Australia has enforced an online gambling credit card ban, meaning that players can no longer use them as a payment method.
Late last year, legislation was passed by the Australian Parliament to amend the Interactive Gambling Act 2001, bringing online gambling into line with land-based gambling by banning the use of credit cards.
Following a six-month transition period, the ban has now come into force. Any company that fails to comply with the regulation – ban on credit cards, credit-related products and digital currencies – may be subject to fines of up to A$234,750.
The new laws have also expanded the powers of the Australian Communications and Media Authority to ensure enforcement of the new and existing civil penalty provisions.
Communications Minister, Michelle Rowland, commented: “Australians should not be gambling with money they do not have. Last year, the Albanese Labor Government committed to banning credit cards for online wagering – and we’ve delivered.
“This ban builds on the significant progress to minimise gambling harm that the Albanese Government has made over the past two years, which is already benefitting thousands of vulnerable Australians.
“Our commitment to ensuring that gambling takes place within a robust legislative framework with strong consumer protections remains steadfast, and we will have more to announce in due course.”
Responsible Wagering Australia – whose members include bet365, Betfair, Entain, Sportsbet, Pointsbet and Unibet – also support the measure, but believes a credit card ban should be extended to cover lotteries and keno.
The independent peak body for Australian‑licensed wagering service providers added that it has been working with the government and the financial services industry to implement the ban since 2021.
“This is an important measure to protect customers, making it easier for people to stay in control of their own gambling behaviour,” stated Kai Cantwell, CEO of RWA.
“It will complement the existing offering of safer gambling account management tools by RWA members. RWA and its members support the extension of this measure to all forms of gambling that have been exempted from the ban such as lotteries and keno.
“If consumer protection measures aren’t consistent across all forms of gambling it will incentivise vulnerable Australians to move to less-regulated types of gambling, where they are more at risk of harm.”