- Today any South African found to be gambling online, whether at a casino, a poker room or a bingo hall, is considered to be in contravention of the law, as are any operators found to be hosting gaming sites in South Africa for South Africans. This will remain the status quo as long as South Africa’s gambling laws are not amended.
- The South African Trade and Industry Department revealed that it has confiscated around R1.25 million (approximately $100,000) in illegal online gambling winnings. Gambling services in the country must be provided in full compliance with the National Gambling Act of 2004. Under the law, online gambling is illegal in South Africa and winnings obtained through iGaming.
South African Gambling laws have gone through various levels of scrutiny in the years that it has been in service to the citizens of the country. To understand where the laws are at today, we take a look back to see where they came from. The first gambling restriction to ever hit South Africa came by way of Dutch imperialists as their rivalry with Great Britain started to gain momentum. In 1652, the Dutch founded a colony at the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, which caused European immigration in the cape to swell. As cultural assimilation took place through intermarriages there was a universal adoption of the Dutch language. In 1673, came the first formal gambling restriction to reach the colony. Although it was largely ignored by the inhabitants of South Africa, this persisted until 1965 where all forms of gambling aside from horse racing was formally outlawed.
Pretoria - Online gambling in South Africa remains illegal, despite the number of operations increasing, the National Gambling Board (NGB) said on Wednesday. The board has identified an increase in the number of illegal online gambling operations nationally. An amendment to South Africa’s gambling law is in the works, which will allow licenses to be issued to online casinos. This National Gambling Amendment Act was signed into law in 2008 and is.
Despite the more modern legislation, casinos were being operated in Bantustans around the 1970’s. There was estimated to be at least 2000 illegally operating casinos by 1995. However, in 1994, a new democracy was established in the country and all forms of gambling were legalized. Only two years later, gambling laws in South Africa would again, go through drastic change.
History Of Gambling Laws In South Africa
National Gambling Act of 1996
The first democratic legislation in the country of South Africa to formally regulate gambling was the National Gambling Act of 1996. It established a system of legally operating casinos and instituted a single national lottery system. It formed the foundation for regulating gambling establishments in the country and with it came a set of uniform regulations and standards that all casinos seeking proper regulation had to conform to. They assigned meaning to previously vague definitions and gambling ideas while developing 40 gambling licenses that were to be distributed to the provinces and informed on how to distribute them. The 1996 law is responsible for the creation of the National Gambling Board that is still in function today and responsible for the regulation of all gambling activities in the country.
National Gambling Act 2004
The next major change made to legal online gambling in South Africa came by way of the Internet. The National Gambling Act of 1996 was too young to realize the potential of the Internet and therefore didn’t scrutinize how it should be used in terms of gambling. The 2004 Act was the first act to address SA gambling laws regarding online gambling and completely outlawed both offering interactive gambling games online and engaging in them. In doing so, it was established that sporting activities were excluded from that judgment. It was meant to be specifically applied to online casino games, poker, and bingo and subsequently left online sports gambling and pari-mutuel horse track wagering legal given the proper provincial licenses were obtained.
National Gambling Act 2008
In the lead-up to the National Gambling Act’s second major amendment, the 2008 Act, it became known that most of the country was consciously breaking South African gambling laws as they pertain to the internet with no consequences. The public knew they these laws were vastly unenforceable and proceeded to make up one of the largest online gambling communities in the world. After this was found out, there was a legislative attempt to stop this from happening. The method of this attempt wasn’t to try and convince people to stop, but rather, simply make online casino games, poker, and bingo, completely legal and taxable to generate revenue for South Africa. This attempt, however, did not succeed and the gambling laws in South Africa remained. The 2008 Act was confronted in its attempt and lobbied against by the land-based gambling establishments for fear of profit loss. They were accompanied by anti-money laundering authorities that were afraid online gambling could lead to even more nefarious activity.
