Canadians have access to a range of superb online casinos, but the legality of such platforms is complicated. Figuring out whether a site is safe to play on requires an understanding of gambling licenses, how they work, how they are issued, and how online casinos are overseen in the country.
We understand how difficult this can be to trawl through, so to make it easier, we’ve created a simple guide below. If you are interested in registering with an online casino as a Canadian, we explain why gambling licenses matter, the legality of online casinos in Canada, and how you can check the licensing of the platforms you are considering registering with.
Why is a Gambling License Important?
Why all the fuss about gambling licenses? This is your first step to safety, and it’s vital that you understand what gambling licenses are and how they protect you. A gambling license is issued by a reputable regulatory body that has been appointed to oversee gambling operations in a specific jurisdiction.
To obtain a gambling license, an online casino operator must comply with specific criteria and regulations. This can be things like the protection of customer information, publishing the RNG results of games, operating ethically, and providing responsible gambling tools to customers.
A gambling license can be compared to a liquor license. While a liquor license makes sure liquor stores only sell alcohol to people of a legal drinking age, a casino license makes sure only people of a legal gambling age can play and that when they do play, they can do so safely with a number of safeguards in place.
Simply put, by using an online casino with a gambling license, you are protected from fraud, gambling addiction, rigged games, payment issues, and anything else that could give you a poor gaming experience.
Understanding Online Casino Legality in Canada
Let’s get the important bit out of the way. Currently, online casinos are NOT legal in Canada. This doesn’t mean that you can’t access them. It simply means that no Canadian company can create and operate an online casino within Canadian territory. These measures are overseen by provincial regulatory bodies, which include:
- GPEB & BCLC (British Columbia).
- Alberta Gaming, Liquor, and Cannabis Commission (Alberta).
- Lotteries and Gaming Saskatchewan (Saskatchewan).
- The Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Authority (Manitoba).
- ACGO & OLG (Ontario).
- Loto Quebec (Quebec).
- Department of Digital Government and Service & Atlantic Lottery Corporation (Newfoundland).
- New Brunswick Lotteries and Gaming Corporation (New Brunswick).
- Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation(Nova Scotia).
- Prince Edward Island Lotteries Commission (Prince Edward Island).
- Yukon Lottery Commission (Yukon).
- Northwest Territories Lottery Commission (Northwest Territories and Nunavut).
Each of these organizations oversees most forms of gambling in the provinces, including online casinos and license issuing, similar to how each U.S. state has its own regulatory body and gambling laws.
What This Means for Licensing and Availability of Online Casinos
So, where does this leave you? Although online casinos cannot be created and operate within Canadian territory, Canadian residents can still legally access and play at licensed offshore online casinos.
These are online casinos created in other jurisdictions and have a global gambling license that covers a wide range of countries, including Canada. Reputable global gambling license issuers include:
- Curacao eGaming.
- Malta Gaming Authority.
- Isle of Mann Gambling Supervision Commission.
- Kahnawake Gaming Commission.
These licensing issuers have all been operating in the global iGaming industry for decades and have impeccable reputations. These organizations are well-known for their strict licensing procedures, and Canadian players can comfortably play at reputable online casinos that have a license from them.
A license isn’t the only thing you should look for, though. You have to be prudent and check the quality of the online casino, including its game selection, customer support availability, the underlying payment tech, and reviews from other customers on platforms like Trustpilot and Reddit.
Yes, a gambling license should be the first thing you look for as a Canadian customer, but that’s just one aspect of what makes an online casino safe, easy, and enjoyable to play. GambleOntario.ca advises that for each online casino, you should create a checklist of things to look for. Be vigilant with this, and make sure you are thorough. By checking info like licensing and customer support, you can protect yourself from scams and always have a fun gaming experience.
How to Check Online Casino Licensing for Canadian Players
Luckily, checking for an online casino gambling license is incredibly easy. 99% of the time, the licensing information is found in the website footer (the bottom section of the website that usually has contact and copyright information).
You can usually find an extensive section of text that states who owns and operates the online casino as well as the licensing information. The license issuers (like Curacao eGaming) are usually stated, and after that there should be a valid license number and potentially other info like the type of license.
However, seeing evidence of a license in the website footer isn’t enough. You should also check the validity of the license. Oftentimes, the online casino will provide a direct link to the license page on the issuer’s website. If there is one, click it and check the license details on the issuer’s site – it should be a B2C license (business to customer), and the expiry date should be AFTER the date you are checking it!
If there is no link, copy the license number, do a Google search to find the license issuer’s website, and search their site using the license number. You should be able to easily find the relevant licensing page and check the validity of the online casino’s claims.
Sometimes, online casinos might not publish licensing information on their website footers. It could also be in their terms and conditions or on the about page. If you can’t find it anywhere, you can contact the customer support team. They should have no issue with providing licensing information.
If the customer support team cannot provide licensing information, we advise walking away from this online casino. There is no valid reason why an online casino cannot provide licensing info unless they don’t have one and are operating illegally!
Only Play at Licensed Online Casino That Accept Canadian Customers
We hope you have found this guide on Canadian casino licenses and how to check them informative. We want to reiterate that you must ONLY play at online casinos that have a gambling license. If you use an unlicensed casino, you have no protection and could fall prey to fraud, rigged games, or other scams. Be safe, be prudent, and check the licensing information before registering an account with any online casino.
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