The rules behind the price
The rules behind the price
Embedded Files
Last reviewed: 26/10/2026. This page explains the law in general terms. It isn't legal advice.
Information only. Behind the Price explains how prices and the rules work. We don't take bets, link to operators or give tips. 18+.
Australian wagering prices don't exist in a free-for-all. They sit inside a federal law about what can be offered online, payment and identity rules, a national set of consumer protections, a self-exclusion register, and state licensing. This page is the site's single reference for all of it; other pages link here rather than repeat it. For this page we read the Act, the regulators' guidance and the government's announcements side by side; where they differ in detail, we follow the legislation.
Why the rules have been tightening
Why the rules have been tightening
Two recent numbers explain the direction of policy. ANU's Gambling participation in Australia 2025 study, surveying 3,387 adults in January 2025, found the share of adults gambling at risky levels (a score of 1 or more on the Problem Gambling Severity Index) rose from 13.7% in 2024 to 19.4% in 2025. Over the same period, sports wagering participation rose from 4.7% to 7.0% of adults, and 88.5% of sports bettors bet mainly online. Most of the rules below are aimed at online wagering for that reason.
Layer 1: What can be offered online
Layer 1: What can be offered online
The Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (Cth)
The Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (Cth)
The Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (IGA) is the core federal law. It doesn't license anyone; it decides which gambling services can be offered online or by phone to people in Australia.
• Online casino-style games are prohibited, including online pokies and online table games.
• Online wagering on racing and sport is permitted, but only from providers holding an Australian state or territory licence.
• Online in-play wagering on sport is prohibited. Section 10B defines an in-play wagering service as wagering on a sporting event where bets are placed or accepted after the event has begun, or wagering on a contingency during the event. Online wagering on sport before the event starts is an "excluded wagering service" under section 8A, so it's allowed.
• Racing is treated differently. Wagering on horse, harness and greyhound races is an excluded wagering service, and the in-play limitation is written for sporting events. That's why some operators take online bets on a race already under way.
• Telephone wagering and place-based wagering are separately excluded under section 5(3).
In practice: the IGA is the reason online sports markets close at the start, and the reason offshore sites without an Australian licence are illegal for Australians to be offered.
The ACMA
The ACMA
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) enforces the IGA. It investigates complaints, publishes findings against operators, and asks internet providers to block illegal offshore gambling sites. It reported in June 2026 that 1,751 illegal gambling and affiliate websites had been blocked since its first blocking request in November 2019.
Its published findings are a useful guide to how the in-play rule is applied. In one, it found a licensed wagering operator had accepted 426 online in-play bets on tennis matches because of a third-party system error, and still found a breach (details on Other Sports).
Layer 2: How you pay and prove who you are
Layer 2: How you pay and prove who you are
The credit card ban
The credit card ban
Since 11/06/2024, online wagering providers can't accept credit cards, credit-related products or digital currencies such as cryptocurrency. The ACMA enforces the ban, with fines of up to $247,500 (at current penalty unit values) for non-compliance. The government said it would review the ban's effectiveness two years after it started. At our last review date (26/10/2026), no review findings had been published.
Identity checks before any bet
Identity checks before any bet
Since 29/09/2023, changes to AUSTRAC's anti-money-laundering rules have required online wagering providers to verify a customer's identity and age before they can bet. Previously, providers had a 72-hour window after an account was opened.
Layer 3: The National Consumer Protection Framework
Layer 3: The National Consumer Protection Framework
The National Consumer Protection Framework for online wagering (NCPF) was agreed by the Australian, state and territory governments in 2018. The Department of Social Services lists its measures as:
• No lines of credit for gamblers, and no payday lending services used for gambling. What it changes: wagering can only be funded with money a customer already has.
• A strong identity and age verification process. What it changes: no bets until the account holder is confirmed as an adult (see Layer 2).