High Court Judgment 2010
As online gambling remained illegal for the most part in South Africa, SA gambling laws were vastly ignored by the population. South Africa became one of the most profitable customer markets for offshore online gambling operators, which led to the High Court Judgment of 2010. On August the 20th in 2010, the North Gauteng High Court banned offshore companies with servers that were not physically located in South Africa from any kind of online gambling within the country. Both the act of offering online gambling services and using them became illegal, simultaneously. The only two exceptions that were made were for the provincial licensed online sportsbooks and pari-mutuel horse and dog racing.
From this point on, not only were online casinos, poker, and bingo illegal in the country, they were illegal to take part in, advertise for, or facilitate in any manor. Individuals found in breach of the law are subject to a 10 million rand fine, or 10 years in prison. They made it clear that those broadcasting companies who showed advertisements for offshore online gambling companies, individual online gamblers, and banking establishments that process online gambling payments were all grouped into the same category as the online casino providers themselves and subject to the same consequences.
In May of 2017, Trade and Industry Minister, Rob Davies stated that the government of South Africa had seized 1.25 million rand from several parties associated with illegal gambling in the country. They made it clear that a crackdown is looming in South Africa and that they are serious about the consequences given to the crimes that they have outlined.
Provincial Gambling Regulation In South Africa
South Africa is made up of nine provinces that each independently regulate the gambling activity within their provinces. The National Gambling Board was set up in 1996 to regulate and enforce gambling laws in South Africa. They then set up the regulatory infrastructure for each of the provinces, establishing a gambling and racing board in each of them. Currently, The Western Cape Gambling and Race board has given out the most gambling licenses and has made no secret of their intention of using the online gambling industry to boost their revenue numbers.
Applicants must complete the application, which is substantial and file any related documents accordingly. They also must advertise that they have done so, and allow for the prospect of objections to be filed by any interested parties. Then, they must subject themselves to a hearing with the gambling and racing board in question.
What’s The National Gambling Age In South Africa?
The national gambling age was set with the first batch of legislation on gambling in the country. The minimum national gambling age of South Africa is 18. We recommend that you check with your local provincial gambling board to make sure it is legal for you to enter a casino as some have been known to have higher age restrictions set.
South Africa has gambling laws similar to Australia. There are nine provinces each with their own gambling and racing board. These are the equivalent of gambling commissions. In order to offer online betting bookies must be licensed by one of these boards. As a punter living in South Africa, you can use any licensed bookie legally regardless of which province they are licensed by. When betting sports, winnings are not taxed, but for horseracing a 6% tax in the form of VAT is deducted from winnings. As of 2015, no additional tax is charged to recreational bettors, and there is no need to include gambling winnings on income tax returns.
List of Licensed South African Bookies
There are many South African licensed bookies. A list of some of them we assembled in March 2015 is as follows.
- bettingworld.co.za has online betting from one of the largest SA corporate bookies. It is licensed by the Gauteng Gambling Board.
- betxchange.co.za is the online site of Keith Ho which is a licensed bookmaker with the Gauteng Gambling Board.
- interbet.co.za is licensed by WCGRB.
- krugerbets.com – is licensed by the KwaZulu Natal Gaming and Betting Board.
- sportingbet.co.za is licensed by the Western Cape Gambling & Racing Board.
- sportsbet.co.za is a traditional family owned South African bookie also licensed by the Western Cape Gambling & Racing Board.
- sunbet.co.za is another licensed by the Western Cape Gambling & Racing Board.
- tabonline.co.za is the online account of Tab which horse racing punters likely need no introduction to. It is official tote of South African horseracing with R50 million paid out every week.
- worldofsport.co.za is the Western Cape Licensed Bookmaker Marshalls.
- wsb.co.za is World Sports Betting licensed by the Gauteng Gambling Board.
