Canadian Gambling Laws – A Legal Grey Area

There aren’t any laws in the nation of Canada that specifically govern online gambling. However, there are ways for the individual provinces to procure and manage their own individual internet-based gambling communities, similar to the United States. What The Criminal Code of Canada does prohibit is gambling at sites that have no licensing through a local government. With that said, there are still well over a thousand of these offshore websites that allow Canadian.

A Grey Area?

This has caused some confusion, as many Canadian citizens view internet gambling as a legal grey area with no definitive answers. The problem is exacerbated simply because there has not been a single incident where an individual player has been prosecuted for playing at these supposedly illegal websites.

Getting an Opinion from the Experts

Luckily, some legal experts have examined the issue. Their findings seem to suggest that there isn’t any risk to the players themselves when it comes to playing at an offshore site regardless of whether it’s slots, poker, or whatever else. The concern is laid at the operators themselves. Canadian authorities have shown in the past that they’re more than willing to prosecute companies that attempt to flaunt the local laws. This has only happened once in 1999 where a company called Starnet Communications International, located in Vancouver, was raided by authorities.

The Current State of Canada for a Gambler

With that being said, gambling as a resident of Canada seems to be very safe and continues to attract more and more players into online gambling games. Collaborations, such as the Canadian Poker Network, have been set up in order to provide the country with a well regulated and safe environment for playing and enjoyment.