Australia Senate approves online casino ban

The changes will be complemented by other significant consumer protections that have been agreed with the states and territories, including a national self-exclusion register and a voluntary opt-out pre-commitment scheme.

The specific measures in the Bill include:

• Amending the law to make it clear it's illegal for overseas gambling companies to offer products to Australians unless they hold a license under State or Territory laws;  
• Empowering the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) with new civil penalties, complementing existing Australian Federal Police criminal penalties powers and allowing ACMA to be responsible for the entire complaint handling process from receipt to enforcement; and  
• Introducing other disruption measures to curb illegal offshore gambling activity, such as placing offending company directors on the Movement Alert List so any travel to Australia can be disrupted.

"We are presently losing hundreds of millions of dollars to illegal offshore gambling providers, some of which are connected to crime syndicates. These changes will help keep this money in Australia. Online gambling has three times the rate of problem gambling than other forms and is growing the fastest. Unless we put in sensible consumer protections now, the problems of the future will be in this area.

"These reforms, along with the other initiatives we are implementing with the states, provide a safer gambling environment, while still allowing people to enjoy a punt,” said Communications Minister Mitch Fifield.