Online Poker Sites Australia
The biggest reason to play Australia online poker is that the rake is substantially lower than at cash games. Casinos in Australia charge $10 an hour and 10% up to $8 per hand to spread poker. That is absurdly high compared to the 10% up to $3 max that players at online poker sites generally pay. Ignition Casino is the number one recommended poker room for players in Australia. It was formed in 2016 when the company acquired Bovada Poker, a well-established poker site.
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Gambling in a number of different forms has become an insanely popular pastime for Australians with online poker being one of the leading options. Thanks to the rather liberal laws pertaining to the online poker and online gambling industry, the activities have been able to thrive. In fact, it would be safe to say that the online poker boom in the country is now in full swing.
Here is a list of the best legal online poker sites in Australia for November 2020:
With the huge time differences in regards to playing poker online in Australia and with many other parts of the world, it will often pay dividends for all Australian based online poker players to track down and stick to playing at the more popular poker sites, to ensure they always have a large pool of fellow players to take on! Online Poker Laws In Australia. Australians have enjoyed poker online since the boom of the early 2000s. But strictly speaking, Australia is in a legal 'grey area' when it comes to Internet gambling. Under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 Aussies have been prohibited from playing online at sites based in Australia. No such rules prohibit them.
Contents
- 4 The Interactive Gambling Amendment Bill
- 5 Finding the Best Legal Poker Sites in Australia
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However, as good as things have gotten for the industry, the gambling operators as well as the poker players, this was not always the case. Fortunately, the online poker operators and other stakeholders in the gaming industry were able to find workarounds and now Aussie players have access to a number of legal online poker sites including:
- Ignition Casino Poker Room
- BetOnline.AG
- 888poker
- Bet365
- William Hill Poker
- Bodog
- Americas Cardroom
The existence of all these outstanding legal online poker sites in Australia is enough proof that online poker is truly coming back to the land down under. As such, the country’s residents can indulge in online poker action at whichever of the listed sites without worrying about being prosecuted. Moreover, Australians are even allowed to play on poker sites that are located in other jurisdictions and they are able to perform financial transactions without any problems. That said, it may be a little surprising for some people that there are questions regarding the legality of the activity. Well, there is a good reason for that, and it starts with the Interactive Gambling Act (IGA).
What Is the Interactive Gaming Act?
Dating all the way back to 2001, the Interactive Gambling Act (IGA) was aimed at preventing online gambling operators in Australia from accepting bets from Aussie players as well as ensuring that both the local and international or foreign gambling operators were not able to advertise their services in the country. The IGA was officially passed in June of 2001 by the Australian Commonwealth Parliament before going forward to receive assent in July of the same year.
Unsurprisingly, this piece of legislation turned out to be ineffective and therefore offshore online gambling operators were still able to exploit a number of loopholes that allowed them to keep serving Aussie gamblers. This went on until, in 2017, when the Interactive Gambling Amendment Bill was passed – the amendment effectively firmed up the language of the original 2001 law thus preventing the offshore gaming providers from continuing to offer their services to Australians.
The Interactive Gambling Amendment Bill
Proposed by the country’s Minister for Human Services in 2016, the amendment bill seeks to close all the loopholes in the Interactive Gambling Act of 2001. The amendment brought a plethora of changes to the gaming market in Australia after it was passed in 2017 and key among them was the ban on online poker and casino games or sites that had not been licensed by the country’s government.
Did It Work?
Well, now more than ever, the legality of online poker in the country remains in a state of flux following the passage of the Interactive Gambling Amendment Bill – this is despite the fact that the amendment was meant to clear up the ambiguity and vagueness that punched loopholes in the 2001 Interactive Gambling Act. Now, while it is possible that the state and territorial governments, which are responsible for the gambling regulations, achieved their goals to prohibit the provision and advertisement of real money interactive gambling services to the country’s citizens, it did consider some other implications.
As such, for Australians, accessing and using online poker sites is not illegal. In other words, it is perfectly legal for Aussie poker enthusiasts to play at foreign-based online poker sites without any fear of the government trying to stop them. Instead, the online poker operators are the ones that are targeted by the Australian governments and they risk being slapped with fines of over $1 million if their violations of the gambling law are ascertained to be severe enough.
