Hello jacjon, Here are the areas in which it is legal: 1.

Liechtenstein -- only allows lotteries controlled by the national government 2. Gibraltar 3. Australia 4. Antigua and Barbuda 5. United Kingdom 6. Costa Rica 7. Luxembourg 8. Sweden 9. Estonia 10. Ireland 11. Russia 12. Macau 13. Singapore (does not have any current laws against it except in a public place) 14. Philippines 15. Italy 16. Austria 17. Belgium 18. Czech Republic 19. Denmark 20. Finland -- must be a Finnish resident with a Finnish bank account to play 21. Germany 22. Hungary 23. Ireland 24. Latvia 25. Lithuania 26. Malta 27. Poland 28. Slovakia 29. Slovenia 30. Spain 31. France does not allow companies within its borders, but its citizens can gamble from other companies internationally 32. Switzerland 33. Belize 34. Kalmykia 35. Panama 36. Comoros 37. Aland Islands 38. Swaziland 39. Seychelles 40. St. Kitts and Nevis 41. Venezuela 42. Mauritius 43. Kahnawake (Indian territory in Quebec) 44. Netherlands Antilles 45. Northern Territory (Australia) 46. Isle of Man 47. Alderney 48. Vanuatu

49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75. 76. 77. 78. 79. 80. 81. 82. 83.

Dominica Dominican Republic Norfolk Island South Africa Australian Capital Territory Grand River Mohock Lands (Indian territory in Canada) Jamaica Tanzania New South Wales (Australia) Queensland (Australia) Tasmania (Australia) Victoria (Australia) Western Australia (Australia) Hutt River Province Principality Maharashta (India) Nepal North Korea Solomon Islands South Korea Taiwan Vietnam Grenada St. Vincent US Virgin Islands Colombia Iceland Jersey Monaco Norway Sark Serbia Israel Argentina Brazil Chile

Hello jacjon, Thank you for your interesting question. I have listed for you, above, the countries in the world in which online gambling is legal in some form. I did find two more countries in which online gambling is legal: 84. Myanmar 85. Aruba There are many more countries in the world in which there are no laws governing online gambling (or even gambling, for that matter) at all. Here is a list of specific countries in which online gambling, or gambling in general, has been specifically outlawed: 1. 2. 3. 4. United States China Hong Kong Cyprus

5. Greece 6. The Netherlands 7. Portugal 8. New Zealand 9. The Bahamas 10. South Korea 11. Indonesia 12. Saudi Arabia 13. Pakistan 14. Iran 15. Afghanistan 16. Turkey 17. Thailand 18. Libya 19. Sudan 20. Nigeria 21. Algeria 22. Japan 23. Taiwan 24. Dubai 25. Vietnam 26. Bahrain 27. Brunei 28. Jordan Norway and Israel have been thinking of instituting a ban, and Australia has banned future companies from forming or locating there and their residents from gambling. Some companies locate there under provincial rules; however, they can't market to Australian residents. Of the above countries, mainland China and Cyprus are rethinking their laws and are contemplating changing them so as to make gambling legal. In Canada, it is illegal to set up a site but individual users' laws are left to the provinces. Some provinces and tribes have become places for online gambling websites to locate themselves, as you can see in places such as the Kahnawake tribe in the above listing. In France, online companies cannot be located in the country, but French people are allowed to bet on sites. Notably, "sharia" law from the Koran states that gambling is unacceptable. Muslim countries that practice sharia law as part of their government, therefore, do not allow gambling of any circumstances. I have included these countries above. Turkey is officially a secular government but has taken actions against gamblers; however, if they join the European Union, they may have to loosen these laws a bit. In any case, they are certainly not as strict as many other Islamic nations are. Overall, there are many different levels of legality involved with these countries-- some outlaw sites while allowing users to gamble, while some encourage sites but outlaw gamblers. The laws are often contradictory and sometimes don't make sense. Many times, it's simply a legal gray area where there is no direct legislation. In most

