Lillooet Restorative Justice Program

Legal Gambling Age in Canada

What is the legal gambling age in Canada? All of the rules and laws in one place!

Unlike many nations around the world, the subject of gambling in Canada is a complex one. Just like voting or drinking alcohol, the rules differ according to your location. For example, it’s possible to go to a live casino at a younger age in some areas compared to others. Essentially, it is the territorial or provincial level that oversees the area’s gambling laws. 

The reasons behind the differing ages and restrictions aren’t clear. As such, you need to look at the laws for your own territory or province rather than Canada as a whole. In this article, we’ll give you all of the information about Canadian gambling laws, including the rules for individual provinces. So, if you’re wondering about the legal gambling age in Ontario or want to know the gambling age in BC, you’ve come to the right place. You will also find out the list of minimum deposit casino Canada sites that have reliable score among Canadian gamblers.

Gambling in the Criminal Code of Canada

If you’re wondering if is betting legal in Canada, well, Gambling laws Canada aren’t straightforward. In fact, the law states that all types of activities involving gambling are prohibited in accordance with the Criminal Code of Canada. However, exceptions do exist, and this rule doesn’t mean all types of gambling are banned, as you’ll find out.

As previously mentioned, each Canadian province has its own rules and regulations. This is because the Canadian government allows them to manage and conduct their own laws on betting and gambling. 

Charitable organizations that have applied for a license are also allowed to provide gambling-type activities to raise money for their causes. 

So, is gambling legal in Canada? Yes! But you need to know what is and is not allowed to make sure you’re acting in accordance with the law. Provided that a gambling or gaming organization complies with legislation and holds a license, they will be acting legally.

It’s worth knowing, however, what the Criminal Code of Canada says about gambling offenses so that you don’t get caught out. Let’s take a look at the relevant sections and what they define.

Section 201

Section 201 of the Code states that anyone who runs a betting establishment or anyone found inside one is acting illegally. If they are found guilty, there is a maximum sentence of two years in prison. This has never been discussed as encompassing online betting houses.

Section 203

It is also an offense to try to place a bet on behalf of another person. Like Section 201, if someone is proven to have committed this offense, there is a maximum sentence of two years in prison.

Section 205

This section of the Criminal Code of Canada pays reference to chance games and lotteries. This section has now been repealed, so it no longer applies. 

Section 207

This section of the Criminal Code focuses on allowed lotteries. In it, it dictates that Canada’s individual provinces have the right to manage any lottery schemes. They can do this alone or in conjunction with another provincial government.

For religious or charitable organizations, the rules are the same, and they are permitted to operate lottery schemes provided that the income generated is used for charitable purposes.

When the laws are not followed, people can be subjected to a prison sentence of up to two years. Alternatively, they could receive a summary conviction. This means they might have a shorter prison sentence, be on probation, receive a prohibition order, or have a small fine. Typically, a summary offense means you are not arrested for a crime. Rather, you will be served notice to appear in court. People have to be charged with the offense within six months. 

Responsible Gambling Authorities

As we’ve seen, gambling is only legal in Canada if it is regulated by a regulatory body in each province. As such, for any gambling to take place, a company has to comply with local legislation and law. 

In Canada, there are ten regulatory bodies across the country whose job is to ensure companies comply. These are:

  1. New Brunswick Lotteries and Gaming Corporation (NBLGC)
  2. Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA)
  3. Atlantic Lottery Corporation (ALC)
  4. The Alcohol and Gaming Authority Nova Scotia
  5. The Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch (GPEB)
  6. Liquor, Gaming, and Cannabis Authority of Manitoba (LGCA)
  7. Québec Gambling Commission
  8. Kahnawake Gaming Commission
  9. Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario
  10. Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC)

When did Canada legalize gambling?

In 1985, the Canadian government amended the Criminal Code to allow the territories and provinces of Canada to legalize casinos and oversee different gambling activities. This paved the way for gambling to take off in the country, though it took a while to get there. Let’s take a look at the history of gambling in Canada.

What Were the First Gambling Laws in Canada?

Gambling has existed in Canadian society forever – or at least since people started making written records! In 1497, John Cabot took a voyage to what we now know as Canada and found natives playing games of chance. However, because England had a ban on gambling thanks to Richard III, it meant that this was extended to Canada when the Europeans began to settle.

