- Online Casinos in the United Kingdom are legal as per The Gambling Act 2005.
- Most British Gambling sites are based outside of the United Kingdom.
- UK Online Gambling generates £2 billion each year and is still growing.
Online gambling is legal under the Gambling Act of 2005 in the UK. Discover all legal online casinos in the UK with VegasMaster. Most of the UK Online Casinos us Brits love to play are actually licenced in Gibralter. As the best of British know, we like to outsource and our Online Casinos are no different. It's nothing to do with the licencing, as The Gambling Commission regulates the industry and hands out licencing for both land based and Online Casinos; it's more to do with the weather probably. If only some of my old favourites, like The Casino at the Empire in Leicester Square, Soho and the Sportsman Casino in Marylebone were in sunnier climbs!
The Jurisdictions
Gibraltar is a British territory in the south of Spain. Gaming operators love working here as it has some serious offshore banking credentials. Ladbrokes was one of the first British companies to take advantage of the sunny perks and set up there in 1998. As of today, 18 online gambling licences have been issued in total. 32Red and Bet365 are just two of the larger UK Online Casinos in Gibraltar.
Alderney is a British Channel Island that is self-governing under the British Crown and is home to the AGCC - The Gambling Control Commission, formed in 2000 and consisting of 4 members, one of whom is the Chairman. The Channel Islands are notorious for being one of the world's leading offshore finance centres. They have the infrastructure that supports Jackpot Party, Paddy Power Games, Circus and Virgin, to name but a few. The AGCC takes pride in being unbiased when it comes to politics, and are transparent in their dealings.
Malta is one of the leading gaming jurisdictions. It is an island near Italy in the Mediterranean that has been issuing online licences since 2000. Licences are issued for 5 years and ComeOn , Roxy Palace and Inter will all have to abide by the local laws and proper British behaviour in order to have their licences renewed when that time is up.
The Market
UK Online gambling sites represent a £2 billion market and it is continuing to grow, showing no signs of slowing down. In 2012, it was 80% ahead of figures in 2008. Online gambling brings a sheen of respectability and sophistication, coupled with the fact it is completely legal to gamble Online in the UK. More and more people are able to engage in their gambling whims in between their day to day lives, without having to set aside time to venture out to the Casino and change their chips at the door.
Online Casinos have a Bonus Trick up their sleeves too - placing themselves in the above jurisdictions means that they do not pay tax on their earnings and can plough the money back into the end user experience. This means all sorts of nice, big jackpots and cash prizes for players. One thing is for sure, the British public love their legal online gambling and show absolutely no signs of slowing down.
Looking for Casinos available in the United Kingdom? Check out our list of the 10 Best UK Casinos.
