Summary: It is illegal to gamble in Pakistan but are have no law or Acts to address gambling “online”. Thus this has not stopped the near 200 million Pakistanis from taking part in such activities. Recent studies have shown Pakistan to be the in the top 60 countries where betting activities occur even though it is not legal. As with India, the United States, and many other countries where betting on sports or casinos is illegal it continues to happen both underground and on the internet. I will now discuss various Acts and laws in Pakistan related to online gambling.
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Learn about why gambling in Pakistan is on the rise and the laws. You’ll also find out about the top 3 online casinos and the best aspects of why you should play there. Online Gambling Sites in Pakistan - September 2020 Displaying online gambling sites that accept players from Pakistan. To change country go to Country selector or to see all sites in our database visit Online Gambling Directory. No, online betting is not legal in Pakistan. It is explicitly written in law and if you are caught doing so you can risk getting fined up to 1000 PKR and receive a prison sentence. Up To £30 In Free Bets - New UK & Ireland customers only. Min Deposit: £10. First deposit matched up to £30. 1 x wagering at odds of 1.75+ to unlock Free Bet. Credit Is Online Gambling Legal In Pakistan Card, Debit Card & PayPal deposits only.
Pakistani Friendly Betting Sites
Is Online Gambling Legal In Pakistan Government
Restrictions for all offers may apply, see terms and conditions for details. Must be 18 years or older. Gamble responsibly.
Editor’s Notes
Bet365 is Pakistan friendly and is not blocked in most regions.
The Prevention of Gambling Act, 1977 – Pakistan
This Act was subject to cover the entire country of Pakistan, overiding the Baluchistan, West Pakistan, Punjab and Sindh Prevention of Gambling Ordinances of 1961. In this Act Pakistan made it illegal to own a gaming house, or be inside of gaming house where such person is placing wagers. The maximum penalty we took from the text of this Act was that you could be subject to a 500 – 1000 PKR. fine, and possibly up to one year in jail. There have been no documented cases of small scale gamblers being imprisoned. Also note, this Act seems to only cover “gaming houses” and does not address the activity of betting online. The internet did not exist publicly until 1992 which is why you will find many Laws outdated and not addressing online betting in Pakistan and many other countries. The full law can be read here (.pdf file)
The Baluchistan Prevention of Gambling Ordinance 1978
A year later, this Ordinance of Baluchistan was put in place. All areas within Baluchistan are under both the 1977 and 1978 Act. Within this law, the same principle laws apply but with harsher punishments for gambling or owning a gambling service. Under the Baluchistan Law, the maximum penalty for betting in a public place is up to 5,000 PKR. and up to three years imprisonment. For getting caught placing a bet in a private area, you may be subject to 7,000 PKR. fine or 5 years imprisonment. Prevention of Gambling Act, 1977
Are You at Risk?
Because we are not lawyers, we can not give you legal advice but instead our extensive research from the internet and local knowledge of Pakistan. When you bet at a local bookie, you are at a far greater risk than betting online. The involvement of a non-online bookie leaves a paper trail for the authorities to catch you ‘in the act’. But, to our knowledge there have not been any arrests for betting online although we have found several cases of betting rings being shut down within Pakistan.
Pakistan have taken some action against online betting sites by blocking IP addresses located within its territories. They haven’t really gone after gambling sites all that much, and many are not blocked. Most Pakistani gamblers choose to use either Skrill or credit cards to deposit money to bet online. Neteller and Paypal which are most often used in other countries such as India (Neteller) are banned in Pakistan.
Conclusion: Again, we can only tell you the facts about gambling in Pakistan. While still illegal to make bets on cricket, football, or other sports and casino games the activity continues on as a popular activity in the area. The sites mentioned on this webpage were found from local citizens of Pakistan to have success at betting at with no account closures. These citizens have taken into account their faith in Islam and the laws and decided it was okay to bet.
Translated in Urdu
LAHORE, Pakistan
Saad*, 18, was found hanging from a ceiling fan at his residence in southwestern Pakistan earlier this month.
His brother says the teenager committed suicide after missing a task on a famous online video game.
Over the next few days, three other youths reportedly committed suicide across the country for the same reason, triggering a debate on the psychological impact of the online games.
Following the incidents, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), a state-run regulatory authority, which was already pressured by a series of complaints from parents, slapped a ban on several online games. But the ban was quickly lifted as activists argued this was an attack on freedom of expression.
'I cannot face people to tell them why my brother did that,' he told Anadolu Agency.
'The whole family, and even his friends are in a state of shock. We never expected that kind of extreme step from a brilliant boy like him,' he said.
Investigators are trying to unlock the teenager's social media and email accounts in an attempt to ascertain circumstances that propelled him to take his own life.
'These types of violent games must be banned forever to save our children's lives. They are simply igniting violence among our youths,' he said.
Psychological impacts
The Pakistani authority has also issued a final warning to TikTok, a China-based video creator application.
Arthur Cassidy, an associate fellow of the British Psychological Society, said that cases of growing attachment to gaming devices among children, which subsequently leads to suicide or self-harm, are on the rise across the world.
Is Online Gambling Legal In Pakistan Newspapers
'Winning always attracts the children which manipulates them. The manufacturers of video games surely know how to make these apps addictive,' Cassidy told Anadolu Agency.
The World Health Organization has also classified the phenomenon as gaming disorder.
PTA spokesman Khurram Mehran said the decision to block the online games was taken after the authority received a number of complaints from different segments of the society against 'immoral, obscene, and vulgar content on these social media platforms'.
'The authority is not in the favor of blocking these platforms but we are abiding by the law to take any action against the content, which violates the community guidelines,' Mehran said.
Booming industry
Technology Minister Fawad Chaudhry was quick to jump into the fray urging the courts and the PTA to 'stay away from moral policing and [a] ban approach'.
'Such bans on internet-based apps will destroy Pakistan's tech industry and development of technology,' he said in a tweet.
Usama Khilji, a social media activist, said: 'What the government needs to do is provide a conducive environment for e-sports in Pakistan, which is a booming global industry and Pakistan has a lot of exceptional talent of gamers.'
The PTA has reported a 15% increase in internet usage since the government imposed a nationwide lockdown in March in an attempt to stem the spread of the coronavirus.
'People are watching online content more than ever as they have nothing to do during the lockdown. Online gaming platforms are even turning into international level tournaments with huge investments,' the PTA spokesman said.
Local e-sports organizers see the ban as a threat to the country's fledgling e-sports industry.
Hasnain Ali, founder of E-sports Pakistan, an online gaming platform, said: 'We have organized eight tournaments to date of online gaming and each tournament costs a total of 2.5 million rupees [$15,000] and the highest prize which a person won was 500,000 rupees [$3,000].'
'Banning these apps will simply destroy the already fragile tech industry. Many students play these tournaments and even bear their education expense with this,' Ali told Anadolu Agency.
This is not the first time social media applications have been banned in Pakistan. YouTube was blocked in Pakistan in 2008 for three years.
According to a US-based market intelligence firm Sensor Tower, TikTok was the second most downloaded app in Pakistan in 2019 with 16.3 million downloads between Jan. 1 and Nov. 16.
Sadaf Khan, co-founder of Media Matters for Democracy, said: 'Before banning these social media applications government should take this into consideration that not only individuals are making money from it but these are big contributors to the digital economy.'
Is Online Gambling Legal In Pakistan Today
* Name changed to protect privacy