On the same note, one of the supposed aims of the Interactive Gambling Act was the protection of Australian residents from the potentially harmful effects of online gambling. As mentioned above, there is no clause in the bill that outlaws the access and use of gambling services from online poker sites and casino. Technically, this implies that participating in online gambling is completely legal in Australia – it is only the provision and advertisement of such services that is frowned upon. To make things even more complicated is the fact that there are literally hundreds or even thousands of offshore online poker operators that gladly cater to Australian players.
More Implications
Naturally, restricting the players from playing online poker is most likely to drive the gambling activity underground as we have seen in a number of countries were gamblers are not allowed to play. It goes without saying that this is definitely neither a perfect nor an ideal situation especially for the online poker players simply because their choices of sites are quite limited. Still, the consolation is that, compared to several other jurisdictions all around the world, Aussie online poker players have access to a decent selection of online poker rooms to play at. There may be a few shortcomings with regards to the number of games that are available since some big online poker titles are missing, but most gamers have been able to survive without them.
All things considered, it will not be surprising at all if the country decides to regulate online poker in the near future. By doing so, the players will be able to access more and even better gambling sites while the government will be able to benefit from increased tax revenue from the online poker sites. Furthermore, the regulatory authorities, as well as the state and territorial governments, will have much more control over the activity.
As it stands, there has not been any substantial legislative move towards a future with regulated online poker. According to a parliamentary report from October 2017, if that was to be considered, any steps taken towards such a future should be pursued cautiously and strong measures must be included to protect all the consumers. Meanwhile, Aussie poker players can settle for the freedom that they’re currently enjoying as they wait for lawmakers to make a decision that will hopefully favor the beloved game.
Finding the Best Legal Poker Sites in Australia
When it comes to the online poker sites that you should play at, it is always best to stick to recommended sites – such as the ones listed on this site for Aussie poker players. Nevertheless, the whole point of having access to the internet is being able to make choices based on your own tastes and preferences. Even so, finding a great online casino especially in the case where there are legal ambiguities involved can be very tasking, to say the least, unless of course, you have the right pointers on what exactly to keep an eye out for. So, here are some of the things that you and your fellow Aussie online poker players should keep in mind when surfing the internet for poker sites.
Legal Gambling Jurisdictions
As you may have gathered as you were going through this article, perhaps the biggest setback of the Interactive Gambling is the fact that the online poker websites that are currently available for Aussie players are not regulated. Therefore, the players are not able to get any recourse from the country’s competent and reputable gambling authorities in case any issue comes up in the course of the gambling activities. That said, the players have to be very careful when choosing online poker sites.
In fact, the only way to be sure that the poker site you have chosen is reputable and safe is to check if it is licensed in any of the legal gambling jurisdictions. These include:
Gibraltar Gambling Commission – This licensing authority has a great reputation in the world of online gambling which means that the sites licensed by it can be trusted and in case any issue arises, it will be handled appropriately.
United Kingdom Gambling Commission – Known for having some of the most solid and robust industry-defining set of standards for online poker platforms, this authority definitely only associates with reputable and trustworthy online gambling platforms.
Isle of Man Casino Control Commission – The body is known for its high standards and no-nonsense approach when it comes to the licensing of online gambling sites. You will not go wrong with any of its sites.Alderney Gambling Commission – Even though it is not nearly as popular as the licensing bodies listed above, this gambling authority certainly has what it takes. In fact, it has issued online gambling licenses to some of the world’s leading online poker sites.
Currency and Financial Transactions
Since all of the online poker sites that Aussie players have access to are offshore, one of the worries that many of these players have is whether their Australian dollars are valid options for banking at the poker sites. Well, a decent number of the sites allow players to make deposits and withdrawals using Australian dollars – these sites automatically convert the funds to and from US dollars or whichever currency they use by default. This makes deposits and withdrawals a breeze for all players.
As for deposit methods, the very best ones are those that are acknowledged as legitimate by the country’s government. There are, of course, a number of these available and players need to make sure that they choose the most convenient, accessible and reliable ones. Fortunately, most, if not all of them are quite easy to handle for both deposits and withdrawals. Some of the most popular ones include:
- MasterCard
- Visa
- Ukash
- Neteller
- POLi
- Entropay
- Skrill
Other Considerations
Licensing information pretty much covers safety and security concerns while the payment methods ensure a smooth gaming experience. However, it does not stop there. Players still have to put many other things into consideration when finding legal online poker sites in Australia. These will include such aspects as bonuses & promotions, the range of games available, the software providers and even the available tournaments. With those covered, you are assured of nothing short of an outstanding online poker experience.
