India gambling laws for operators: illegal to offer
Real-money online gambling is banned nationwide from 1 May 2026; the law targets operators, advertisers and payment handlers, not players. Land-based gambling is left to the States, and Goa allows casinos only in hotels and on offshore vessels.
Product by product
Since 1 May 2026 nobody may offer an online money game in India, whether it is based on skill, chance or both; only games with no stake can be registered with OGAI.| Product | Status | Licensed by | Tax | Key restriction | Advertising |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sports betting | Banned | None at national level; Sikkim and Meghalaya license it under State law | 40% GST on deposits (from 22 Sep 2025) | Offering it is an offence: up to 3 years and/or Rs 1 crore (Act s. 5, s. 9(1)). State licences exist, but what they allow online after 1 May 2026 is not determined. Offshore sites still sell to Indian players; MeitY blocks them under IT Act s. 69A and the Act bars payments for them. | Banned in any media (s. 6): up to 2 years and/or Rs 50 lakh |
| Casino games and slots | Banned | None at national level; Sikkim and Meghalaya State licences list casino games | As for Sports betting | Same ban and penalties. Sikkim play must stay inside Sikkim; Meghalaya's list includes slots; Goa licenses casinos only on land or on offshore vessels. India-facing offshore pages still advertise welcome bonuses, although advertising is an offence and the I&B ministry has told ad intermediaries not to target Indian audiences for offshore betting. | Banned in any media (s. 6) |
| Poker, rummy and other skill games | Banned | None at national level; skill licences in Sikkim, Meghalaya and Nagaland | As for Sports betting | Skill is no defence for paid play (Act s. 2(1)(g)). Nagaland's skill licence assumes skill games are exempt where the player is, and the national Act does not repeat that; what any State licence allows online after 1 May 2026 is not determined. | Banned in any media (s. 6) |
| Fantasy sports | Banned | None at national level; Meghalaya and Nagaland list fantasy or virtual sports | As for Sports betting | A paid-entry fantasy game with money winnings is an online money game. A fantasy game with no stake and no expectation of money winnings can be registered as an online social game. | Banned for the paid form (s. 6) |
| E-sports and online social games (no stake) | Licensable | OGAI Certificate of Registration | — | No bets, wagers or stakes by anyone; registration is per game and per provider, valid up to 10 years, with no fee prescribed. Registration details must be shown where the game is offered. | Not banned by the Act, but a game may not be advertised as registered unless it is |
Who besides the operator can be caught by the ban?
The advisory of 29 July 2026 says the ban on offering, advertising and funding online money games reaches app stores, cloud providers, telecom and internet providers, banks, social media intermediaries, OTT platforms and advertising agencies. App stores, cloud providers and telecom and internet providers are told to disable or stop hosting such applications, and every such business is told to build automated or manual compliance systems. Offering a money game carries up to 3 years and/or Rs 1 crore, and company officers can be personally liable.
OGAI advisory ↗Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 ↗
Regulator and player protection in India
Which casinos & betting sites are licensed in India?
See the full official list of licensed operators and their authorised domains.
Heads-up for operators
3 items · last change 26 Oct 2026
Central: no bill is before Parliament (Sansad legislation API read 8 October 2026). Steps still to come under the Act and Rules: OGAI's published list of online money games (Rules r. 26) was not on the MeitY site by 8 October 2026, and no notification requiring a category of online social games to be determined or registered was found (Rules r. 8(1)(c), 12(1)(a)). Court challenge: the Supreme Court has transferred the writ petitions against the Act from the High Courts of Karnataka, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh to itself (order of 10 September 2025, read through a non-official copy); the case (T.C.(C) No. 133/2025) is pending, and neither that order nor the case tracker records a stay of the Act as of 26 October 2026; later court orders or stays are not covered. State level: no pending State bill was searched.