• Restricted incentives and account sign-up offers. What it changes: bonus offers can't be used freely to pull people into opening accounts.
• Easy closing of accounts. What it changes: leaving a provider has to be as simple as joining.
• An offer of deposit limits. What it changes: providers must prompt customers to cap what they deposit.
• Monthly gambling activity statements. What it changes: the real net result is shown every month, whatever individual wins felt like.
• Consistent messaging about gambling risks. What it changes: every ad and wagering site carries the same national taglines.
• Trained staff in the online gambling sector. What it changes: staff are expected to recognise and respond to signs of harm.
• A National Self-Exclusion Register. What it changes: one registration blocks every licensed online and phone provider (see Layer 4).
Consistent gambling messaging. Since 30/03/2023, wagering ads, websites and racing broadcasts must carry one of seven national taglines, including "Chances are you're about to lose", "What's gambling really costing you?" and "What are you prepared to lose today? Set a deposit limit." The spoken-only line is "You win some. You lose more."
Activity statements. Every month, providers must send account holders a statement of their bets, wins, losses and net position. It's the one number that shows what your results actually were.
Layer 4: BetStop
Layer 4: BetStop
BetStop, the National Self-Exclusion Register, launched on 21/08/2023. Anyone in Australia can exclude themselves from every licensed online and phone wagering provider at once, for three months up to life. Providers must check the register and can't open accounts for, take bets from or market to registered people.
According to the ACMA's statistics for the quarter to 30/06/2026, BetStop had recorded 65,430 registrations since launch, with 40,160 exclusions active. About 78% of registrants were aged 40 or under, and 25,155 people, about 38%, chose a lifetime exclusion.
Layer 5: The 2026 reforms, starting 01/01/2027
Layer 5: The 2026 reforms, starting 01/01/2027
The government announced its gambling reform package on 02/04/2026, and in August 2026 Parliament passed the Interactive Gambling Amendment (Gambling Reform) Bill 2026 with two cost-recovery bills. The Department of Infrastructure says the reforms begin from 01/01/2027, with some measures phased in after that. According to the Minister for Communications, they include:
• No wagering ads on broadcast or online services from 15 minutes before to 5 minutes after a live sporting event, between 5am and 8.30pm. What it changes: daytime sport coverage carries no wagering ads around the game itself.
• No wagering ads in sports venues or on players' and officials' uniforms. What it changes: brands of wagering companies disappear from grounds and jerseys.
• No athletes, celebrities or influencers promoting wagering. What it changes: no familiar faces endorsing wagering.
• No more than three wagering ads per hour on TV between 5am and 8.30pm. What it changes: fewer wagering ads at times when children are likely to be watching.
• No wagering ads on radio during school drop-off and pick-up times. What it changes: no wagering ads on radio during the school run.
• No broadcasting of promoted sporting prices. What it changes: prices for sport stop being read out or shown as promotions during coverage.
• Online wagering ads only for logged-in users over 18 who can opt out, plus a national Wagering Advertising Opt-out Register. What it changes: online wagering ads become opt-out and can't reach anonymous or under-age viewers.
• No direct marketing of inducements for 14 days after signing up, for three months after leaving BetStop, or to customers identified as at risk. What it changes: no bonus offers to new, returning or at-risk customers in those windows.
• Faster ACMA powers to block illegal sites, and powers for banks and payment systems to block transactions to illegal operators. What it changes: illegal offshore sites become harder to reach and to pay.
• A ban on online keno "pocket pokies" and foreign-matched lotteries. What it changes: two fast-growing online products leave the Australian market.
Reporting during the bill's passage said the opt-out register would not be ready by 01/01/2027 and would follow later. We'll update this page as the ACMA confirms each date.
The reforms follow the 2023 parliamentary inquiry report You win some, you lose more, which recommended a phased ban on wagering advertising.
