Gauteng Gambling Board Rules And Regulations

1. Gauteng Gambling Board Rules And Regulations Governing
2. Gauteng Gambling Board Rules And Regulations Commission
3. Gauteng Gambling Board Rules And Regulations Rules And Regulations
4. Gauteng Gambling Board Rules And Regulations Act

To date, the Gauteng Gambling Board, with the assistance of the South African Police Services, has conducted over 270 raids, seized over 720 gambling equipment used for illegal gambling or at unlicensed facilities, and has destroyed over 400 of the same type of equipment. The Tote betting component is licensed by the Gauteng Gambling Board and is governed by the regulations of this body. The Fixed Odds component is licensed by the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board and is governed by the regulations of the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board.

South Africa gambling laws have remained relatively consistent since 1996 and the beginning of the post-apartheid era.

The National Gambling Act of 1996 paved the way for land-based casinos, bingo, a national lottery, LPMs, and sports betting. A 2004 revision of the 1996 legislation then addressed online gambling laws in South Africa by distinguishing between website-based gambling and betting.

Since then, everything has stayed status quo with gambling laws in South Africa. There’s been an online casino provision lingering in a 2008 National Gambling Amendment, but the government has yet to pull the trigger.

So, for now, the South Africa legal gambling landscape remains virtually unchanged from what it was 20 years ago.

When you read through any account of the history of South Africa’s gambling laws, you’ll find a mention of tight reins starting in the 1600s.

For centuries legal betting pursuits in South Africa were either completely off the table or, for most of the 1800s and 1900s, limited to horse racing.

Here are some key moments in the history of gambling laws in South Africa

To quickly and fully understand the gambling and online gambling laws in South Africa, you need to be aware of an important distinction.

• Online betting = sports and horse racing
• Online gambling = everything else (casino games, bingo, poker)

Since 2004, South Africa’s gambling laws were clarified, allowing online betting but declaring online gambling illegal.

Punters can make bets on any of the top sporting events and national and international horse races, as there are plenty of SA-licensed online bookmakers.

But if you want to play some blackjack or slots from your computer or smartphone, you’re out of luck, at least as far as the South African government is concerned.

Does that mean no South Africans use online casinos? No, because offshore gambling providers accommodate South Africans with plenty of deposit alternatives that leave out traditional banks and financial institutions.

Residents use e-wallets like Neteller and Skrill or other methods like PaySafeCard to easily transfer money to online gambling sites.

Land-based casinos were initially opposed to legal online gambling in South Africa. However, the climate is changing.

With the pandemic of 2020 forcing casino closures, online platforms would keep the cash flowing. The tax benefit would remain in the country instead of supporting offshore online casinos and poker rooms.

The National Gambling Act of 1996 changed the entire South African legal gambling landscape. A national governing body, the National Gambling Board, pulled everything together with a standard set of rules.

It’s also behind the problem gambling program with educational and counseling resources.

• National Gambling Board of South Africa
• Phone: 010 003 3475
• Website: https://www.ngb.org.za/

Nine Provincial Gambling Boards were also formed to keep tighter control on each region.

Each is responsible for licensing and regulating casinos, sports betting, LPMs (Limited Payout Machines), and Bingo.

We detail each gambling board below.

The last board in this table, the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board, is the largest bookmaking license provider in South Africa.

The South Africa National Gambling Act of 1996 provided for 40 casino licenses throughout the nine provinces, 39 of which are active.

Sun International is behind many South African casinos, including Sun City, which opened in 1979 when Bophuthatsuana was considered an individual state and exempt from the 1965 Gambling Act.

GrandWest is also a Sun International property and is the grandest in the area, with more than 2,500 slots and 80 tables.

Casino laws in South Africa mean you need to be 18 to gamble in these venues, but many casinos are family-friendly. The under 18s can’t linger on the gaming floor, but they have restaurants, arcades, and other activities that’ll keep them busy.

Here’s a full list of legal casinos in South Africa.

South Africa’s casinos cover the gamut. Small casinos, even resort properties, may only have a few hundred slot games.

Mid-range venues, along the lines of Hemingways and Wild Coast, come in with 500 titles in their slot banks. Then, you’ve got the massive resort-style casinos, like Montecasino and GrandWest, with thousands of machines lining the betting floor.