Supreme Court challenge to the Act
The Supreme Court transferred the writ petitions against the Act from the High Courts of Karnataka, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh to itself (order of 10 September 2025, read through a non-official copy). A case tracker (not an official source) lists a hearing on 5 August 2026; the current stage is not confirmed.
Source: 1
OGAI list of online money games
The Rules require OGAI to publish the list of games it determines to be online money games (r. 26). None was on the MeitY site by 8 October 2026.
Source: 2
Not yet in force: drafts, laws adopted without a start date, and sections of the law still to be commenced. An item moves to the timeline below on the day it takes effect.
Getting licensed: no online licence route
Gambling tax: 40% of amounts deposited
GST is 40% on online money gaming from 22 September 2025 (Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate); 20% central tax plus 20% State tax, or 40% integrated tax), charged on the full amount paid or deposited by the player (CGST Rules r. 31B), not on gaming revenue; refunds and unused deposits are not deducted. From 1 October 2023 to 21 September 2025 the rate was 28%. The platform owner is the deemed supplier, and a supplier outside India is liable to IGST and must register under the Simplified Registration Scheme. The GST rules sit beside the ban on offering these games (Act s. 5), and no source read says they were withdrawn.
- State charges
- Sikkim levy 10% of gross gaming yield or Rs 5 crore a year, whichever is higher;
- Meghalaya 2% of gross gaming revenue plus Rs 2 crore a year;
- Nagaland 0.5% of gross revenue less service tax.
Which foreign licences India accepts
India recognises none of these 8 foreign licences.
BannedMalta (MGA) · United Kingdom (UKGC) · Curaçao · Kahnawake (KGC) · Anjouan (AGB) · Alderney (AGCC) · Isle of Man (GSC) · Gibraltar (GRA)
A licence from this jurisdiction gives no cover under Indian law as read: the Act applies to online money gaming offered in India or operated from outside it (s. 1(2)), offering it is an offence (s. 5), and information about it can be blocked (s. 14). In practice offshore sites stay reachable: one offshore operator's India page, read on 8 October 2026, advertising a sportsbook bonus up to INR 16,000 and a casino welcome bonus up to INR 20,000 (an operator statement, which proves what it says, not that it is lawful). MeitY's advisory of April 2026 tells VPN providers and intermediaries not to facilitate access or financial conversion for blocked betting sites.
Bonus rules: welcome bonuses banned
Online money games cannot be advertised in any media (Act s. 6), so bonuses and promotions for them are caught by the advertising ban. No rule on bonus wagering requirements was found. Sikkim's State law lets a licensee run registration bonuses, bonus deposits and free play with intimation to the State government; whether that survives the Act is not determined.
- Welcome bonus
- Banned
- Offering an online money game is itself an offence (s. 5) and advertising one is an offence (s. 6), so no bonus rules apply to money play; no VIP, wagering or loyalty rule was found.
- Sikkim (State level): its licensee may run promotions, including a registration bonus, bonus deposits and free play, after telling the State government (Sikkim Act s. 10(1)).
Offshore sites still show India-facing welcome bonuses; a site that offers one to players in India is not licensed here.
- Mandatory disclaimer
None for online money games, which cannot be advertised. ASCI's voluntary code asks for a financial-risk and addiction disclaimer; it is not law. Meghalaya's rules require licensed adverts to say gaming is prohibited under 18.
- Placement rule
- No statutory placement rule found.
- Penalties
Advertising an online money game, or causing one to be made: up to two years' imprisonment and/or a fine up to Rs 50 lakh; on a repeat conviction two to three years and Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore (Act s. 9(2), (5)). The CCPA may also fine an endorser of a misleading advertisement up to Rs 10 lakh and bar the endorser for up to a year.
Offences under ss. 5 (offering) and 7 (funds) are cognizable and non-bailable (s. 10); the advertising offence under s. 6 is not stated to be. Company officers whose consent, connivance or neglect is proved are liable (s. 11). Ignoring an OGAI direction carries a penalty up to Rs 10 lakh or suspension or cancellation of registration (s. 12).
