Department of Internal Affairs

What this authority does

Under the Gambling Act 2003, New Zealanders could lawfully gamble online only with the two domestic operators, the lottery and the racing betting agency, while offshore casino sites were neither licensed nor effectively prevented from taking New Zealand custom. The practical outcome was a sizeable untaxed offshore sector with no local consumer protection requirements.

Legislation to licence a limited number of online casino operators has been taken through Parliament, with licensing expected to begin from 2026. The intended design features a capped number of licences awarded by auction, a levy on revenue, advertising restrictions and harm-minimisation obligations.

New Zealand's wider gambling framework is distinctive for the community funding model attached to gaming machines, under which a defined share of proceeds must be returned to community purposes through licensed societies, and much of the department's existing supervisory work concerns that obligation.

Licences it issues

• Class 4 gaming machine licences
• Online casino licensing under new legislation

What supervision concentrates on

• Supervision of domestic gambling
• Community funding obligations
• Harm minimisation
• Introduction of online casino licensing

Markets on file under this authority