Indian Online Gaming

The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 prohibits online money games throughout India, regardless of whether they involve chance, skill or a combination of the two. It also prohibits their advertising, promotion and facilitation, and bars banks and payment systems from processing related transactions. Implementing rules took effect on May 1, 2026.

Sikkim is India's only state offering online gambling licenses and its first state to pass online gaming legislation, which it did in 2008. The state legalized betting on sports in early 2010 and received nine Letters of Intent (LOIs) from operators seeking licensing. Sikkim previously authorized online gaming and sports betting under state legislation, but the federal Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 now prohibits online money games nationwide.

Earlier case law treated some skill-based games differently from games of chance, but the 2025 federal law now prohibits online money games regardless of whether they are classified as games of skill or chance.

Under the 2025 Act, unlawful online money-gaming platforms may be blocked under the Information Technology Act, 2000, and banks and payment systems are prohibited from processing related transactions.

In 2015, Sikkim attempted to pass legislation that would allow the state to offer online gambling throughout India, but the Union Home Ministry denied it.

In September 2020, the Andhra Pradesh government decided to ban online games such as rummy and poker “for the protection of the youth.” The decision came after the government banned over 100 Chinese mobile apps amidst ongoing tension between India and China.

In Nagaland, the Prohibition of Gambling Act prohibits all online gambling where chance outweighs skill, but offered licenses to companies that want to offer online games of skill, including poker and rummy. The federal 2025 online-gaming law now prohibits online money games, including stake-based poker and rummy, nationwide.

In April 2022, the Meghalaya Government announced it planned to establish the framework to transform the state into a hub for legalized gambling, online gaming, and online betting, and subsequently enacted legislation to license both games of skill and chance. The federal 2025 law now prohibits online money games nationwide.

Online Gaming Properties Operating in India