No OGAI penalty order, CCPA action on a betting advertisement or court decision under the Act had been published on the official hosts covered (8 October 2026). Earlier advisories from the I&B Ministry (2022, 2024) and the CCPA (6 March 2024) already warned against surrogate advertising and offshore betting promotion by endorsers and influencers.
Advertising: banned or near-banned
Advertising an online money game is banned in every medium by the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act 2025 (s. 6): up to two years and/or Rs 50 lakh, and two to three years and Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore on a repeat conviction. The ban reaches anyone who makes, causes to be made, aids, abets or induces the advertisement, and company officers can be liable (s. 11). No-stake e-sports and online social games are outside it, but no game may be advertised as determined or registered unless it is (Rules r. 15). Before the Act the I&B Ministry (2022, 2024) and the CCPA (2024) had already warned against surrogate adverts and endorsement of offshore betting. ASCI's code is voluntary self-regulation, not law. Offshore operators still market to Indian players: one offshore operator's India page, read on 9 October 2026, advertises sportsbook and casino bonuses (an operator statement, not evidence that it is lawful).
| Channel | Status | Vertical & Platform Split (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| App Store Publishing | Banned | OGAI's advisory of 29 July 2026 tells app stores to disable or stop hosting applications for online money games, and the Act bars anyone from aiding or abetting the offering of one. No-stake e-sports and social games may be published and registered with OGAI.36 |
| TV & Radio | Banned | Section 6 bans any advertisement for an online money game in any media (offence s. 9(2)). Before the Act, the I&B Ministry told private satellite channels on 3 October 2022 that betting-platform adverts cannot be shown on TV channels under the Advertising Code, and that news-website 'surrogate' adverts for offshore betting platforms do not appear to be in strict conformity with the law. No radio-specific instrument was found; radio is covered by 'any media'.37 |
| Sponsorships | Banned | Not by an online money game operator where the sponsorship is, or forms part of, an advertisement that directly or indirectly promotes the game (s. 6). The Act does not use the word sponsorship and no OGAI order or court ruling on it was found. E-sports with no stakes are outside the ban.3 |
| Social media and influencers | Banned | Banned for online money games (s. 6; an influencer who makes or causes an advertisement commits the s. 9(2) offence). The I&B Ministry's advisory of 21 March 2024 tells endorsers and influencers to refrain from promotional content, including surrogate advertisements, for offshore betting platforms in any form, and warns of Consumer Protection Act proceedings, removal of posts and accounts, and penal action. The CCPA advisory of 6 March 2024 says promoters are equally liable.34 |
| Digital and outdoor | Banned | Banned for online money games: s. 6 covers any media, and the Act borrows the Consumer Protection Act meaning of advertisement, which includes audio or visual publicity by print, electronic media, internet or website. The I&B Ministry advises online advertisement intermediaries not to target offshore betting and gambling platforms at the Indian audience. No outdoor-specific rule was found.348 |
Channel rules for India reflect each platform's published policy and the sources numbered in each row (listed under Methodology & sources). Verify with the local regulator and your ad-platform account manager before launching.
How India enforces against unlicensed operators
The tools in force are criminal penalties for offering, advertising and moving funds for online money games; blocking under s. 69A of the IT Act applied through s. 14 of the Act; a payment ban (s. 7) with OGAI orders to payment providers (Rules r. 19(2)); and an administrative penalty up to Rs 10 lakh for ignoring OGAI directions (s. 12). State and UT cyber-cell police officers investigate. OGAI was constituted on 22 April 2026, and no OGAI penalty order, CCPA action on a betting advertisement or court decision under the Act had been published on the official hosts covered by 8 October 2026.
