News and media releases: legislation & regulation

The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation has welcomed the report of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs inquiry into online gambling and its impacts on those experiencing gambling harm.

New national rules have commenced that reduce the customer verification period for new online wagering (betting) consumers from 90 days to a maximum of 14 days.

Recent changes now enable Victorian hotels and clubs to provide cashless gaming to their customers.

The Department of Justice and Regulation is seeking the community's views on current and future keno licensing arrangements in Victoria.

The Environment and Communications References Committee of the Australian Senate has completed its inquiry into the extent to which gaming micro-transactions for chance-based items, sometimes referred to as 'loot boxes', may be harmful.

The Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation has updated its Entitlements Register to show hotel and club venue operators allocated entitlements to operate gaming machines from August 2022

Victoria has passed legislation to introduce a point of consumption tax (POCT) for wagering and sports betting from 1 January 2019. The Victorian POCT will be payable by wagering and betting operators on the revenue derived from wagers and bets of customers located in Victoria.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has approved new rules restricting gambling advertising during live sport streamed online.

The Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation has released the Sixth Review of the Casino Operator and Licence.

The Department of Justice and Regulation has released a discussion paper to seek views from industry and the community on current and future wagering and betting licensing arrangements in Victoria.

In this edition Louise discusses: National Reconciliation Week, gambling harm in Aboriginal communities, Love The Game, Victorian Population Gambling and Health Study, The Foundation’s third biennial conference, Gambling harm: Taking action for change, Inside Gambling.

In this edition Louise discusses: CALD prevention grants, the International Gambling Conference hosted in New Zealand, The Foundation's public awareness campaign 'Harm starts earlier than you think', Communications Legislation Amendment Bill submission, Love The Game.

Amendments to the Gambling Regulation Act 2003 passed by the Victorian Parliament late last year include changes to the amount of money accessible by EFTPOS in hotels and clubs operating pokies and the actions staff are required to take when customers wish to withdraw cash.

In December 2017, the Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee commenced an inquiry on the Communications Legislation Amendment (Online Content Services and Other Measures) Bill 2017.

Legislative amendments to commence on 17 February 2018 will ban online wagering providers, such as online bookmakers, from offering credit to Australian punters. This includes offering punters a deferred settlement facility.

The Minister for Gaming and Liquor Regulation, Marlene Kairouz, has announced new measures to be introduced to reduce the harms from gambling.

The Minister for Gaming and Liquor Regulation, Marlene Kairouz, has announced new laws that will ban betting advertising on roads, public transport, and within 150 metres of all Victorian schools.

Commonwealth and state and territory gambling ministers recently met, for the third time, to establish a strong, consistent and best practice National Consumer Protection Framework for online wagering.

The Victorian government has announced further details of the post-2022 gaming machine arrangements, including the allocation and pricing of future gaming machine entitlements, and new tax arrangements to apply from August 2022.

On 27 April 2017, the Australian Government reached an in-principle agreement with state and territory gambling ministers to introduce reforms to provide stronger consumer protections for online gambling.