In 1767, there was an organized horse racing event in Quebec City, which was the first of its kind, and it sparked the start of official gambling events. It was a popular event amongst all sorts of Canadians, and the winner was a mare called Modesty, whose jockey was Captain Prescott. The prize money was $40. 

The Criminal Code of 1892

Gambling remained unchecked until the government published its Criminal Code in 1892, which was the first gambling-related legislation in the country. At this time, strong religious views and morality were ubiquitous, and so legislators felt obliged to appease the masses. 

The Criminal Code of 1892 declared betting to be “a bet that is placed on any contingency or even that is to take place in or out of Canada, and […] includes a bet that is placed on any contingency relating to a horse race, fight, match or sporting event that is to take place in or out of Canada.”

This was an all-encompassing ban – but it was short-lived. Effectively, this outright ban made way for underground gambling dens.

The Criminal Code amendment of 1900

In 1900, amendments were made to the Criminal Code, which meant that charity bingo and raffles were made legal. These were only permitted in cases where a charitable organization would put the money into charity.

The Criminal Code amendment of 1910

In 1910, there was another amendment to the Criminal Code. This was considered to be the biggest breakthrough for gambling legalization in the country.

This amendment legalized horse racing pari-mutuel betting at racetracks. What this meant was that the winners divided up the losers’ stakes, giving a cut to the racetrack, jockey, and state. It was also possible to bet on some other games as long as their profits went to charity.

The Criminal Code amendment of 1925

The amendment in 1925 meant that exhibitions and fairs were allowed to host gambling events for the first time. This meant more and more exposure to gambling and more and more interest from people. 

The Criminal Code amendment of 1969

1969 meant a significant change in Canada’s gambling law dynamics. This meant that public lotteries were allowed for the first time. The idea behind this change was to reap the huge potential in games and lotteries as defined under the lottery scheme. It meant that both provincial and federal governments could use lottery games to fund projects. Each province had the right to regulate, license and implement legislation regarding gambling in their territories.

Thanks to this amendment, the first lottery was held in 1974 with a view to funding the Montreal Olympic Games. The stadium for the Olympics was due to cost around $250 million, but it ended up costing almost $1.5 million! The government managed to raise around $15 million for the Olympic Games. The lottery prize was a $1 million jackpot that was tax-free. It was Canada’s biggest lottery jackpot to date.

The Criminal Code amendment of 1985

After lots of special conditions and amendments were added to the Criminal Code, both sports betting and gambling were legalized in 1985. Single-game wagering, though, wasn’t officially legalized until 2021. Other sports betting options were, however, available. You could, for example, take part in parlay betting.

This amendment meant land-based casinos were legal for the first time, though it was down to the individual territories and provinces to oversee this. 

The first casinos open

The first land-based casino opened in Canada in 1989. It was a government-owned establishment called Crystal Casino, and it was in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Though this was owned by the state, it ended up closing in 1997, and two other casinos absorbed it.

In gambling legal in Canada online?

When online casinos started cropping up in the mid-1990s, Canadians found themselves being able to play. This is because the government didn’t prevent Canadians from accessing offshore online casinos. 

If you’re old enough to remember the Internet of these times, you’ll appreciate how these offshore online gambling platforms would have been accessed by poor dial-up connections. There were also only a few casino games on offer, and so few people took up this opportunity.

Despite all of the changes in the Criminal Code over the years, there wasn’t one that reflected online gambling. As such, both online and land-based casinos aren’t differentiated. This means it is each territory and province’s prerogative to legalize this practice (or not).

To operate within the law, online casinos need to apply for a license from their local branch. Each province in Canada now has several online casinos, the exception being Saskatchewan. In reality, only British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec are permitted to issue licenses for online gambling. If a casino doesn’t have a special license, they can operate in the province only. It is possible for games to go across a provincial border, but this has to be an agreed move between the specific provinces and their local authorities.

Offshore operators are in a gray area legally. They’re pretty free to operate in Canada, however, because of the wording of the criminal law. The law states that only physical casinos operating without a license are punishable by law. This means that offshore online casinos can get away with operating because they are not operating a brick-and-mortar casino in Canada itself. It is, however, illegal for an online casino to target Canadians specifically, though there isn’t a law to prevent Canadians from accessing online gambling platforms based offshore.

