Overview
Australia Online Gaming Overview
There is no single overarching statute regulating gambling activities in Australia, nor is there a single overarching gambling regulator. Instead, gambling in Australia is regulated at the state, territory and federal level. Each of Australia’s eight mainland states and territories separately regulates gambling activities (both land-based and online) within each of their respective jurisdictions. In addition, a series of federal statutes also cover certain aspects of gambling activity (including protection of personal information) throughout Australia.
Whilst online betting and lotteries are permitted subject to the operator holding an Australian licence (issued by a state or territory government), online bingo and online casino-style products (including poker) are all currently prohibited.
Skill-based games are often difficult to categorise under gambling laws in Australia although, arguably, will not constitute gambling in some jurisdictions where they are entirely and demonstrably skill-based. These products currently fall into a relatively ‘grey area’ for Australian law purposes and are not prominently promoted.
The provision of software to gambling operators and gambling-related ‘B2B services’ is permitted generally with a relevant licence often being required (e.g. as an approved supplier) for certain gambling services and testing requirements and adherence to prescribed technical standards being required in other circumstances. These requirements need to be assessed on a product and state and territory basis.
Overall, an amber rating has been allocated, on the basis that permitted product can be offered pursuant to a licence.
Market Size
Australians spend the most in the world, per capita, on legal forms of gambling.
In 2022, Australian Gambling Research Centre reports recorded that three in 4 (73%) Australians aged 18 and over reported spending money on one or more gambling products in the previous 12 months. Lotteries/scratchies were the product with the highest participation (64%), followed by race betting (horse, greyhound and/or harness racing) (39%), sports betting (34%) and poker machines/‘pokies’ (33%).
Total Australian expenditure on online gambling increased from $5.57 billion in 2019 to $9.56 billion in 2022, representing an increase of 72%. For more details, please see the Australian Communications and Media Authority website.
Competitive Landscape
The landscape for online wagering in Australia remains highly competitive. The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) maintains a register of more than 80 online-only wagering operators licensed in the jurisdiction, with the majority of those licensed in the Northern Territory. Many more operate on-course around the country and a number of those also maintain an online and phone betting presence.
Competition in lotteries is more limited given the primarily exclusive nature of the state and territory-issued licences although recent years have seen so-called ‘foreign lottery’ operators licensed in the Northern Territory and operating online gaining market exposure and share. These operators commonly offer the ability to acquire a ticket, or rights to the proceeds of a ticket, in a lottery conducted offshore (e.g. under a “lottery courier” model). At the time of writing, the Federal Government has announced a review of these arrangements and the outputs of that exercise are uncertain. Regulatory change is a possibility.
Competition in casinos is very limited given the terrestrial-only nature of these operations under Australian laws. The number of casino licences available in most jurisdictions is limited.
There are also competitive markets in other forms of gambling, including electronic gaming machines operated at licensed venues (i.e. pubs and clubs), although this is limited by state-based caps on the number of entitlements available and restrictions on advertising. iGaming is not legal in Australia.
Localisation
There have been a number of important regulatory developments in Australia over recent years that have primarily been directed at online wagering but also changes impacting casinos and gaming in licensed venues.
In online wagering, noteworthy developments include a ban on the provision of credit for wagering (this also includes the use of credit cards for wagering purposes or payment method linked to credit (e.g. digital wallets), changes to (and increases in) wagering taxes which are now levied on a “point of consumption” basis, a recent prohibition on the use of cryptocurrency, new mandatory gambling messaging requirements, bans on the offering of inducements to open betting accounts (or for a person not to close an account), mandatory prompts to set deposit limits and greater restrictions on advertising (to name a few). Consumer harm and the prevalence of gambling advertising remains a particularly topical community issue and, at the time of writing, the Federal Government is anticipated to respond imminently to a joint parliamentary committee call for a ban of online wagering advertising.
In a terrestrial gambling context, cashless gaming has now been mandated in some states and territories (for example, mandatory pre-commitment and cashless play on electronic gaming machines is now in place at the Crown Casino in Melbourne and The Star in Sydney). This technology is also being trialled or is soon to be introduced for licensed venues in a number of jurisdictions which is a trend we anticipate will continue.
Top 5 Key Attractions and Challenges
Attractions:
- A key attraction to operators in Australia is a robust and established regulatory framework. For online wagering (including betting exchange licences), licences are available in a number of jurisdictions, without there being any cap. Although costs of operating have risen over recent years and compliance readiness must be prioritised, licensing costs remain relatively low
- Australia offers a generally stable political and economic operating environment
- Australia has one of the highest rates of gambling spend on a per capita basis in the world
Challenges:
- Some forms of product that would be familiar in a global context (including online slots and poker) remain prohibited in this jurisdiction
- There have been recent calls for a significant curtailing of advertising of online wagering services. The Federal Government is yet to respond to these recommendations but some change is anticipated. Most commentators anticipate a tempered response that would not implement the full range of recommendations of a recent joint parliamentary committee
- Gambling taxes and fees levied by government and race and sports controlling bodies have been on the increase which has reduced margins for online wagering operators
- There is some current uncertainty for foreign lottery operators and online keno following the commencement of a federal review into these products
Products
Licensing & Regulation
Australia Online Gaming Licensing & Regulation
Licence Triggers
As a general comment, the provision to persons in Australia of online gambling services is complex and should only be undertaken under an appropriate licence. Generally, the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (Cth) (IGA) will apply such that regulated interactive (i.e. online) gambling services cannot be provided to Australian residents without a licence. That includes the offering of...
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Enforcement
Australia Online Gaming Enforcement
Regulating Bodies
Commonwealth / Federal:
As stated in the General marketing section, Australia has Commonwealth, State and Territory legislation which applies to gambling. The Commonwealth legislation applicable to gambling is the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) (CCA) and the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (Cth) (IGA).
The CCA is enforced by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), which is Australia’s competition regulator....
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Marketing
Australia Online Gaming Marketing
Australia has Commonwealth, State and Territory legislation which applies to the advertising of gambling products offline and online. The Commonwealth legislation applicable to all advertising is the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) (CCA), with the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (Cth) (IGA) applicable to specific gambling advertising which is broadcast on television, radio and over the internet (generally during live sport).
The CCA is...
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Fees
Australia Online Gaming Fees
With the exception of betting, application fees and licence fees for gambling licences in Australia are largely entirely negotiable as part of a competitive process to secure a monopolistic licence. As such, there is generally no prescribed fees which can be provided as guidance for the purposes of the Australian chapter, unlike various other international jurisdictions. An overview of licence...
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Taxes
Australia Online Gaming Taxes
The State and/or Territory taxes which apply to gambling products depend upon the relevant licence under which the product is being offered, the type of product and also the jurisdiction in which the product is offered. Each of these are covered in the sub-sections below.
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Future Outlook
Australia Online Gaming Future Outlook
The general outlook for land-based gambling and online gambling consisting of betting and lotteries / Keno is positive. There is limited opportunity for the Commonwealth government to legalise online bingo and casino products generally given concerns in relation to responsible gambling and general consumer protection.
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Legal Expert
Senet
Senet is Australia’s leading specialist gambling law, regulatory and compliance advisory. We are a multidisciplinary group with senior industry and regulatory experience and deep knowledge and expertise across the gambling sector. We are the only gambling specialists in Australia whose Principals have also worked at executive level within the industry. Chambers Global and Chambers Asia Pacific have consistently ranked us as leading gambling and gaming experts since the firm commenced.
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