Irish Gambling Laws Changes Detailed by Justice Minister

We have already reported on the Irish plans to update their regulations regarding land-based and online casinos in Ireland, read more in (Government Wants Irish Online Casino Tax and Mega-Casinos Banned) article. Now the Justice Minister, Alan Shutter, speaks out on the details of proposals.

Irish gambling laws update will feature time delays on the use of bank cards for online sports betting, restrictions on advertising efforts, which promote gambling as trendy activity. Also online gaming operators will have to introduce “due diligence checks” or KYC minimums on players. This measure will also include a 12-hour delay between registration and actual gambling activity.

Players will also be required to come up with online identity or age confirmation, and possibly register for a PIN number. These changes are expected to help prevent underage gamblers from using their parent’ credit cards to gamble online.

Alan Shutter told Ireland gambling news that regulation changes are not expected before 2012. Updated gambling laws will regulate online gambling in Ireland for the first time through taxing and licensing.

Changes, concerning land-based casinos, will essentially mean no Las Vegas style establishments for Ireland. This means plans for a €460 million project in Tipperary have to be abandoned.

It’s not yet know exactly how Irish online casinos and online sportsbooks will be regulated. Regulation of offshore-based operators of online sportsbooks in Ireland appears to be the most problematic issue.

Looking over to neighbors, we can see the British government introducing secondary licensing and taxation for their offshore gaming operators. This may be also the right choice for Ireland as well.

Other proposals of the new Irish gaming regulations focus on protecting the underage and problem gamblers. These measures will include staff training and strict regulations for licensed operators, as well as extreme penalties for unlicensed gaming operators, trying to reach Irish gamblers. Heavy fines and even prison terms for offending operators are also being discussed.