Online Poker has become extremely popular around the world in recent years. In fact, it is now the preferred medium of playing poker for many amateurs and professionals alike. Contrary to popular belief, It is actually California which is considered the center of the poker universe and not Nevada. The reason that California has gained this reputation is due the fact that several high stakes games and tournaments are frequently hosted within the state throughout the year.

However, there seems to be a lot of confusion amongst online poker players and online gamblers in general about the legal status of online gambling in the Golden state.

Licensed offshore poker rooms are the primary legal option for CA players looking to enjoy legal online poker gambling for real money and until California reaches a legislative consensus regarding state-regulated online poker platforms, licensed offshore poker remains a stable and legal alternative.

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4. Although online Internet poker will likely not be regulated by the state of California for another year, players are free to sign up with over a dozen real-money poker websites offering real money poker gambling to United States citizens, which is great news for poker gambling fans California online poker legislative history.

In this article, we will take a deeper dive into the murky waters that is – the legislation that governs online casinos in California, and shed some much-needed light on it.

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Contents

• Legislation governing online poker in California
• Essentials of playing online poker in California

Most recent gambling news from the state of California

More often than not, the state of California makes it into gambling headlines as a result of some form of delay or disagreement with regards to the state attempting to regulate online poker and other forms of online gambling. It has been a decade and the state has remained highly indecisive about whether they are pro and anti and it seems like they just keep turning the tables back and forth periodically. Even though some progress has been made in recent years to thwart away opposition of horse racing, there is still a certain piece of legislation called the bad actor clause which is still in place and does not seem to budge or compromise even a bit.

In February 2018, Assemblyman Reggie Jones Sawyer proposed a bill in favor of online gambling, but faced such fierce opposition from proponents of the bad actor clause that the bill went down in flames, figuratively, just a few months after it was proposed.

Legislation governing online poker in California

The path to legalization of online gambling and online poker in California has been a long, winding one with a lot of pitfalls. As per Assemblyman Mike Gatto, Californian legislators come up with an average of 2 – 6 gambling bills almost every year since 2008 and not a single one of them has come anywhere close to being passed or enforced.

Eventually, after a final push in 2016 for the long pending legalization of online gambling in California, the matter has now been left hanging in limbo. Yes, it is basically on an indefinite hold at this point in time. In fact, the journey has been so upsetting and the source of such strong frustration that several lawmakers and supporters of legalization have hung up their gloves and called it quits.

Bad Actors – what are they?

As per the law books, a “bad actor” is an online gambling establishment such as an online casino or poker room which continues or continued to accept real money bets from American players even after the passing of the UIGEA was enforced officially as of the last day of the year 2016. UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) basically outlaws American residents from playing real money gambling on the internet.

A quintessential example of a bad actor is PokerStars, a popular online poker room where even coveted professionals hold accounts and play frequently. Despite the passing of the UIGEA, PokerStars continued to accept American players into their online poker rooms and tournaments. They only stopped when the US Department of Justice seized the domain and charges were pressed against as many as 13 people from the company on the very same day. The same also happened with Full Tilt Poker and several other online poker rooms.

PokerStars settled the case by paying a staggering fine of over $700 million. PokerStars was then taken over by Rational Group for just under 5 billion US dollars and Rational Group tried every trick in the book to push for the legalization of this website throughout America. However, PokerStars remained blacklisted in the following states due to the bad actors clause in the state legislation of these states – Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware.

Essentials of playing online poker in California

If there is one thing you need to know about poker and online poker specifically in California, it is that it is highly popular throughout the state. This may be attributed to the many Californian players that are ranked highly in the world stage of poker, it can also be attributed to the fact that there is year-round poker action in the state’s card rooms, etc. Whatever the reason for the widespread popularity, California beats other states in terms of number of online poker players by a long mile.

Are Californians able to sign up at online poker sites?

In States like New York and Maryland, Poker players are being declined when they attempt to sign up and register accounts with online poker sites. However, thankfully, this is not the case with California. All the top, legal websites that have been ranked and reviewed on our websites recognize and accept players from California.

Therefore, signing up and playing online poker from California is absolutely fine. You just register an account, provide your details and you can get started playing in a matter of minutes.

Is online poker legal or not in California?

Provided that we are not legal counsellors, this is a question that we are technically not qualified to answer. Having said that, we have been in the industry for decades and so we can give you an insight into the current pragmatic status of online poker in California. Be it legal or not, it is certainly a gray area. However, what you should know and what will put things in perspective is that if you do choose to play online poker as a Californian resident, you are certainly not going to get into any legal trouble. Even if it is outlawed, it is just something that cannot be enforced and never has any criminal charge been pressed or action been taken against an individual player for online poker in the state of California.