The larger “super casinos” are Vegas-style with nearly 100 tables, poker, restaurants, entertainment venues, golf, and more.

Horse Racing in South Africa

The first official race club meeting was in 1802, and popularity never waned, especially with horse racing as the only fully approved form of legal gambling in South Africa.

Eighty years after the first meet, the Jockey Club of South Africa was established in 1882.

Even in 1965, the Gambling Act provided for punters, as long as they placed their bets at the track.

South Africa has 27 annual group one events, including these three premier annual races.

• The J & B Met – Kenilworth (January)
• Vodacom Durban July – Greyville (July)
• Sansui Summer Cup – Turffontein (November)

The following is a list of all the racecourses in South Africa, each of which offers legal horse racing betting.

Like sports betting, horse racing is considered “betting” and not “gambling,” so bets can be placed online as well as in person.

Tab Online is an official totalizator that covers all nine provinces. It advertises payouts of more than R70 million weekly.

You can register an account and select PayU to link your bank account to Tab Online, so you don’t have to set up a new payment method whenever you need to use the service.

We touched upon the situation with sports betting and the differences between SA’s online gambling laws and online betting laws.

It’s a critical distinction, as online betting is legal and online gambling in South Africa is not approved, and there are no licensed online casino game providers.

Horse racing came first, as sports betting wasn’t addressed until the National Gambling Act of 1996. Sports betting kicked into gear immediately.

Many of the licensed betting operators are part of the Association of South African Bookmakers.

• The Association of South African Bookmakers
• Phone: 031 764 6471
• Website: https://www.bookies.co.za/

As online gambling laws in South Africa allow for online betting, some members include websites owned by Supabets, Sportsbet United, Bayview Tattersalls, and Sunbet.

Even though punters have access to SA-licensed online sportsbooks, many still turn to offshore providers for a wider variety of betting markets and unique bonuses and free bets.

South Africa’s Limited Payout Machines

Gauteng Gambling Board Rules And Regulations Governing

Another opportunity for legal gambling in South Africa is through 50,000 Limited Payout Machines (aka LPMs) allocated to the nine provinces.

While they provide slot-like machine gaming, SA’s gambling laws are strict regarding these LPMs. Limited Payout Machines were approved as part of the 1996 National Gambling Act, and restrictions have remained since then.

Each licensed established (bar, restaurant, etc.) can only have five machines. Players can’t stake more than R5, nor win more than R500.

The following is a list of Limited Payout Machines per province.

• Eastern Cape: 6,000
• Free State: 4,000
• Gauteng: 10,000
• KwaZulu-Natal: 9,000
• Limpopo: 3,000
• Mpumalanga: 4,000
• North West: 3,000
• Northern Cape: 2,000
• Western Cape: 9,000

South Africa’s National Lottery has just passed its 20^th anniversary. Within two decades, an estimated 96% of SA residents 18 and over have purchased tickets at one time or another.

The lottery is big business with five million weekly transactions and annual revenue well over the R2 billion mark. Eight games are available at local retailers, including some banks.

Players can also buy virtual tickets through the National Lottery website or banks, including ABSA, FNB, Standard Bank, and Nedbank.

Aside from operating costs and winning payouts, 34% of the South Africa National Lottery revenue is distributed to charities.

The 2004 National Gambling Act picked up where the 1996 legislation left off with bingo. Real money bingo is approved and offered in 34 locations in six out of nine provinces.

Galaxy Bingo is the premier provider and approaches bingo halls like casinos. Players can purchase paper or electronic cards and also take advantage of dining and other perks, depending on the Galaxy venue.

The other three provinces without Galaxy Bingo are Free State, Northern Cape, and Western Cape.

National Responsible Gambling in South Africa

Provincial gambling boards take on the responsibilities of South Africa legal gambling legislation and regulation. The National Gambling Board (NGB) looks at the big picture, including problem gambling.

Resources like self-exclusion, limits, etc., are available to all players. The NGB also established a National Responsible Gambling Program focusing on public education and awareness.

The program also provides counseling services, including a 24/7 Problem Gambling Counseling Line.

We started by mentioning that South Africa’s gambling laws have essentially stayed the same for the past few decades.