- Penalties (Act s. 9): offering a game, up to three years and/or Rs 1 crore; advertising, up to two years and/or Rs 50 lakh; moving funds, up to three years and/or Rs 1 crore; higher bands on a repeat conviction. Offences under ss. 5 and 7 are cognizable and non-bailable (s. 10).
- MeitY's own released blocking figure is 1,298 blocking directions on betting, gambling and gaming websites and apps in 2022 to 2024 (PIB, 19 March 2025). Blocking orders are confidential and no later ministry count was found.
- OGAI's advisory dated 29 July 2026 (MeitY file date 31 July 2026; listed on MeitY's site 1 August 2026) says ss. 5 to 7 reach app stores, cloud providers, telecom and internet service providers, banks, social media intermediaries, OTT platforms and advertising agencies.
- No penalty order of OGAI, no CCPA action on a betting advertisement and no court decision under the Act had been published on the official hosts covered (8 October 2026).
Enforcement cases in India: 2 recent
Material regulator actions, court rulings, and high-profile fines from 2016–2026 against operators serving India. Each entry includes the technical failure and a one-line read-across for other operators in the market.
- April 2026
MeitY and VPN providers
Grey-MarketMeitY advisory to VPN service providers and intermediaries (April 2026)The advisory says Polymarket and similar sites have been blocked under s. 69A of the IT Act, names VPNs and stablecoins as the route used to reach them, and tells VPN providers and intermediaries not to facilitate access or financial conversion, on pain of losing s. 79 safe harbour.
Read-across: Intermediaries that help users reach blocked betting sites risk their safe-harbour protection; the advisory is addressed to providers, not to users.
- March 2025
MeitY
Grey-Market1,298 blocking directions on betting, gambling and gaming websites and apps, 2022 to 2024MeitY's answer in the Lok Sabha, released by PIB on 19 March 2025, is the only ministry-released blocking count read; blocking orders are confidential, so no list of blocked domains is published.
Read-across: Blocking is a standing tool against offshore sites. No later ministry count was found.
Licensed operators: none
As of 30 Oct 2026, no operator holds an active online licence in India.
Traps operators hit in India
Specific operational risks that have caught new entrants in this market. Each item is country-specific. Generic gambling-ops issues (KYC, RG tools) are not included unless they have a local twist.
Circumventing the 'online money game' definition
The Act covers any online game played by paying fees, depositing money or other stakes in expectation of winning, whether it rests on skill, chance or both (s. 2(1)(g)). 'Other stakes' include virtual credits, coins and tokens bought with money (s. 2(1)(j)), so staking in purchased credits or tokens does not take a game outside it. Offering, aiding or abetting is an offence (s. 5).
Sources3
Treating a State licence as cover for online play
Betting and gambling is a State subject, and Sikkim, Meghalaya and Nagaland issue licences. The Act has no carve-out for State-licensed operators and s. 18 gives it overriding effect over inconsistent law; a State licence listed in a State statute is not, by itself, proof that online play remains permitted since 1 May 2026. Sikkim's licence has been confined to play inside the State since the 2015 amendment. The Public Gambling Act 1867 applies only where a State extended it.
Payment, hosting and advertising partners are in scope
OGAI's advisory dated 29 July 2026 (MeitY file date 31 July 2026; listed on MeitY's site 1 August 2026) says the prohibitions reach app stores, cloud providers, telecom and internet providers, banks, social media intermediaries, OTT platforms and advertising agencies. Section 6 reaches anyone who makes, causes to be made, aids, abets or induces an advertisement, and the persons in charge of a company, and officers whose consent, connivance or neglect is proved, are liable (s. 11).
Registered no-stake games carry their own duties
A Certificate of Registration is per game and provider and lasts up to ten years. A determined or registered game must display its details, no game may be advertised as determined or registered unless it is (Rules r. 15), and for a game with a determination order, a change to payment facilitation must be notified to OGAI before it goes live. OGAI may suspend or cancel a registration after a hearing (r. 14(3)), and a game changed so that it is likely to be an online money game loses the protection.