Sites licensed in South Africa tend to understand what local punters are looking for, and provide more personable support. Most have betting odds on all the popular bet leagues. This includes Super Rugby, Currie Cup, ABSA Premiership, MiWay T20 Challenge and other sports. You can also bet on soccer around the world, and on American sports such as NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL etc. This names just some of what’s available for wagering.
Licensing and Odds Format
One thing that is confusing is often even sites licensed by the same gambling commission use different odds formats. For example Sportsbet and Sportingbet are both licensed by the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board (WCGRB). This can be confirmed on the WCGRB License holders’ page. Between the two sites there is confusion regarding odds formats. Traditional South African bookies, such as Sportsbet, use a decimal odds format rest of the world refers to as Hong Kong Odds. Take for example a Currie Cup match with the following odds:
Lions: 0.91
Draw: 20.00
Natal Sharks: 0.91
The odds are how much you’ll get paid in winnings for each rand staked. For example, if you bet R 100 on the Lions and win, you get paid R 100 * 0.91 = R 91 AND you also get back your R 100 stake.
At corporate bookies, such as Sportingbet, decimal odds also include the stake. Here the same odds would be listed as:
Golden Lions 1.91
Draw: 21.00
Natal Sharks: 1.91
These are the exact same odds – the only difference is these odds represent total return (stake + win). If you bet the same R 100 on Lions and win you get back R 100 * 1.91 = R 191. Of this, R 100 was your stake and your winnings are the same R 91. There’s no difference in the payouts, only in how the odds are displayed. This is important to understand to avoid confusion and/or the false feeling the payout has been shorted. Just know at some bookies the odds include the stake, and others the odds represent just the winnings.
How to Deposit and Withdrawal
When betting online at licensed South African bookies the banking options are not a mystery. These websites are 100% legal to use, and therefore clearly display their policies for making deposits and getting payouts. The most common method is credit or debit card, but most also accept instant bank transfer, UKash, Skrill and Entropay.
Online Gambling Illegal In South Africa 2020
Credit Card Payments
Using a credit card or debit card issued from a South African bank is the most popular way to deposit at ZAR bookies. Each betting site has a different policy regarding which cards are accepted and if payouts can be processed to the card. As a general rule most accept VISA, MasterCard, Delta and Maestro cards, and most will only issue credit/debit payouts up to the rand amount deposited. To get payouts for our excess winnings you’ll need to use a second banking method such as bank transfer or paper cheque.
Traditional Bank Transfer
For players without a credit or debit card it’s possible to deposit and withdrawal via traditional bank transfer. This involves getting a reference code from the betting website to send a traditional bank transfer. Once the payment has left your bank account, you’ll need to contact the betting site back to notifying them of the payment. They’ll then confirm the payment within 1-5 days (most often in just 1 day) and manually credit your betting account with the rand amount sent. This process is well explained on betting sites accepting this method.
Ukash – Fast Transfer with Standard Bank
Much faster than traditional bank transfer is using Standard Bank AutoPay to purchase Ukash. If you don’t have already have a bank account with Standard Bank, it is well worth opening an account with them to use this feature. To add AutoPay capabilities to your Standard Bank account, inquire with your branch (or see details here).
Other Deposit Methods
Each bookie has its own unique banking methods. The three covered so far are the most popular, but some bookies also accept SID Payments Instant EFT via Standard Bank, ABSA, Nedbank and First National Bank. Many others accept EntroPay, Skrill and other e-wallets.
Foreign Betting Sites Supporting South African Rand (ZAR)
There’s a lot of confusion whether or not using foreign betting sites from SA is legal. What we do know for sure is that online gambling is illegal in South Africa, however betting on sports and horse racing is fully legal. If players were only to bet sports and races, and avoid poker and casino, using foreign betting sites might be legal. No court has ruled on this. In short, we are not sure if using foreign betting sites is legal or not. Consult with your own authorities or legal professionals.
- Asian Bookies
- US Betting Sites
- UK Bookmakers
- NBA Betting
- F1 Betting Guide
- MLB Betting Guide