Residents can take advantage of 39 land-based casinos, thousands of venues with Limited Payout Machines, Bingo, lottery tickets, pari-mutuel wagering, and sports betting. But if you’re a punter looking for changes to South Africa online gambling laws, you’ve been waiting for quite some time.

The subject of nationally recognized online casinos has been up for discussion since 2008. But recent support from land-based casinos may soon be enough to nudge the fulfillment of the National Gambling Amendment Act.

Gauteng Gambling Board Rules And Regulations Commission

South Africa Gambling Laws FAQ

You need to be at least 18 years old to participate in legal gambling activities in South Africa.

This includes casino games, sports betting, the lottery, and bingo.

In South Africa, profits from gambling, including casino games, sports betting, Bingo, and lottery, aren’t taxed.

Horse racing is the one exception, though. Punters are charged a 6% VAT on payouts.

While the terms online gambling and online betting are frequently interchangeable, in South Africa, there’s a primary distinction.

Online betting sites handle sports bets and pari-mutuel action. Operators can obtain national licensing through the provincial gambling boards.

On the other hand, online gambling sites refer to casino gaming and poker play. While South Africans use online gambling sites from offshore providers, there are no legal and regulated options within the country.

Gauteng Gambling Board Rules And Regulations Rules And Regulations

Yes.

Online gambling laws in South Africa restricts casino gaming. However, there are licensed websites for sports betting, horse racing, and lottery tickets.

Gambling in South Africa has been heavily restricted since 1673, with South Africa's Gambling Act of 1965 officially banning all forms of gambling except betting on horse racing which existed as a sporting activity.

In the late 1970s casinos started operating in the bantustans (the nominally independent areas called homelands) of Bophuthatswana, Ciskei, Transkei and Venda. Only native South Africans lived there and most citizens couldn't access those gaming establishments. By 1995 an estimated 2000 illegal casinos were believed to be operating within the country. In 1994, when the new democratic government came to power, all forms of gambling were legalised. In 1996 the National Gambling Act instituted a system of licensed casinos and a single national lottery. Horse racing was also proclaimed gambling activity.^[1]

The National Gambling Act of 1996 made provisions for the regulation of gambling activities and promotion of uniform norms and standards in relation to gambling throughout the country. It gave definitions to different gambling notions, described how the 40 gambling licenses should be distributed among the provinces and provided information on liability. It also established the National Gambling Board, an organisation responsible for the supervision and regulation of the gambling industry. This change in legislation saw the establishment of legal casinos, a national lottery and other forms of gaming.^[2]

In 2004, another National Gambling Act repealed the Act of 1996. And in 2008 The National Gambling Amendment Act was introduced.

Prevalence and value[edit]

According to the 2006 study the most popular forms of gambling in South Africa were the National Lottery (96.9% participation), slot machines (27.7% participation), scratchcards (22.7% participation), charity jackpot competitions (11.6% participation) and horse racing betting (11.5% participation). 8.3% of respondents said they have never gambled and a further 5.5% characterised themselves as occasional game players with no regular forms of gambling.^[3]

In the 2006/2007 financial year licensed gross gambling revenue as monitored by the National Gambling Board totalled R13.52 billion, from R11.4 billion the previous year. 86.2 percent of that revenue was derived in casinos.^[4] In the same period the Board reported a total of 455 raids on and closures of presumed illegal gambling operations.^[5]

South Africa’s gambling revenues are projected to rise to R30 billion in 2019, according to a new report. The South African gambling industry – including casinos, sports betting, the National Lottery, limited payout machines and bingo – achieved gross gambling revenue of R26.3bn in 2016.

Types of gambling[edit]

South African National Lottery[edit]

The South African National Lottery was established in 2000 and has been in continuous operation since, apart from a suspension between April 2007 and October 2007. In its last year of operation transaction values totalled R3.972 billion, with an average of five million transactions per week, making it the most popular form of gambling in South Africa. South Africa known as one of the largest countries participate in UK49s lottery draw operated by Ladbrokes Coral.

Gambling revenue from the National Lottery is projected to increase to R2.33 billion in 2019.^[6]

Casinos[edit]

Casinos operate in all metropolitan areas in South Africa. With the largest being the Rio Casino Resort, which is also the largest casino in Africa and the fifth-largest casino in the world.^{[citation needed]} Tsogo Sun Montecasino, also located in Johannesburg, is another of South Africa's largest casinos.

