The Minimum Online Gambling Age Around the USA

Before you try to gamble in the USA, it’s essential to know the minimum online gambling age requirements. To create an account, you’ll need to prove your age, and land-based casinos will block entry to minors. In this guide, we’ve discussed this essential topic and detailed the minimum ages for each state.

Our guide includes the reasoning behind the introduction of minimum age requirements. We’ve also provided complete overview of the minimum online gambling age by state for each activity, including sports betting and online casinos. If you’f like to make sure you play by the rules, don’t forget to check out our guide to legal online gambling.

You’ll also learn about the age verification procedure at online gambling sites and what you can do to make this process as fast and easy as possible. It’s against the law to gamble underage in the USA, so we’ve continued by discussing the penalties for doing so before looking at the minimum ages around the world.

• Overview of Online Gambling Age by State
• Overview of Minimum Age Requirments
• Age Requirement Difference for Activities
• Verifying Your Age
• Penalties for Underage Gambling
• Minimum Gambling Ages Around the World

Overview of Online Gambling Age by State

There is no set online gambling age USA limit due to the fact that each state has their own laws when it comes to what constitutes legal gambling. For example, some states may only permit casino gambling at Indian casinos and ban sports betting completely, while others may only permit sports betting in person.

Operators take this issue very seriously as underage gambling can be very damaging to minors. If minors did create accounts, this would also impact the integrity of sites and would result in huge fines for gambling sites. Operators will go to great lengths to ensure that state laws are being followed and underage players are restricted.

Overview of Minimum Age for Online Gambling

Whether you want to gamble at home or in a different state, it’s helpful to know the gambling age of each location. For example, an 18-year-old that can gamble at cruise-ship casinos in Georgia may be disappointed to find that they are restricted in most other states with legal casino gambling for 21-year-olds.

Another important note is that the minimum age for online gambling may be different from the land-based gambling age. For example, one casino in Michigan allows anyone over 18 years old to gamble according to state laws, but online casinos do not permit anyone under 21-years-old from playing.

In the following table, we’ve used (O) next to states to highlight if they offer online casinos and poker. As for online poker, all states with an age listed permit sports betting either in-person, online, or both. The states with no online betting are Delaware, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Washington.

Interestingly, Tennessee and Wyoming only permit sports betting online. If there is a dash beneath an activity, this means that it is still illegal. Below, you’ll find the minimum online gambling age by state for each legal activity.

Differences in Age Requirements for Activities

As you can see in the table above, many states have varying gambling ages for different activities. In most states, people can start to participate in bingo or the lottery at the age of 18. This is likely because the entirety of these activities’ revenues often goes to charity or directly to the state.

For the most part, the online gambling age for sports betting and online casinos won’t differ, and will either be 18 or 21 depending on the state’s laws. However, some states with 18-year minimums may also prevent people under the age of 21 from entering land-based casinos as alcohol is served.

Horse race betting is also usually permitted for anyone over the age of 18 at horse tracks or off-track betting parlors. This too may depend on whether alcohol is served. Most states permit horse race betting due to its long history as one of the first legal gambling activities in the USA.

While the figures in the above table have accurately transcribed the minimums, it’s always worth researching your local laws before you attempt to join a site for the first time. There may be unconventional nuances to your state when it comes to online gambling that could prevent you from signing up.

Verifying Your Age Online

All players will need to undertake an identity verification process when they sign up for an online casino or sports betting account to prove they meet the online gambling age. There are several reasons for this, with the most obvious being to prevent underage gamblers. This process is also used to prevent scammers, money launderers, and self-excluded users from joining.

It’s an important step that maintains a site’s safety, security, and integrity for all customers. But how do you do it? Once you click to register, you’ll be prompted to enter your name, address, and email. You’ll then be asked to upload an identity document with a photograph such as your driver’s license or passport.

The site will then use fraud detection software to ensure that the document is valid and may request further biometric data such as a live photograph to compare with the document. It shouldn’t take longer than 10 minutes. Once this process is complete, you’ll be able to make deposits, claim your welcome bonus, and start gambling.

Penalties for Underage Gambling

If an online gambling establishment is caught accepting wagers below the online gambling age, there can be serious penalties for the parties involved. The severity of the penalties will depend on the individual offense and whether the infringement is a regular occurrence. It will often result in a fine at the minimum.

In more extreme cases, gambling operators may lose their licenses and individuals representing the casino or sportsbook charged with crimes. If a minor fraudulently finds a way to gamble, the operator must immediately remove their accounts once they have discovered the offense and report it to local regulators.

When it comes to minors deliberately gambling underage, the penalties will not likely be as extreme. Most commonly, minor offenders will be charged with a misdemeanor. While it may not be prosecuted on the first offense, this will be noted on the minor’s record. Repeated offenses could result in more severe penalties.

Keep in mind that the penalties are as varied as the age for online gambling US can be. For example, New Jersey has quite strict laws around this matter and lists the possible penalties for minors as:

• Fines up to $1,000
• Suspension of driver’s license
• Probation
• Community service
• Jail or juvenile detention

If a parent allows a minor to gamble, they will also likely face misdemeanor charges. If they were simply unaware of the difference in the minimum online gambling age by state as a tourist, they may not be charged, but this will be at the discretion of the law enforcement involved.

Minimum Gambling Ages Around the World

The USA is an interesting country in that its gambling age laws vary from state to state and according to activities. In most other countries, the age for online gambling remains the same in each jurisdiction no matter what is being gambled on. For example, the UK has a minimum gambling age of 18 years old.

This is the same in Scotland, England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Unlike in the USA, people are considered adults at the age of 18 and are able to drink alcohol at that age too. In Australia, the minimum gambling age for casinos and sports betting is 18 too, though online casino gambling is illegal.

In Europe, most countries have the same minimum for all gambling activities, though it’s common for casinos to have higher age requirements. In Sweden, this is set at 20, in Belgium and Estonia it’s 21, in Greece it’s 23, and in Portugal and Malta, it’s 25 for local citizens.

In Africa and Asia, many countries have outright banned all forms of gambling or are limited to local lotteries. Where it is legal, it will either be 18 or 21 years old. Some countries ban local citizens from gambling but permit tourists as this generates huge revenues for them.

In South America, the minimum gambling age is 18 years old. The only exception is Brazil, which has banned all forms of gambling aside from the local lottery. As you can see, if you like to gamble where you travel, you should always research the country’s laws before you book your flight.