Online gambling becomes legal from October: What New Zealand players can expect
After years of delay, the time has really come in October 2021: online gambling will finally become legal in New Zealand. The new gambling law is finally being introduced after years of being pushed forward.
This does not mean that all gambling websites are suddenly legal, but it does mean that the New Zealand Gambling Authority licenses a number of providers. On these websites it is legal for New Zealand players to play.
Are you curious about what to expect from October 1, 2021? We figured it out for you. Read along!
1.8 million New Zealanders have been gambling online for years – how can that be?
Many New Zealand gamblers were not stopped by the fact that you could not legally gamble online in New Zealand. These 1.8 million players played on illegal foreign websites. As a player, they actually noticed little of this in practice. Although the Gaming Authority regularly imposed high fines on the providers of the illegal games of chance, players could actually go about their business quite unpunished.
As a player, you may have noticed it by the fact that there was no oversight of the fairness of the gambling business, but if you had chosen a good provider, this did not have to be a problem. There were even enough companies that actively targeted New Zealand players, for example with a New Zealand-language website or by offering iDEAL as a payment method.
As a player, this was pleasant, but for the gambling sites this had decent consequences. Not only did they receive heavy fines, they are now in the back of the queue to get a New Zealand license.
Why is online gambling legal in New Zealand?
About whether or not to legalize online gambling has been a lot to do in New Zealand in recent years. The parties in the first and second Chambers did not agree on the Gambling Act that should make this possible.
Several times a breakthrough seemed imminent, but in the end it did not happen again. This was mainly due to the fact that a number of political parties are fundamentally against online gambling and were afraid of many gambling addictions.
Addiction prevention is an important part of the new law. As a result, The New Zealand remote gambling law belongs to one of the strictest of dollarpa. But other arguments in favor of legalizing online gambling also weigh in.
Addiction prevention
Thus, addiction prevention is a very important part of the Remote Gambling Act. For example, the Cruks exclusion register (Central Register for the exclusion of games of Chance) was established, in which addicted players are registered. Players can have themselves included in the register, but family members and even the game provider can also request this.
Every player in an online casino with a license must verify the identity before playing. Then it is also checked whether the player has no registration in Cruks. Only when this is certain, the player is allowed to start gambling in the online casino. Cruks applies not only in New Zealand online casinos, but also physical casinos operate with this register.
In addition to this register, an online casino is also required to inform players about the risks of gambling. In addition, every legal online casino must establish a good addiction prevention policy. This includes, among other things, recording playing behavior and intervening in problematic behavior. This can be done on a website, for example, by means of pop-ups after a certain playing time.
Also, players must set their own limits in playing time and finances. Through the strict legislation, political parties hope that there will be more visibility into existing gambling addictions and the Prevention of addictions in the future.
Better enforcement gambling websites
Legalizing a number of gambling websites ensures that there is better enforcement on these websites. If you, as a New Zealand player, are now playing on an illegal gambling website, you have no legal protection whatsoever.
If an online casino does not act fairly or does not pay out winnings, you as a player can not do anything against this. From the moment you play on a legal website, you will enjoy protection. This will lead to better enforcement on gambling websites and better protection for players.
Raising awareness of online gambling risks
Precisely by legalizing online gambling, a number of parties hope that they can increase awareness of the risks of online gambling. Due to the strict legislation around addiction prevention and the like, players get more access to relevant and important information.
Legal online providers are required to properly inform their players so that New Zealand gamblers know exactly what they are getting into. Many New Zealand players who are now playing illegally abroad are not even aware of the precise legislation and sometimes don't even know they are playing illegally. By legalizing online gambling in New Zealand, more awareness can be created about gambling and the risks it entails.
Missing tax revenue
Legalizing online gambling also has a big advantage for New Zealand's Treasury. As long as it was not yet possible to gamble legally online, the collection of gambling tax was also not possible. Now that the online casino in New Zealand becomes legal, gambling tax will also have to be paid. This amount can go up quite a bit.
Experts indicate that this amount is at least 100 million dollars a year. This amount could be even higher in practice, as it is not yet certain how many players will actually play in the legal online casinos. In Denmark, for example, it was seen that, after legalizing the online gambling market, it grew quite a lot. This is expected to be the case in New Zealand.
Will my personal data be stored at these betting sites?
If you're playing on a gambling site for the first time, you may be wondering how your privacy is. Due to the strict legislation of the Gambling Authority, it is not possible to anonymously enter a online casino games play.
Among other things, for the purpose of preventing gambling addictions and banning underage players, registration is mandatory. Your personal data will therefore indeed be stored by the betting sites. This is done with the necessary security. Data is always transmitted encrypted and data is stored securely.
Can I gamble anonymously online?
No, due to the legislation it is not possible to gamble anonymously online. All players must be registered with the online casinos in New Zealand. You are therefore obliged to verify your identity.
This is mainly to combat gambling addiction. It should always be possible to check whether a player is in the exclusion register Cruks. Anonymous play is therefore not possible.
Where can New Zealand players gamble online from October 2021?
Not all gambling sites will immediately receive a license to enter the New Zealand market. It is not yet known which providers will really be licensed from October 2021.
However, it is already known that a number of Game providers have been placed on the penalty bench by the Gaming Authority. These websites have in the past actively targeted the, then still illegal, New Zealand market. Therefore, they do not receive a permit immediately, but may apply again at a later date.
It is expected that parties such as Royal Vegas Casino , Jack's Casino and The New Zealand Lottery get a license anyway. Several foreign providers may also be licensed. A number of large online parties should leave New Zealand on the left. They have received fines from the Gambling Authority in the past. For example, PokerStars New Zealand will have to wait at least until 2023.
What does this mean for online gambling providers?
For providers of online games of chance, a license on the New Zealand market means tapping into a new group of players. There were already quite a few New Zealanders playing online gambling games illegally, but with the legalization there may be many more players.
In addition, legal providers will try to convince players to stop playing with the illegal parties. This means that online gambling providers will build brand awareness in New Zealand. For example, you will see a lot more advertisements from various gambling sites.
Is Royal Vegas Casino going to start an online casino?
Royal Vegas Casino is a very well-known name in New Zealand. Even people who have never taken a step inside the casino know Royal Vegas Casino. This gives this company a considerable advantage over unknown (foreign) providers. As soon as a permit could be applied for, Royal Vegas Casino was at the front of the line. They will definitely start an online casino.
This is what it means for you
With the Remote Gambling Act there will be a lot of change in New Zealand online gambling. Where players used to have to give way to illegal online casinos, they have a number of legal parties to choose from from October 2021.
A number of large foreign parties are still on the bench for now, but will most likely enter the New Zealand market in 2023. As a New Zealand player, you have a nice and diverse range of betting sites to choose from. Due to the strict legislation of the Gambling Authority, you are much better protected as a player in a legal online casino.
You can be sure that the provider is reliable and can be sure that profits will be paid out neatly. This gives you more security as a player. As a result, it is expected that not only existing players will try out the legal online casinos, but that it will also attract many new players. Thus, The New Zealand online gambling market is becoming safer and more diverse.