The Legal Gambling Age in Canada – Provinces and Territories

Unfortunately, you can’t just Google how old to gamble in Canada and get a straightforward answer. The legal gambling age in Canada varies from province to province. Canada itself has set the casino age limit and gambling limit to be 19, but it is possible to find differences when you go to some provinces. For example, in Quebec, Alberta, and Manitoba, you can gamble as soon as you’re 18 years old. In the rest of Canada, though, you need to be 19. Things are a little more complicated in parts too. If you’re wondering how old to gamble in Ontario, then it depends on what you want to do. Ontario gambling laws are different. You can buy scratch cards at 18 years of age, but you can’t go into a casino until you are 19.

Is gambling illegal in Canada for minors? Absolutely. Minors are forbidden from engaging in all types of gambling, and anyone who tries to enter a casino, place a bet, or buy a scratch card will have to show ID. 

When we talk of gambling age, we’re referring to all gambling activities (apart from Ontario, as stated above). This means you have to meet the minimum age requirements to enter a physical casino, sign up for an online casino, take part in any lottery, take part in sports betting, or take part in any other type of gambling. 

Let’s take a look at the minimum age requirements in the different provinces and territories:

Province

City

Age

Saskatchewan

Prince Albert, Regina, Saskatoon

19

Ontario

London, Hamilton, Brampton, Mississauga, Ottawa, Toronto

19

Nova Scotia

Truro, Sydney, Halifax

19

New Brunswick

Fredericton, Saint John, Moncton

19

Newfoundland and Labrador

Corner Brook, Mount Pearl, St. John’s

19

Manitoba

Steinbach, Brandon, Winnipeg

19

Northwest Territories

Hay River, Inuvik, Yellowknife

19

Nunavut

Iqaluit

19

Yukon

Whitehorse

19

Prince Edward Island

Stratford, Summerside, Charlottetown

19

Quebec

Longueil, Gatineau, Laval, Montreal

18

Alberta

Red Deer, Edmonton, Calgary

18

British Columbia

Vancouver, Victoria

19

Gambling Laws in Ontario

As we’ve previously stated, gambling laws differ between provinces and territories. Legalized gambling in Canada fits under federal law. 

In Ontario, the responsible body for legislation and regulation is the OLGC (Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation). This organization has responsibility for Aboriginal casinos, charity casinos, lottery games in the province, slot games at racing tracks, and all commercial casinos like Casino Rama.

In Ontario, you can buy lottery tickets and scratch cards at 18 years of age. It is a punishable offense for anyone to sell Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation tickets to minors. This is punishable by a significant fine. It’s also not possible to buy these tickets online. 

In Ontario, there are five charity casinos and four commercial casinos. Between them, they have almost 14,000 slot game machines and 630 different table games. What’s more, amongst the different racetracks in the area, there are 16 slot games.

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation is the regulator of all lottery retailers – and there are almost 11,000 of them with 12 lottery games on offer. Around two-thirds of these lottery retailers also have video terminals where people can play computer-generated gambling games. 

iGaming Ontario

In terms of online gambling, the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation has somewhat lenient laws. In 2015, a unique online gambling platform was launched by the organization. 

The platform, called iGaming Ontario, has worked in conjunction with AGCO (the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario) to develop its online gaming market. The idea of having a central place is to protect consumers. Essentially, operators working through the iGaming Ontario site have to alter their approaches. There are limits on what can be advertised, for example, and this includes welcome bonuses and free credits. The reason behind this is to protect players and prevent them from developing problematic gambling behaviors.

People can also access a whole host of other gambling platforms offshore without fear of prosecution. As mentioned before, the law on this is a grey area, and it is not a punishable offense to access an offshore online casino. Ontario lawmakers haven’t yet created any sort of structure for foreign sites to obtain licenses to operate there, and so the only site that is regulated is the iGaming Ontario one. 

There are plans, though, to make way for these foreign sites to operate legally.

Is Sports Betting Legal in Canada?

Until very recently, there were strict rules on sports betting in Canada. Sports betting of any kind was banned until the Criminal Code amendments in 1985. After this point, there were limited betting options in all territorial and provincial governments of Canada. This meant that offshore sports betting grew and grew – and the bets were in their billions each year!