Sources2
Timeline: rules in force
- 29 Jul 2026
OGAI advisory on sections 5, 6 and 7
OGAI tells app stores, cloud providers, telecom and internet providers, banks, social media intermediaries, OTT platforms and advertising agencies that the prohibitions reach them.
Source: 6
- 1 May 2026
Online gaming Act and Rules in force
The Act came into force in full under S.O. 1994(E) of 22 April 2026, with the Rules 2026 and the constitution of OGAI (S.O. 1992(E)).
Source: 13
- April 2026
MeitY advisory to VPN providers on blocked betting sites
MeitY's advisory of 25 April 2026 tells VPN service providers and intermediaries not to facilitate access to betting and prediction-market sites blocked under section 69A of the IT Act, or the conversion of rupees to reach them. It is addressed to providers, not to users.
Source: 14
- 22 Sep 2025
GST on online money gaming at 40%
Specified actionable claims, including online money gaming, moved to 20% central tax (40% integrated tax), replacing 28%.
Source: 15
- 29 Aug 2025
265775-Gazette Notification dtd. 22-August-2025-The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 (32 of 2025)
The Act sets the binding rules for online gaming operators in India, including what they may offer and how they must comply.
Source: 16Not yet in our reportAdded 2 Nov 2026 · not in the reviewed edition
- 22 Aug 2025
Act passed and assented to
Introduced on 20 August 2025, passed by both Houses by 21 August, assent on 22 August 2025.
Source: 17
- October 2023
GST at 28% on the full deposit
From 1 October 2023 online money gaming became a specified actionable claim, taxed at 28% on the total amount paid or deposited (replaced by 40% from 22 September 2025).
Source: 18
- 2021
Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act
Meghalaya Act 9 of 2021 (assent 23 March 2021) and the Rules of 23 December 2021 create a State licence for games of chance and skill.
Source: 19
- 2016
Nagaland online games of skill Act
Nagaland Act 3 of 2016 (assent 7 April 2016) provides for licences for online games of skill. Its premise is not repeated in the 2025 Act.
Source: 20
- 1867
Public Gambling Act
The colonial-era Act penalises keeping or visiting a common gaming-house. It applies only where a State extended it.
Source: 21
Operator myths vs reality in India
Common assumptions about gambling licensing that turn out to be wrong in practice.
- MythA licence from Malta or Curaçao lets us accept Indian players.Reality
The Act applies to online money gaming offered in India or operated from outside it (s. 1(2)); offering it is an offence (s. 5) and information about it can be blocked (s. 14). Payment providers are barred from processing the transactions (s. 7). A foreign licence gives no cover under Indian law as read.
Sources3
- MythOur GST is 28% of the full deposit.
- MythThe new law only affects online casinos; our skill-game app is safe.Reality
The definition is not limited by skill or chance: an online money game is any online game played by paying fees or depositing money in expectation of winning, 'irrespective of whether such game is based on skill, chance, or both' (s. 2(1)(g)). Only games with no stake, registered or determined by OGAI, sit outside it.
Sources3
- MythOur State licence lets us serve India online.Reality
Not by itself: a State licence listed in a State statute is not proof that online play remains permitted. The Act has no carve-out for State-licensed operators and s. 18 overrides inconsistent law; Sikkim's licence has been confined to play inside the State since 2015, and no notification or court order covered here settles what State licences permit after 1 May 2026.
- MythUsing surrogate adverts keeps us outside the advertising ban.Reality
Section 6 bars any advertisement that directly or indirectly promotes an online money game. Before the Act the I&B Ministry said news-website adverts for offshore betting platforms do not appear to conform, and in 2024 it told endorsers and influencers to stop surrogate promotion in any form.
Markets that work like India
Compared on what our records hold for each country: whether online casino, betting, poker and lottery are licensed, state-run or banned, the licensing model, what the operator tax is levied on and its band, how most advertising channels are treated, and how foreign licences are treated. A point we hold for only one of the two countries counts for nothing.