Overview
Australia currently boasts one of the highest gambling rates on the planet with close to 80 percent of the population engaging in one form of gambling or the other. Online poker has been a huge part of this, and it is not showing signs of slowing down any time soon. Fortunately, the poker players have nothing to worry about as they are not committing any crime whatsoever by enjoying online poker at their favorite online poker sites. Meanwhile, we can wait and hope that the Australian government eventually warms up to the idea of regulating the activity. The sooner the better.
March 21, 2017, was a sad day in Australia for poker players. Parliment passed the final amendment to the new Interactive Gambling Amendment Bill, which prohibits online poker sites from operating in Australia.
Don’t worry, you can still play. Despite it now being illegal to operate an online poker room in Australia, it’s not an offense for an individual to play. Aussies just can’t operate a site locally.
This rule has induced several dozen online poker sites to stay the course and offer to take players from Australia.
Here is your guide to ten of the best online poker sites still offering Australian money games!
Your Invitation to the Best Online Pokies in Australia
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Ignition
Lurking out there in the world somewhere is Calvin Ayre, the founder of the famous poker site Bodog. In 2012 Ayre was arrested in the United States for breaking America’s local ban on online poker. Declaring himself a billionaire, Ayre simply left the U.S. and continued Bodog without a pause.
Although the United States would eventually seize the bodog.com domain name, Ayre’s poker businesses continued to thrive in Antigua and Costa Rica. Ignition is the Bodog groups latest offering, and they plan to Ignite poker in Australia with this overseas offering.
One of the unique features of Ignition is that it is a third party country offering poker only where it is locally banned! Basically, only Aussie and American players are on the site.
What a concept!
Ignition offers tournaments and regular cash games, ranging from penny stakes up to $15/$30 No-Limit Texas Hold’Em. As of this writing, they are offering 100% up to a $1,000USD bonus for new players.
Ignition has an HTML5 web portal, as well as native Android and IOS apps. They are part of the PaiWangLuo Network of online poker sites, so you know they’ve been around the block.
BlackChip
Everybody remembers when Matt Damon ordered up six stacks of High Society in Rounders. Those were black chips baby! BlackChip Poker is still offering games to Australian players, 24/7 365.
Of all the sites listed here, BlackChip offers the best cash ring games. You can bomb out on a $25/$50 NLH and Pot Limit Omaha. There are a couple of more unusual games going, like Seven Stud and Omaha-8 limit.
They also offer modern multi-table and single table tournaments ranging from the penny stock all the way up to the black chip $1500.
Oddly, BlackChip only offers software in Windows. There is no Mac, Android or IOS app for this site. You can’t play in a web browser either which makes getting onto this site kind of a pain.
Despite that though, BlackChip does offer some great rake back and cash back bonuses. They accept payments and cash out through the normal financial channels. They also accept just about every cryptocurrency there is, which often have almost no transaction cost to deposit or withdraw.
Tiger Poker
One of the best online poker sites, Tiger has been opened for business since 1999.
Tiger is a full-blown casino site offering games like blackjack, craps, and roulette to its mostly slot player base. Just like a brick and mortar poker room near the pit, the action brings out the fish (bad players), and Tiger has been known for some of the loosest games on the internet.
Tiger is a member of the Chico Poker Network. Chico is the #3 in total number of online United States players. So you know the games are good.
Intertops
Intertops has long been one of the best online sportsbooks available to international gamblers.
They offer micro stakes sit’n go tables and very small online poker tournaments. While sports betting is their thing, the poker room sometimes fills up, especially during World Cup time!
You can play on Interops on your Windows PC or on your mobile device like Android or IOS. There is no Mac on Unix software available.
Intertops accepts good old Netteller, as well as most cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and bitcoin cash.
BetOnline
BetOnline is another major sportsbook that caters to Western players. It’s been around since 2004 so it has a very secure reputation for quick payout and great signup bonuses.
They offer standard micro stakes cash games, with a $0.50-$1.00 live game running pretty regularly. They offer multi-table tournaments as well as sit’n goes.