Will California regulate online poker?

The fact is that the demand for online poker is humongous in California. Even though the legislation and the bad actor clause is providing some resistance, people are already playing online poker in California, in fact, hundreds of thousands of Californians play online poker.

Therefore, it is virtually impossible for the state to penalize them all. Eventually, the state is going to have to recognize the demand and realize that their prohibition is not going to work. The only thing that will work is to legalize online poker fully, regulate it, make is safe and fair for all Californians and even maybe generate some revenue by taxing the industry. Therefore, it is not a matter of whether California will regulate online poker, but a question of when California will regulate online poker.

Can You Play Online Poker in California?

Online poker in California seems to be a distant dream at best. For now, it seems that Golden State residents won’t be able to enjoy internet poker and online poker rooms any time soon. While some states have moved forward with legislation regarding online gambling, that hasn’t been the case for CA. And that obviously damages the prospect for online poker as well.

California has a complex gambling legislation, which makes matters worse. Attempts to launch California online gambling haven’t been successful at all. Not even the current boom inonline sports betting seems to have moved the pointers in the slightest. That being said, it is all down to financial implications. If, at some point,California online poker does make business sense, it will become available.

For now, California players can still enjoy one of the best markets in the US for live poker. While it isn’t possible toplay online poker for real money in the state, players can still do it the classic way. There is no shortage of good poker rooms in CA. It is possible to play some of the best poker games in California poker rooms, including Texas Hold’em, Omaha and Seven-card Stud, among many other popular poker games.

While there is no real money online poker in California, it is still possible to play other poker sites. Sweepstakes poker and social poker games are all legal alternatives in the state, and a decent workaround if you just want to play poker for fun. Sweepstakes poker sites, such as Global Poker, allow you to exchange the in-game currency for real cash and withdraw it.

California gambling introduction

Gambling in the US is always going to be a touchy subject. And it’s obviously no different for California. The Golden State’s gambling legislation has been in place since the 19th century. The California Penal Code prohibits casino games and house-banked games.

In 1933, a voter referendum legalized horse racing wagering. In 1976, California allowed charitable bingos, while the state lottery was approved in 1984.

While California gambling laws are quite strict, the prohibition does not apply to poker. Rather, California is arguably among the best in the US for poker players. In 1997, the Gambling Control Act established the creation of the California Gambling Control Commission, which, among other duties, became responsible for overseeing card rooms in the state.

Following the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, most online poker sites stopped taking in players from the US. Because of this, poker players in California aren’t able to play online for real money either.

California poker legality

Poker is legal to play in California. While the state legislation prohibits most forms of gambling, it does have some exceptions, especially when it comes to card games. Since poker doesn’t fall under the house-banked games prohibition, players in California are allowed to enjoy live poker.

However, the state has yet to make any advances on its online gambling legislation. Despite a recent boom in sports betting and other states making significant progress in moving forward with internet gambling, CA has been lagging behind.

For now, playing online poker in California for real money remains illegal. That doesn’t mean, however, that players in California aren’t allowed to play poker online. Sweepstakes poker and social poker games are still legal, although you won’t be able to play for real cash.

California poker rooms

Players still have plenty of options to play poker in California. The state gambling legislation does allow card rooms, so live poker is perfectly legal. According to the California Gambling Control Commission official website, the state currently has over 60 operating card rooms out of 86 active licenses. CA has 1,922 tables for card games, including poker.

The state gambling legislation allows tribal casinos as well as horse racing bets along with its card rooms and poker rooms. Commercial casinos are still prohibited, and so is real money gambling online. So, for now, California players will have to remain without a single online poker site.

California legal online poker

It isn’t possible to play real money online poker in California. However, there are some legal workarounds that do allow you to play online poker in the state. The options available are sweepstakes poker and social games.

Sweepstakes poker allows you to exchange its in-game currency for sweepstakes. You can then wager these and in turn exchange them for cash later. While you won’t be playing for real cash, this is as close as it gets. Social poker games, on the other hand do not pay any cash whatsoever. You will be playing for an in-game currency that has no use outside of the poker site.

California Online Poker and Penal Code

With no viable options to play poker online for money in California, some players might consider offshore poker sites as an alternative. Playing online at an offshore poker site is considered a grey area.

While not exactly illegal, there is no way of telling if it is considered legal either. You most likely won’t get into legal trouble for playing at an offshore online poker site. However, it’s highly advisable that you avoid doing so, even though some of these sites do accept U.S. online poker players.