countries, it is not that it is outlawed; it's simply that there are no rules to govern it. Sources: CBC News "Online Gambling" http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/gambling/onlinegambling.html cybercrime.gov http://www.cybercrime.gov/kvd0698.htm "Korea struggles to fight illegal gambling" http://www.playnoevil.com/serendipity/index.php?/archives/786-Koreastruggles-to-fight-illegal-gambling.html Harvard Business Week "How To Do Business in Islamic Countries" http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/2745.html Center for Religious Freedom "Sharia in Kabul?" http://www.freedomhouse.org/religion/country/afghanistan/Sharia%20in %20Kabul.htm Wikipedia Entry-- Sharia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharia Online Casino News "Online Gambling Comes under Fire in Turkey" http://www.onlinecasinonews.com/20050313/online_gambling_comes_under_fire_in_bij.aspx Asia Times "Virtual gambling in Myanmar's drug country" http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/HH26Ae01.html "Gambling with Thailand" Google Cache-http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:YOBouSACM8J:pioneer.netserv.chula.ac.th/~ppasuk/gamblingwiththailand.doc+thailand+gam bling&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=2&client=firefox-a Internatioinal Herald-Tribune "Online gambling: New arena for U.S.-European conflict" http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/04/24/business/gamble25.php New York Times "Hot Technology for Chilly Streets in Estonia" December 2005 http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/13/technology/13skype.html? ei=5088&en=06f1efc1e11e7049&ex=1292130000 World Casino Directory-- Russia http://www.worldcasinodirectory.com/russian-federation

Tangent E-Zine-- "Macau Booms" http://www.hoteltravel.com/tangent/022006/tangent_4th_article.htm CasinoMeister-- "SINGAPORE COULD BE A MAJOR ONLINE CASINO HUB" http://www.casinomeister.com/news/july2006/online_casino_news4/SINGAPORECOULD-BE-A-MAJOR-ONLINE-CASINO-HUB.html Nation News http://www.nationnews.com/editorial/299570371505449.php Casino City Jurisdictions Page 1: http://online.casinocity.com/jurisdictions/Index.cfm Jurisdictions Page 2: http://online.casinocity.com/jurisdictions/Index.cfm?Start=16 Jurisdictions Page 3: http://online.casinocity.com/jurisdictions/Index.cfm?Start=31 Isle of Man-http://online.casinocity.com/jurisdictions/jurisdiction.cfm?Id=21 Alderney-http://online.casinocity.com/jurisdictions/jurisdiction.cfm?Id=17 CasinoZone Jurisdictions-Antigua and Barbuda-http://www.casinozone.com/directory/jurisdictions/details.asp?iid=5 Antigua and Barbuda Division of Gaming http://www.antiguagaming.gov.ag/ Wharton School "The Odds Are Good That Online Gambling Will Continue to Thrive -- But at What Price?" http://www.whartonsp.com/articles/article.asp?p=402222&rl=1 Isle of Man Government Gambling http://www.gov.im/gambling/ History of Vietnam online gambling http://www.gamblinglicenses.com/LicencesDatabaseDetail.cfm? Licenses_ID=105&Region=Asia%20Pacific Gambling Jurisdictions http://www.gamblinglicenses.com/licensesDatabase.cfm Sark Islandshttp://www.gamblinglicenses.com/LicencesDatabaseDetail.cfm? Licenses_ID=126&Region=Europe Comoros-http://www.gamblinglicenses.com/LicencesDatabaseDetail.cfm? Licenses_ID=28&Region=Africa South Africa-http://www.gamblinglicenses.com/LicencesDatabaseDetail.cfm? Licenses_ID=78&Region=Africa Online Jurisdictions http://www.winneronline.com/articles/september2006/onlinegamblingjurisdiction

