New restrictions on online casinos

I november last year previously imposed restrictions on New Zealand online casino which the government had put out to protect players from problematic gambling during the ongoing pandemic. Now the government wants to reintroduce the deposit limit and loss limit if the stricter infection protection measures are extended from February 7th.

Want to minimize the risk of high-risk gambling

Social Security Minister Ardalan Shekarabi says they want to minimize the risk of high-risk gambling, which online casino and especially machines counts as. Many vulnerable consumers are at risk of going bad, and the risk rises the more isolated we are during the pandemic. If the infection protection measures are extended on January 31, the government will impose new restrictions on online casino games to enter$aft on February 7th.

During the previous turnaround with restrictions, the deposit limit was at $ 5,000 onor, this time the government wants to lower it further to$4,000 Onor. The lowered limit is justified by the fact that several actors have requested it.

However, the minister of Social Affairs points out that, as before, the deposit limit is only on one and the same license holder. Thus, if you reach the ceilings of one license holder, you will be able to make additional deposits at casinos operated by other license holders. The reason for this is that there are no technical possibilities to set a restriction that applies to all casinos. However, there is always the option to switch off yourself from all gambling via Game break.

The industry association for online gambling is hesitant about restrictions

The online gaming industry association, BOS, is hesitant about further restrictions as they believe that the restrictions could be counterproductive and that public health could instead be lost. Gustaf Hoffstedt, Secretary General of BOS explains that the deposit limits mean that risk players instead spread their games between different license holders/casinos, and it becomes more difficult to catch them.

He also explains that too many restrictions increase the risk of players turning to casinos without a New Zealand gaming license . This in turn leads to players losing their consumer protection as The New Zealand gambling regulation delivers.

Welcome bonus limit

The government's proposal includes not only reintroducing restrictions on deposit limits, but also limits on bonuses . The proposal means that, as before, bookmakers should only be allowed to offer$100 onor in bonuses.

The minister of social affairs justifies this with marketing being a central part of the risks for people with problem gambling. Furthermore, Shekarabi says that many other EU countries have also imposed restrictions on online gambling during the pandemic, and is a protection for vulnerable consumers.