New Zealand’s Online Casino Gambling Bill has edged closer to its completion with the legislation passing through the government’s Select Committee.
The Governance and Administration Committee took into account more than 5,000 public submissions when considering potential adjustments to the bill. These submissions were made earlier this year from individuals and organisations, in addition to oral evidence.
Several changes to the proposed legislation have been recommended through the committee’s report, including 3,966 submissions raising concerns about community returns from gambling revenue.
Changes to the bill’s implementation have also been pitched by the committee, including when legislation will begin and when the market will only be available to operators that have a licence.
Minister of Internal Affairs, Brooke van Velden, welcomed the committee’s report on the bill, marking it as a “crucial step forward” to protect New Zealanders from gambling harm.
Community funds
To provide community funding returns, offshore gambling duty will rise in the bill from 12% to 16%, with this 4% increase ringfenced for community returns. It is estimated that community returns could reach between NZ $10m and NZ $20m in the first year (approximately €4.9m to €9.9m).
However, this is dependent on how much total gross gambling revenue the licensed online casino market generates. The Lottery Grants Board will be responsible for the community funding distribution.
“Many groups were concerned that more gambling online would mean less gambling on pokie machines, and therefore a decrease to the level of funding returning to community groups,” noted van Velden.
“Submissions clearly showed New Zealanders want community returns from online gambling activity to ensure communities continue to get the funding they need. Cabinet agreed to provide these returns, and the committee supported that decision.”
Other concerns raised within the submissions for the report included that online casinos’ regulation could result in the normalisation of gambling and a greater potential for gambling harm, as well as potential gambling harm from advertising.
Van Velden stated that the concerns have been accounted for, adding that the bill will put regulations in place with the intention to reduce harm, “a significant improvement from the status quo where there are no safeguards to protect Kiwis gambling online”.
“We will review online casino gambling’s impact on pokies revenue after two years to ensure that community returns are still providing adequate funding for community and sports groups,” she added.
“This is an important piece of legislation that will bring online casino gambling under New Zealand law for the first time. I look forward to seeing it progress through the House,” says Ms van Velden.
Timeline updates
The Select Committee report’s recommendations also included changes to the timeline of the legislation’s implementation.
From earlier this week, we already know that the date of 1 December 2026 is now in the diaries of all stakeholders interested in the New Zealand market, as this is the date when online casino licences will start.
Other dates that have been added to the calendar include 1 May 2026, which will be when legislation begins, including a total prohibition on online casino advertising. Any operator currently providing an offering in New Zealand may continue doing so until 1 December.
At which point, only operators that have applied for a licence will be allowed to continue to operate, with all other operators forced to exit the market. Operators will be able to advertise under strict rules once they are licensed.
The final date to remember is 1 June 2027, as only operators who hold a licence will be allowed to operate in the New Zealand online casino market after this date.
New Zealand’s government is expected to deliver another update on the legislation later this month, as the Online Gambling Implementation team is now working on how the bill’s implementation will be impacted by the new proposed timeline.