When sports betting was allowed, it was only parlayed bets were allowed. A parlay bet is when a person makes at least two bets linked together into one. Some areas call these ‘multis’ or ‘accumulators.’ The problem with this type of bet is that they’re hard to win. If you make four bets and three come true, the entire bet is lost because not all four came true. Of course, if you win a parlay, you can expect a large payout. 

On 10th June 2021, the Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act (Bill C-218) was passed, and weeks later, on 27th August 2021, the single-bet ban on sports was lifted. This bill allowed each province to decide when and how they regulate sports betting. Ultimately, it’s up to the provincial governments to determine who can offer to bet on sports, which sports can be wagered on, and what type of bets bettors can make.

The results of this opening up will mean different things in different provinces. Ontario clearly has a thirst for its market to be open, which has meant that big players in the industry have already put their stamp here. In contrast, smaller provinces (population-wise), are likely to permit lottery sports bets only. As such, we might still see grey-area offshore sportsbooks operating.

Some provinces acted straight away, but it took others a while to finally legalize matters. The last province to do so was Nova Scotia which allowed single-game betting for the first time on 11th February 2022.

Recently, Saskatchewan launched PlayNow, powered by BCLC, to provide a sports betting platform. It was the province’s first legal and regulated platform and offers a full selection of sportsbook betting as well as 500 different casino games.

When Ontario launched iGaming Ontario on 4th April 2022, it was the first Canadian site to welcome third-party operators. The site now boasts 26 approved sportsbooks as well as 50 gaming operators. 

Why has betting legislation changed with regards to sports betting?

Each year, billions of Canadian dollars were being spent offshore on sports betting websites. This loss of revenue is the ultimate driving force for the government to make changes to the single-game betting rules. With legalized sports betting being allowed, the government hopes to recoup some of this money and keep it in Canada. 

Besides Ontario and Alberta, there haven’t been any provinces looking to accept third-party operators. Many suspect British Columbia will expand its offering in the future, meaning that it might offer commercial sportsbooks, but this is unlikely to happen quickly.

Nevertheless, what this all means is that Canadians are no longer limited to complicated and riskier parlay bets. 

However, few Canadians know of these rules and the rule changes. A survey conducted in Fall 2021 by Deloitte, showed that under one-fifth of Canadians weren’t even aware that they can now bet on single events. 

Despite this being legal for over a year, things have been slow to get going. Only Ontario has a dedicated site with retail sportsbooks. Other provinces are making do with single-game betting being available on lottery platforms.

Sports betting in Canada can be summarized by the following:

When Is Gambling Illegal?

Canada’s Criminal Code still states that it is “illegal to run a betting house or to be found in one.” Anyone found guilty of this risks a prison sentence. 

Generally, all forms of gambling are illegal in Canada unless they are licensed and regulated by the province. All lotteries, charitable organizations, land-based casinos, and online casinos and sportsbooks have to comply with the law in their province if they want to operate legally. 

But what about people who like to gamble in private with friends? Technically, it’s fine to play a game of poker and gamble with friends at home, and you won’t be breaking the law. However, if you make a profit, it then becomes illegal, and everyone who is involved will be classed as being in a betting house or running a betting house, which is an offense. 

Essentially, only casinos or operations sanctioned by the government can operate with gambling.

Conclusion

The gambling history of Canada shows many attempts at changes and frequent amendments. In the past, gambling was very much banned altogether, but now, it’s a multi-billion-dollar enterprise. Essentially, what the federal government of Canada realized was that there were so many gray areas with offshore online casinos, and this meant bettors were spending money (in the billions) out of the country. By making gambling legal and changing the laws to allow more types of gambling, the money spent on bets and games effectively stays in the country. Despite all the good news for Canadians who like to dabble, it’s worth always remembering that gambling should be for entertainment purposes only. People should always practice responsible gambling to avoid problematic behaviours from developing. Without care, this activity can seriously impact upon someone’s finances and their mental health – which is perhaps why Canada has held off legalizing gambling for so long. In summary, always gamble responsibly.

FAQ 

Yes. Online gambling is legal in Canada, provided that the casino is not on Canadian soil. This is a rather gray area of the law, however as there are no stipulations for online gambling written in the legislation. In Ontario, it is possible to access many online casinos and sportsbooks legally through the iGaming Ontario website.

This depends. If you are in Alberta and Quebec, you will be able to gamble at age 18. Most provinces require you to be 19, however.