Gauteng Gambling Board Rules And Regulations Act

Horse racing[edit]

On-track betting on horse races was the only legal form of gambling in South African until 1996. Due to its complexity and the difficulty of attracting new players it did not effectively compete with the newly introduced National Lottery and casino games.^[7]

Betting on horse races is controlled by Saftote and operated by Gold Circle in KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape and by Phumelela in the remainder of the country.^[8]

Online gambling[edit]

Licensed gambling sites[edit]

Each of South Africa's nine provinces has a gambling and racing board. To offer online betting bookies must be licensed by one of these boards. Currently the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board (WCGRB) is largest provider of online bookmaker licenses.^[9] South Africa residents can use these online betting sites legally. For bets involving horse racing 6% is deducted from winning to cover VAT. As of May 2012, no additional tax is charged to recreational bettors, and recreational gambling winnings are not considered income for income tax purposes.^[10]

Online gaming laws[edit]

The National Gambling Act 2004 prohibited both offering interactive gambling services and engaging in interactive games (games on the Internet).^[11] This rule applies to all online operators, licensed in any jurisdiction. It's however important to note interactive gambling relates specifically to games such as casino, poker and bingo. Online sports betting, online horse race betting and the business of bookmaking is lawful in South Africa, provided that the person conducting such business holds the necessary provincial bookmaker's licence(s), or is using a website with proper licence(s).

The National Gambling Amendment Act of 2008 that was published in July 2008 was meant to be an attempt to legalise interactive gambling in the country and make provisions for the regulation of this market. The Amendment Act was actively confronted by the interested parties (land-based gambling houses and anti-money laundering authorities). For this reason, the Act hasn't come into power yet.

On 20 August 2010 even online gambling offered through servers located outside the country was banned in South Africa. This was the result of the North Gauteng High Court judgement on the jurisdiction of online gambling transactions in the country. Consequently, both offering gambling services online and gambling online became illegal. The only exceptions are province licensed horse racing and online sports betting. Casino sites, individuals, internet service providers and banks that process payments for online gamblers are subject to a fine of R 10 million or 10 years of imprisonment, or both. Mass media channels that transmit or facilitate advertisement of online gambling services (TV and radio, newspapers and magazines, outdoor advertising agencies) are also to be held liable.^[12]

The South African Department of Trade and Industry also suggested to consider penny auctions a type of online gambling and illegalise them. The National Gambling Amendment Act of 2008 may come into force after an appeal to a high court ruling against 'interactive gambling' is heard.^[13]

References[edit]

1. ^Stephen P. Rule; Terezinha Da Silva; Chris Sibanyoni (2000). The Social Impact of Gambling in South Africa. HSRC Press. p. 8. ISBN0-7969-1971-2.
2. ^National Gambling Act, 1996 [No. 33 of 1996] – G 17307
3. ^'Problem Gambling Prevalence Study 2006'(PDF). National Responsible Gambling Programme. Archived from the original(PDF) on 9 October 2006. Retrieved 22 September 2008.
4. ^'National gambling statistics for the financial year ending 31 March 2007'. National Gambling Board. Archived from the original on 7 October 2008. Retrieved 22 September 2008.
5. ^'Illegal Gambling statistics for the financial year ending 31 March 2006'. National Gambling Board. Archived from the original on 6 August 2007. Retrieved 22 September 2008.
6. ^'How much is the South African gambling market worth?'. www.bettinggods.com. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
7. ^'Speech by Thibedi Majake (CEO of the National Gambling Board) at the 2006 national convention of Racing South Africa'. Racing South Africa. Retrieved 22 September 2008.^{[dead link]}
8. ^'Sport: Horse racing in South Africa'. SouthAfrica.info. Archived from the original on 16 September 2008. Retrieved 22 September 2008.
9. ^WCGRB Licensed Betting Sites
10. ^Legal South Africa Betting Sites
11. ^'Online Gambling Remains Unlawful in South Africa'. Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
12. ^Online Gambling Banned in Africa
13. ^Online Gambling in SA: Is It Legal?

External links[edit]