Layer 6: Licensing, fees and tax
Layer 6: Licensing, fees and tax
Every online wagering provider needs a licence from an Australian state or territory; many hold one from the Northern Territory Racing and Wagering Commission, which publishes a list of licensees. Off-course tote wagering runs under state totalisator licences.
Racing bodies charge race fields fees, sports charge product fees under integrity agreements (required by law in Victoria), and every state and territory except the NT charges a point of consumption tax. Who Sets the Price explains how each works and what it costs.
Where to check, complain or get help
Where to check, complain or get help
• Is a provider licensed? Check the ACMA's register of licensed wagering services.
• Complaint about an offshore site or a breach? Complain to the ACMA.
• Want to exclude yourself? betstop.gov.au
• Need to talk to someone? Gambling Help Online: 1800 858 858, 24/7, free and confidential.
Page updates
Page updates
26/10/2026: first published. No changes since.
Sources for this page
Sources for this page
• Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (Cth), Federal Register of Legislation — https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A00851/latest/text (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• Department of Infrastructure, "The Interactive Gambling Act 2001" — https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/media-centre/publications/interactive-gambling-act-2001 (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• ACMA, investigation report on online in-play tennis bets (2026) — https://www.acma.gov.au/sites/default/files/2026-02/Investigation%20Report%20-%20Tabcorp%20Holdings%20Limited.pdf (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• ACMA, "Latest illegal online gambling websites blocked" (2026) — https://www.acma.gov.au/articles/2026-06/latest-illegal-online-gambling-websites-blocked (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• Department of Infrastructure, Credit card ban — https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/media-communications-arts/gambling/credit-card-ban (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• AUSTRAC, AML/CTF Rules amendment F2023L01295, explanatory statement — https://legislation.gov.au/F2023L01295/asmade/2023-09-26/es/original/pdf (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• AAP, "Punters to splash ID before cash ahead of footy finals" — https://aapnews.aap.com.au/news/punters-to-splash-id-before-cash-ahead-of-footy-finals (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• Department of Social Services, Gambling reforms — https://dss.gov.au/gambling/gambling-reforms (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• WA DLGSC, "Consistent gambling messaging", 24/03/2025 — https://www.dlgsc.wa.gov.au/department/news/2025/03/24/consistent-gambling-messaging (24/03/2025)
• ACMA, BetStop – the National Self-Exclusion Register Statistics: Q4 2025–2026 — https://www.acma.gov.au/node/5913 (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• ACMA, BetStop – the National Self-Exclusion Register — https://www.acma.gov.au/betstop-national-self-exclusion-register (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• Department of Infrastructure, Gambling Reforms 2026 — https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/media-communications/media-gambling-laws-regulation/gambling/gambling-reforms-2026 (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• Minister for Communications, "Strongest ever gambling reforms passed" — https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/wells/media-release/strongest-ever-gambling-reforms-passed (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• ABC News, "Government agrees to ad opt-out register in deal with Coalition to pass gambling reforms", 17/08/2026 — https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-17/labor-gets-coalition-support-for-gambling-laws-after-amendments/107047766 (17/08/2026)
• APO, You win some, you lose more (2023) — https://apo.org.au/node/323281 (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• DSS, Australian Government response to You win some, you lose more — https://www.dss.gov.au/responses-government-inquiries/resource/australian-government-response-house-representatives-standing-committee-social-policy-and-legal-affairs-inquiry-report-you-win-some-you-lose-more-online-gambling-and-its-impacts-those-experiencing-gambling-harm (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• Suomi, Hahn and Biddle, Gambling participation in Australia 2025, POLIS@ANU — https://polis.cass.anu.edu.au/files/docs/2025/10/Gambling-in-Australia-2025-for-publication-v2.pdf (Accessed 26/10/2026)
• NT Racing and Wagering Commission, licensed operators — https://dth.nt.gov.au/boards-and-committees/racing-commission/sports-bookmakers-and-betting-exchange-operators (Accessed 26/10/2026)
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse