Legalities of Poker

We have sat down with the Gauteng Gambling Board to discuss multi-player poker and the law. In essence, any form of poker held anywhere that involves money is considered gambling and falls under the ambit of the Gambling Board. Currently any poker event requires the authority of the Gambling Board and must be held at a Casino that has a valid Casino License.

All home poker events, charity poker, general poker tournaments are illegal!

What is here is a collection of the best information on this subject that we have been able to find. Use it as you will.

Poker in South Africa

The big debate is does the National Gambling Board treat poker as gambling or as a game of skill. Video and Casino poker are clear cases of gambling as the players play directly against the house. Traditional multi-player poker is a game of skill. The concerns arise when betting is part of the game of skill, when cash rewards are offered and when the house takes a cut. The law is a bit unclear here and as to what 'social gambling' entails. In the U.S. some states view multi-player gambling as skill, some as gambling, some place limits and conditions to determine which is which.

Per the National Gambling Act of 1996 the following are relevant definitions:

“gamble"
means play any gambling game, bet or wager on any lawful event, excluding any lawful lottery or sports pool;

"gambling game"
means any game, whether or not the result thereof is determined by chance, played with playing cards, dice, gambling machines or gambling devices for money, property, cheques, credit or anything of value other than an opportunity to play a further game, including, without derogating from the generality of the aforegoing, roulette, bingo, twenty-one, black-jack, chemin de fer and baccarat, and excluding any lawful lottery;

 

Online Poker

As long as online poker players do not participate in owning a share of the house rake; as long as players only wager against each other; as long as players participate in the skill game of poker and do not bet sports; as long as players obey national laws... draw your own conclusions.