BetOnline offer at least one $100 guaranteed tournament every week, usually on Sunday mornings.
Americas Cardroom
Sites got used to leaving the states when the US UIGEA passed in 2006. It smashed the legal card rooms in America, sending them scurrying to Europe and South America. At the same time, some sites saw an opportunity to expand INTO America.
Right up there with Bodog, Americas Cardroom has become one of the most popular sites in the world because they offer games to American players in defiance of their government. Any site that willfully defies the United States government is going to ignore the Aussie rules too!
Americas Cardroom delivers with tremendous action 24/7 and great games all the time.
This year, they are giving away 50 WSOP packages to Las Vegas to play in the World Series of Poker. If you see a contingent of Aussies wearing their logo, you’ll know they’ve been cleaning up in the bonus tournaments.
The Departed
While the sites listed here have made the decision to offer games in to Australians, other sites have taken a different approach.
The super big sites: Poker Stars, Party Poker, 888 and Full Tilt, were some of the first sites to go dark once the new legislation took effect. Afraid of the legal and financial consequences, these businesses have chosen to protect their commonwealth legal charters.
You can sue PokerStars in England, you can’t sue the other sites listed here easily. That’s the difference. In order to stay on the right side of that hassle, these sites have packed up shop and turned off the lights in Australia.
Grand Poker
This little baby started up in 2014. It’s been struggling a little bit, but it’s definitely worth checking out. Because it’s sort of hit or miss in terms of getting a game, when the games do go, they are grand!
You can play stakes up to $1/$2 with micros down to $0.05/$0.10 No Limit Hold’em. Their biggest multi-table tournaments are only $5, which is a strategy that is working out for them. They’ve had enough players to begin offering a $500 freeroll on Sunday morning.
Grand has desktop software that runs on a Windows or Mac machine, and they have a flash-based portal that you can play on with a mobile device. Because Grand is sort of getting their feet wet in Australia, they are offering numerous signup bonuses as well as up to 50% rakeback for regular players.
Grand Poker is an affiliate of the 5Dimes casino group. They’ve been around for years and are one of the most highly respected and popular online bookies in the world, so you know you can trust them.
Seals With Clubs Poker
Bryan Micon is the founder of Seals with Clubs, an online site that pioneered some of the best full bitcoin games around. Micon found out the hard way that the Las Vegas Division of Gaming Enforcement doesn’t like bitcoin gambling in Nevada USA without a license. In 2015, Micon was arrested there for running his perfectly fine online BTC poker casino.
What looked like a setback then, has turned into an opportunity for Seals with Clubs. Now that poker is semi-illegal in Australia, operators with a reputation for going their own way will have a leg up!
No Deposit Online Poker Sites Australia
SwC Poker is a fully bitcoin-based site. There is no way to even play with local currency. This makes it an interesting legal entity to watch in the future as lawmakers try to come to terms with the intersection between bitcoin, gambling, and their own fiat money.
Best Online Poker Sites Australia
A serious poker player himself, Micon has molded Seals With Clubs into the most popular online poker site that deals with bitcoin on the internet. They offer basically everything, including Badugi! Who else offers Badugi?
Nitrogen Poker
Is There Any Online Poker Sites In Australia
Nitrogen is another bitcoin only based sportsbook that opened up its own poker room in 2014. This is another site which remains in a weird legal limbo while offering Australian money games, they have absolutely nothing in local currency. It’s all in bitcoin.
It might be hard to find a game on Nitrogen, but if you’re willing to start up, you’ll get plenty of action. Just go park yourself on one of their tables, and a wandering fish will soon be with you.
Nitrogen is one of the few sites that offers direct bitcoin withdrawals straight to your Satoshi address. Most sites use third-party e-wallets to do payouts [Nitrogen does too], but they also will process it directly to a hash. Nitrogen has terrific bonus programs for new players, including up to $1000 deposit bonus that pays off pretty quickly.
The Best Online Poker
It’s true that the Australian Government has banned the operation of online poker rooms within Australia. That doesn’t mean you can’t play! It just means your dreams of running a site yourself will have to be put on hold.
Shuffle up and deal! It’s 2018, and no matter what the Government does, online gambling and online poker are here to stay. Get news, tips on the best online poker, and strategy advice on our blog. Check it out!