In all aspects of the law, there is no substitute for the advice of a qualified attorney. However, the general idea of gambling venues and poker law is a good place to start if you have concerns about playing poker for money online.
The first thing you should know about US gambling laws is: recent events have drawn a lot of attention to online gambling, and the approval of the Safe Pot Act, which includes major online gambling laws, will make sports betting. and most online bets involving money transfers are illegal.
Second thing to know about gambling and cockfighting : There is a big difference between something like sports betting and gambling in games of skill like poker or bridge. There is also quite a difference between betting on roulette or slot machines. So far, these various forms of gambling have not been treated in the same way by law; The decisions that apply to sports betting don’t necessarily apply – at least not yet – to online poker.
The situation is still very confusing.
One US gambling law authority had this to say before the 2006 Internet Illegal Enforcement Act was passed: “No US federal law or regulation explicitly prohibits Internet gambling, either domestically or on the Internet. exterior”. However, the Wire Act contains the following subsection: “Anyone engaged in the betting or betting business knowingly uses the wire communication feature to transmit in interstate or foreign trade bets or bets or information to assist in placing bets or bets on sporting events or contests anything, or for the transmission of electronic communications authorizing the recipient to receive cash or credit as a result of a bet or bet, or for information to assist in placing a bet or bet, will be fined under this title or arrested for not more than two years, or both. ”
It’s easy to see why this statue, the Wire Act, is most often cited as the law that prohibits online gambling, specifically sports betting. However, even this important law does not explicitly state that online gambling, let alone online poker, is illegal. The wording of the statue indicates that it applies only to individuals engaged in the “betting or betting business”, not to better individuals or, in poker, to individual players. See the Jay Cohen case for more information.
In 2006, the passage of the Internet Gambling Enforcement Act changed the situation of online sports bettors and possibly poker players as well. The action seems to be specifically defined for money transfers in the betting world.
Free play and non-money transfer forms of play will not be affected by accounts, but almost all other forms of gambling, although it is still considered unlikely that individual bookmakers, let alone poker players involved in betting, are targeted by state or federal governments.
Most of the attention of the Internet Gambling Enforcement Act and the Electronic Transfer Act is devoted to remittances. According to the 2006 Act: “No person involved in the gambling business knowingly accepts money transfers from anyone participating in illegal Internet gambling … [which] … includes credit cards, electronic funds transfers and even paper checks. But it is limited to internet gambling companies, not just gamblers. ”
All online money transfers or transactions are expected to require participants to provide a valid and verifiable ID before transactions can be tracked and evaluated.
When it comes to funding or withdrawing an online poker account, for example by credit card, check or wire transfer, the 2006 Act will probably make things more complicated for players. Ultimately, this will depend on how quickly the new laws are enforced and how quickly individual sites agree to comply.
Playing poker online is not yet considered illegal either by law or by consensus, but it is important for anyone concerned to consult a lawyer to learn more about how this new bill, the Internet Illegal Enforcement Act, will affect the situation. Everyone should keep abreast of developments that can change the status of online gambling in general or online poker. The law hasn’t been signed yet, but it will happen, and proposed regulations will take effect in early 2007. You should also check the laws of the country where you live.