s-2.htm "Gambling and the Law" http://www.gamblingandthelaw.com/antigua.html Parliament of Australia "Gambling Policy and Regulation" http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/SP/gambling_ebrief.htm Wikipedia entry-- List of Countries http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries Search terms: online gambling illegal which countries countries prohibit gambling countries + "illegal gambling" gambling muslim countries sharia laws gambling sharia wikipedia afghanistan sharia law thailand gambling algeria gambling japan gambling outlawed european union online gambling estonia online gambling macau online gambling singapore online gambling online gaming jurisdictions jamaica online gambling online gambling jurisdictions vietnam online gambling israel online gambling argentina internet gaming australia internet gambling aruba online gambling bahrain gambling brunei gambling jordan gambling sharia If you need any additional clarification of my answer before rating, let me know and I'll be happy to assist you further. --keystroke-ga Request for Answer Clarification by jacjon-ga on 13 Oct 2006 09:03 PDT Dear Keystroke: Your research reveals (85) countries where online gambling is legal. However, according to the London Stock Exchange Newsroom/The Exchange Welcome , 30th January 2001: "Sportingbet.com PLC (UK)was launched in October, 1998 and now boasts over 50,000 in over 103 countries." In your opinion, has the London Stock Exchange AND Sportingbet.com overstated their "information" in the IPO or have we fell short of 18 countries? Sincerly, Jacjon

10/13/05 Request for Answer Clarification by jacjon-ga on 13 Oct 2006 09:07 PDT Dear Keystroke: Your research reveals (85) countries where online gambling is legal. However, according to the London Stock Exchange Newsroom/The Exchange Welcome , 30th January 2001: "Sportingbet.com PLC (UK)was launched in October, 1998 and now boasts over 50,000 customers in over 103 countries." In your opinion, has the London Stock Exchange AND Sportingbet.com overstated their "information" in the IPO or have we fell short by 18 countries? Sincerly, Jacjon 10/13/05 Clarification of Answer by keystroke-ga on 13 Oct 2006 10:56 PDT Hello jacjon, Their information is probably not incorrect. However, these are the countries in which online gambling has been specifically allowed or in which an online gambling company can locate itself. There are many countries that have never legislated the matter. For instance, if I lived in Iran and had access to the Internet, there would be nothing stopping me from going online and gambling to my heart's desire even though it is completely illegal to gamble in Iran. There is no real way that you could get caught unless the gambling site or your ISP turned you in for it, which they wouldn't because they want your money. So that is probably what accounts for the difference. Companies are often prone to exaggerating their customer base, and it is possible that this was done. It's quite likely, however, that they had customers in China or South Korea even though this is illegal in those people's countries and therefore counted those as countries in which they did business. In the end, it doesn't matter how many countries there are in which it is legal for Sportingbet. In any case, it was really only one country that mattered and that gave Sportingbet most of its money. And that country's business has for the time being been completely severed from Sportingbet. --keystroke-ga

jacjon-ga rated this answer:

and gave an additional tip of: $25.00

Comments
Subject: Re: ONLINE GAMBLING From: keystroke-ga on 18 Oct 2006 10:23 PDT Thanks, jacjon, for the five stars and the tip! :) Subject: Re: ONLINE GAMBLING From: mauritsbruggink-ga on 26 Oct 2006 02:33 PDT The answers by keystroke-ga are incorrect.

