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Does Ireland have online casinos? Is it legal to play in Irish casinos? What's the best casino online Ireland host?
When it comes to online casinos, Ireland is a basket case. For a country that hosts Meta and Google, the gambling laws are strange. To find answers to the questions above, read this guide and find out what the top casino Ireland offers.
Table of contents Trust our selection process and pick any casinos you find on this page.
Gambling has been LEGAL in Ireland since 1853, with several legislations to date.
| Relevant legislation | |
| Domestic legislation | The EU legislation |
Find the most recent updated gambling legislation here.
Online casinos in Ireland have been LEGAL since 2015.
Legal basis: |
Despite being legal, save for sports betting, online gambling licenses still don't exist.
Yes and no. Officially, playing on international online casinos is ILLEGAL.
But Ireland can't forbid other unlicensed casinos from operating, at least not the EU ones.
Being a member state, Ireland, on EU law, must allow access and licenses to the EU casinos. Since Ireland only issues online sports betting licenses, this is not possible. No EU casino can legally operate in Ireland, but the EU law guarantees legal operation.
As a consequence, Irish citizens CAN play on UNLICENSED EU gambling sites.
Irish players are NOT PROSECUTED for doing so. Ireland DOESN'T BLOCK unlicensed EU online casinos either.
Technically, domestic licensed online casinos could do it. But since there are no licenses, the situation is not clear-cut.
Many international gambling platforms accept Players from Ireland. And Ireland can't forbid these EU casinos to operate.
Yes. Any non-permanent resident can gamble online while in Ireland.
The Office of the Revenue Commissioners regulates gambling in Ireland.
Legal Basis: 1923 Government Order |
There are four types of gaming licenses in Ireland:
The latter two refer to individual machines, and the former to their operators.
Find the manual on these license types and how to obtain them here.
Licenses for operating online casinos DON'T EXIST, except for:
It's clear that the licensing situation in Ireland is far from perfect.
Fun fact: The Irish National Lottery has a Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) license. |
When domestic online casino licenses don't exist to warrant safety, what's left? You gotta turn to:
Offshore casinos come in many shapes and forms, with varying degrees of safety. To ensure peace of mind, you must learn to tell if the online casino is rigged.
Luckily, in most EU countries, gambling is regulated and safe. But to be sure you're taking no risks, look for the seals on international auditors like:
This applies to domestic online gambling platforms whose offer goes beyond sports betting. Many local gambling operators will have applied for these regulators' licenses.
These credible auditors take player safety seriously. They check the randomness of outcomes and fairness of returns.
Still unsure? Then, learn how to pick the best casino here.
Yes, but a very low one. Famously, Ireland is a tax haven for its low corporate tax they used to lure the big tech companies. It's no surprise that the gambling tax is as low as 1%.
Nope. Players DON'T PAY TAXES on their casino gambling winnings in Ireland.
To gamble, Irish players must be 18 years or older.
Cryptocurrency gambling is UNREGULATED in Ireland.
You can't use Bitcoin, Ethereum, or other currencies in land-based casinos, either.
You can bet digital currencies on casinos that accept players from Ireland, though.
No, at least, not yet. Land-Based Casinos are ILLEGAL. Still, gray areas make it possible for operators to run clubs with everything a gambling house offers.
The proposed Gaming Control Bill is supposed to legalize brick-and-mortar casinos. However, there's no indication the bill will ever be adopted.
Until then, the government imposed strict limitations on these venues. Like this:
The max bet is EUR 10.
The max win is EUR 3K.
Yes, they are in the guise of private clubs. Since land-based casinos are ILLEGAL, operators exploited the loopholes in the law.
The most famous venue is the Carlton Casino Club in Dublin. Fitzpatrick 's is the domineering casino group.
Here's a timeline of significant events in the Irish gambling past.
| Year | Event |
| 1984 | The Betting Act marks the beginning of gambling regulation. |
| 1922 | Ireland becomes independent. |
| 1926 | The Betting Act is the first act in the new country. |
| 1931 | Sports betting is regulated. |
| 1956 | The Gaming and Lotteries Act regulates casino gambling. |
| 1972 | Ireland becomes the EU member state. |
| 1986 | The gambling tax is 10%. |
| 1999 | Irish player J.J. Furlong wins the 1999 Poker World Series. The gambling tax is reduced to 5%. |
| 2002 | The gambling tax is reduced to 2%. |
| 2006 | The gambling tax is reduced to 1%. |
| 2013 | The National Lottery Act regulates lotteries. |
| 2014 | Premier Lotteries Ireland LTD gets to manage the lottery for two decades. |
| 2015 | Online gambling becomes legal. |
| 2019 | The Gaming Control Bill draft is proposed (General Scheme of the Gamblign Control Bill”). |
If passed, the Gaming Control Bill will massively impact the Irish gambling landscape. For starters, land-based casinos will become legal. However, their number will be locked with the number of licenses. Tables and machines will be fixed, too.
If online casino licenses see the light of the day, global players may move their operations to Ireland. With its low corporate and gambling taxes, Ireland may become a colossal gambling hub. This has already happened with the tech companies.
Here are key takeaways about the Irish online gambling world.
