on casinos within the Goa Public Gaming Act, due to there being sufficient provisions within the Act to impose restrictions;

The Law Commission of India, in its latest report to the national government, recommended the legalisation of sports betting / gambling activities and the reform of the existing legal activities (lotteries / horserace betting):

• The report cited the inability to enforce a complete ban resulting in an illegal underground market;
• The Commission report recommended having different set of regulations for “proper” gambling (high stakes) and “small” gambling with only those from high income groups permitted to take part in the former;
• The Commission recommended that these should be gambling taxation reforms and that gambling transactions should be cashless to prevent money laundering and ensure taxation collection;
• However, the Commission later clarified that a complete ban on sports betting / gambling was desirable / legalization should only be considered should the complete ban prove to be ineffective;
• NB. The Law Commission of India is solely an advisory body to the government so there is no obligation for any of the above recommendations.

The Government of West Bengal announced the state’s lottery will commence the sale of tickets for existing lottery draw games via online channels.

August 2018

The Chief Minister of Goa announced the state’s offshore casinos would be relocated to a designated land-based gambling zone by August 2022. The Chief Minister confirmed that the casinos will only be open to tourists and a Gaming Commissioner would be assigned to license and regulate the casinos. Licenses are expected to be granted for a period of 10-15 years.

October 2018

The Governor of Telangana, Ram Nath Kovind, signed legislation to specifically prohibit online and land-based games of rummy under the Telangana Gaming Act 1974. The new legislation makes participation in the game a criminal offence, punishable by 12-months imprisonment;

Authorities in Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka, shut down over 500 card-clubs that had been found to be operating outside their licensing conditions. Whilst card games, such as rummy, are permitted to be played for stakes the clubs must also offer sport and leisure facilities. All clubs found not to be offering the minimum required facilities were closed.

November 2018

The State Government of Goa drafted legislation to relocate offshore casinos to a designated gambling zone. The Goa Public Gambling (Restriction) Bill would replace the Goa Daman and Diu Public Gambling Act 1976 and would allow offshore vessels to continue operating for four (4) years after the bill has been enacted and, if they have applied for a land-based license, a further extension can be granted. Local citizens would be prohibited from gambling in the casinos;

The Bombay High Court upheld the constitutional validity of Maharashtra tax on Lotteries Act, 2006 which imposes tax on the sale of lottery tickets within the state. The court upheld the Division Bench’s ruling that the lottery falls within the purview of betting and therefore the State legislature is entitled to enact a law imposing tax on betting and gambling;

The All India Gaming Federation (AIGF) requested that the central government block payments between local players and offshore operators. The AIGF also called for the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to investigate offshore operators illegally targeting the country.

December 2018

Government Minister, Ravi Shankar Prasad, issued a statement to the upper house of the Indian Parliament reiterating that the Law Commission of India has proposed a unilateral prohibition on gambling. Prasad qualified the statement by proposing that if a complete ban cannot be ensured, then legislators should consider regulating the activity with appropriate safeguards.

January 2019

Congressman Tharoor introduced the Sports (Online Gaming & Prevention of Fraud) Bill ahead of the 2019 legislative session to provide for the national authorization of online sports betting. The Bill aims to legalize online sports betting across India and establish a national regulatory and licensing framework managed by a new Online Sports Gaming Commission. The Bill would also create an offence for match fixing.

February 2019

The Government of Manipur announced it would reintroduce a lottery in the state. Exact details of the plans and a timeline for implementation were yet to be drawn up.

April 2019

The Government of Gujarat announced it was planning to change its gambling laws and would include a total ban on online gambling as part of the changes.

May 2019

Local media reported that Goa’s main political parties called for the state’s offshore casino boats to be relocated promptly or shut down. The process of relocating the boats had stalled in the legislative process for a number of years;

Public interest litigation was filed in the High Court of Delhi to stop illegal offshore operators targeting the market. The petition, brought by Avinash Mehrotra, called on the government and Reserve Bank of India to put measures in place to stop illegal gambling sites from being accessed in the country and to collect taxes retrospectively from players and operators.

September 2019

Ajit Singh Shekhawat, head of the anti-corruption unit at the Board of Control for Cricket in India, called for the legalization of betting to tackle corruption and sporting integrity and fraud problems linked to Indian cricket. Shekhawat made his comments after 12 Indian cricketers went public about how they were approached to assist in match-fixing.

He added that betting could be controlled and monitored thanks to regulation and would “bring a huge amount of revenue for the government”.

December 2019

India’s Supreme Court ruled that fantasy sports was a game of skill similar to rummy and blocked attempts by activists, central and state government officials to have it branded as an illegal gambling product in the country.

January 2020

India’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council agreed to set a flat tax for lotteries at 28% of all ticket sales. The new tax rate will come into effect in March 2020;

The State of Maharashtra banned the sale of online lottery tickets from any state within its jurisdiction. The State operates a land-based lottery and, at one time, sold tickets online however this has since been stopped;

The Chief Minister of Goa introduced a ban on local citizens gambling in the state’s on and offshore casinos from 1 February 2020. Chief Minister Sawant also announced a Gaming Commissioner would be appointed to develop and enforce regulations to govern the state’s casino industry.

February 2020

The Punjab government announced that it has made a decision to ban all forms of online lottery, both from Indian and foreign lottery sellers in the state. The ban is intended to curb the sale of illegal lotteries and boost the state revenues from its own lottery sales;

The Uttar Pradesh government confirmed it would not consider the legalisation of casinos in the state. The announcement was made in response to proposals from politicians to mirror Goa in the authorization and regulation of casinos.

July 2020

The State Government of Karnataka gave its approval to proposals to allow the Bangalore Turf Club to offer online betting on horse races via a mobile app. Local media reported that, following the announcement, the Royal Western India Turf Club in Mumbai requested the Maharashtra State Government consider allowing it to also offer online betting.

September 2020

The Andhra Pradesh Government amended legislation to specifically prohibit all forms of online gambling with specific reference to card games like poker and rummy;

The Madras High Court advised the state government of Tamil Nadu to enforce strict regulations, including ISP blocking, on online gambling operators targeting its citizens.

---

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I play at online casinos in India?

Yes you can. There are plenty of reputable online casinos that accept players from India. Choose from our recommended list.

It is legal to play at online casinos?

The market in India is unregulated and therefore it is neither illegal or legal. As a result, the online casinos continue to accept players from India.