- BangladeshAI overviewBhutanAI overviewPakistanAI overviewMyanmarAI overviewAfghanistanAI overview
Online casino, betting and poker banned; most ad channels banned; foreign licences mostly banned.
Methodology & sources
The research behind our India coverage
Counted across every India page, not this page alone.
compiled 26 Oct 2026
Across every India page on this site: players, operators and the licence guide. The research report behind them cites official sources: the law, the regulator, the gazette, the courts and each platform’s own published advertising policy. Page sections not yet rewritten from the report may cite other sources.
The same research as a 60-page India report: every one of the 201 checklist questions, each answer cited to the instrument behind it.
Request the India reportOur Deep AI Scan took India through all 201 questions of our regulatory checklist, from 77 official documents, read on 26 Oct 2026. Our research team then traced every figure on this page to the document and sentence that states it. The full research report is reviewed by a named legal expert (26 Oct 2026). Where a fact rests on a press report or a law-firm summary rather than an official document, the page says so.
Documents cited on this page
- 1Supreme Court Observer: challenge to the Act
- 2Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules, 2026 (G.S.R. 303(E))
- 3Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 (India Code)
- 4I&B Ministry advisory of 21 March 2024 with the CCPA advisory of 6 March 2024
- 5ASCI press release of 12 April 2022 (voluntary code)
- 6OGAI advisory on ss. 5, 6 and 7 of the Act (29 July 2026)
- 7I&B Ministry advisory of 3 October 2022 on betting advertisements
- 8Consumer Protection Act, 2019
- 9PIB, 19 March 2025: 1,298 blocking directions, 2022 to 2024
- 10MeitY notification S.O. 1993(E): officers authorised under s. 15
- 11Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Amendment Act, 2015
- 12Constitution of India, Seventh Schedule
- 13MeitY notification S.O. 1994(E): appointed day of the Act
- 14Source
- 15Notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate), 17 September 2025
- 16265775-Gazette Notification dtd. 22-August-2025-The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 (32 of 2025)
- 17Gazette of India Extraordinary, 22 August 2025: the Act as assented
- 18Source
- 19Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021
- 20Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Act (Nagaland Act 3 of 2016)
- 21Public Gambling Act, 1867
- 22CGST Rules 2017, rule 31B
The 10 documents this page relies on most
- Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules, 2026 (G.S.R. 303(E), 22 April 2026, CG-DL-E-22042026-271974)Law
- Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 (Act 32 of 2025), consolidated text as on 5 May 2026 with the commencement footnoteLaw
- Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021 (gazette 23 Dec 2021), India CodeLaw
- Sikkim On-line Gaming (Regulation) Rules, 2009, Gazette No. 54, 4 March 2009Law
- OGAI: Application form for determination of online games and registration of e-sport (updated as of 31.08.2026)Regulator
- Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021, Gazette of Meghalaya Extraordinary No. 217, 23 December 2021Law
- Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Act, 2015 (Nagaland Act 3 of 2016)Law
- IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2023, G.S.R. 275(E), 6 April 2023Law
- OGAI advisory on compliance with ss. 5, 6 and 7 of the PROG Act (dated 29 July 2026; MeitY file date 31 July 2026; listed on MeitY's site 1 August 2026)Law
- Sikkim Online Gaming (Regulation) Act, 2008 (Act 23 of 2008) with the 2009 amendmentLaw
Also cited on this page
- MeitY S.O. 1992(E): constitution of OGAI
- MeitY S.O. 1994(E): date the Act came into force
- PIB, 19 March 2025: MeitY blocking directions, 2022 to 2024
- GST notification 9/2025-Central Tax (Rate): 40% on online money gaming
- Income-tax Act, 2025: tax on winnings
- Finance Act, 2026: surcharge and cess
77 documents in all. Request the full research report for every source, answer by answer.