1. The countries in which online gambling is legal is incomplete. It is legal to gamble online in for example, Japan, France, Hong Kong, etc. What perhaps keystroke means is that it is illegal to gamble on foreign websites in those countries! 2. The list of countries listed by keystroke as having a prohibition on online gambling is therefore equally wrong. Another example, the US for example hosts many betting websites for horseracing and they are perfectly legal. 3. People in France are allowed to bet on sites?claims keystroke. That is simply wrong. People living in France are only allowed to bet on the website of the horseracing pool. 4. Finally, Sportingbet?s can claim it takes bets from as many countries as it does because, as keystroke would agree, it can get away with it due to the general lack of enforcement in all those countries where their activity is forbidden Until these operators travel to the US or France off course where they are put in jail. Liike many other operators, the largest gambling operator, Betfair, recommends its employees not to travel to certain places. 5. Suggestion to yahoo advisors: stick to what is legal and let individuals decide on whether they what to break the law or not and keep silence if you do not know the subject. Have a nice day Maurits Bruggink Subject: Re: ONLINE GAMBLING From: keystroke-ga on 28 Oct 2006 07:23 PDT The answers are not incorrect. It is not legal to gamble in Hong Kong; it is legal to bet on the Jockey Club, which is one business. Another business could not come and set up there, and residents would be arrested if it is found they are betting on anything besides the Jockey Club. This is why I did not include them. Technically yes, it may be legal to bet on one site, but that does not mean that "online gambling is legal" there. It is not. The same goes for France. I have a friend who runs a French casino and he was run out of France on threat of prosecution. It is certainly not legal to set up a gambling operation there except for the state-owned companies, because the government wants the money from those. A private company certainly cannot set up shop and take bets from punters. It is not just illegal to gamble on foreign websites in those countries-- it is illegal to gamble on anything but the state-owned websites. That's a bit different. However, because this is certainly not enforced (yet) and I know that the French do gamble on many online gambling websites, I have included them as being able to gamble. My friend was French and his website was French, but he could not set up there. Now, he is set up somewhere else but has a large French base of customers anyway. I included France on the list of sites where people can bet on sites because I know that many French people do and it is not really enforced that they cannot bet on sites; the casinos are just not allowed to have a physical presence there and that IS enforced. I did not include the US because this is not a list of countries in which betting on horseracing is legal. It is not legal to do any kind of gambling you please in the US, only the kind of gambling that horse

racing lobbyists wish for Americans to do, and that does not mean that online gambling is legal there. I did not include in my answer certain countries/ municipalities where only one form of online gambling, such as horse racing, is allowed. I included the ones that were open to most types of gambling. Have a nice day as well. --keystroke-ga

The Pros and Cons of Gambling

Gambling is one of the most prominent kinds of relaxation and entertainment nowadays. Some people were hooked or attracted in gambling activities because they experience a different feeling of excitement every time they bet in any gambling game. There are also few people who engage in gambling activities just for the sake of having fun. Due to the prevalence of gambling in most nations, local and national authorities developed laws and legislation about gambling. Most of the laws developed by most countries legalize the establishment of gambling places. The implementation of the laws was criticized by some religious groups. They argue that gambling establishments have social consequences that may threaten the stability of the society. The legalization of gambling has positive as well as negative effects on communities. Local and national governments believe that legalized gambling can contribute to the development of the economy of a community.Gambling establishments are proven to open other employment opportunities as well as improve the tourism rate in a nation. The presence of gambling establishments is also beneficial to people because they contribute to the revenues of governments which allow them to implement other governmental activities such as constructing new hospitals and schools. On the other hand, the legalization of gambling may also be harmful to the society. It may appear that the government has tolerated the increasing population of gamblers who experience financial problems in a community. Yet, if people will just observe clearly, the legalization of gambling may not cause any harm, it is the gamblers themselves who are to be blame of their sufferings. A gambler's lack of self-discipline may be the source of one's financial problems. Problem gambling is referred to the behavior of gamblers to still bet in any event that have uncertain outcomes even if they have the urge to stop it. The prevalence of cases of problem gambling led to the development of the common perception that gambling has adverse social consequences. The outcome of gambling depends on one's disposition and behavior towards the act of betting. The ability of a person to put an end to a winning streak in any gambling game may led the individual to experience financial success. However, if gamblers failed to control themselves and still continue to bet even if they know that they will be in great financial trouble, then, some people may have the right to oppose the legalization of gambling in the society.