Offshore online poker sites aren’t regulated by US gambling authorities. Instead, these sites operate under licenses issued by other international gambling authorities. These licenses don’t have many requirements, and regulation isn’t as strict. Additionally, these sites offer very little player protection. Some of them might be reliable, but it can also be a bit of a dice roll. One way or the other, you are better off avoiding offshore online poker sites.

California online poker sites

California does not have a poker site to play online for real cash yet. Since the state has yet to make any significant inroads regarding online gaming, the situation will likely remain this way in the near future.

Well-known online real money poker sites such as PokerStars, PartyPoker, 888Poker and WSOP aren’t allowed to offer their games in California.

A good legal alternative to play online poker in California is Global Poker. This sweepstakes poker site accepts players from CA. Since you won’t be playing for actual cash, it does not infringe the state gambling legislation. At the same time, sweepstakes poker is the closest you can get to playing online poker for real cash in California.

Global Poker in California

Global Poker is a sweepstakes poker site available for players in California. You won’t be playing for real cash, however. Rather, you are allowed to buy in-game coins and exchange them for sweep coins. Global Poker allows you to redeem sweep coins for real cash after wagering them in the games. Since it doesn’t directly involve cash wagering, Global Poker is legal to play in California.

Poker games available to play at Global Poker include Texas Hold’em and Omaha. It also offers Sit ‘n Go tournaments and Bounty tournaments. Players in CA can also enjoy online poker with social gambling apps. These do not involve real cash either, although it isn’t possible to redeem the in-game currency for actual money.

Poker games that involve any form of money wagering, such as cash games, aren’t available to play in California.

California Real Money Online Poker Sites

California Poker Games

Real Poker Site

Players in CA won’t have any trouble finding card rooms, which are legal under the state gambling regulation. Poker rooms in California offer many popular poker game variants, including Hold’em, Omaha, Card-Stud and many others.

Online poker isn’t available to play for actual money, so cash games aren’t available for players in California. For now, sweepstakes poker and social gaming apps remain the only way for players to enjoy online poker. California does not have any plans yet to introduce online poker for real cash in the state.

Land-based operators aren’t allowed to offer online poker. California poker players will likely have to wait for a while longer before the state legislators actually make some progress with online gaming regulations. If it does happen eventually, California players will be able to enjoy all the popular online poker game variants. Poker sites such as PokerStars, PartyPoker, 888Poker and WSOP offer Hold’em, No-Limit Hold’em, Pot-Limit Hold’em, Omaha variants, Seven-card Stud and many other poker games.

California online gambling

There have been no significant inroads to legalize internet gambling in California yet. This means that state residents won’t be able to enjoy popular online poker operators such as PokerStars, PartyPoker, 888Poker or WSOP, all of which already offer their services in other states.

A recent attempt by the Lipay Nation of Santa Ysabel’s Desert Rose to run an online bingo site did not succeed. The online bingo site had a complicated workaround ato offer legal online gaming, but the 9th Circuit of Court Appeals ultimately ruled against it. Since the precedent has already been set, it looks like online gaming in California will remain in the limbo for a bit longer.

California Poker Sites FAQ

How To Play Real Money Poker Online In California

How to play online poker in California?

For now, the only ways available to play poker online in California are sweepstakes poker sites and social gaming. While you likely won’t get into legal trouble for playing at offshore sites, you are better off avoiding this option. There is no current precedent to penalize players for this, but offshore sites aren’t regulated by U.S. authorities. Therefore, they have no requirements to follow U.S. legislation. Additionally, they operate under relatively lax regulations and a good number of them do not offer enough protection to the players.

What California poker sites take PayPal?

Online poker isn’t legal in California, so there are no internet poker operators in the state. In other words, you can’t use PayPal to deposit since online poker isn’t legalized in the state. Live poker at card rooms is the only way to play poker for actual cash in California.

What poker sites are legal in California?

The only sites legal in California are sweepstakes poker and social gaming. These are legal alternatives for online poker in California, although they do not offer real cash wagering. California does not allow any forms of online gambling, and that also applies for online poker.

Where can you play online poker in California?

The online poker alternatives available in California are sweepstakes poker, such as Global Poker, and social gaming. These do not offer real money poker games however, since California does not allow online gambling. Cash games and other poker games that involve any form of money wagering aren’t available for players in California.

Is PokerStars legal in California?

No, PokerStars isn’t legal in California. The state does not allow internet gambling, which means that popular online poker operators such as PokerStars, PartyPoker, 888poker and WSOP aren’t allowed to offer their games in California territory.

Is it legal to play online poker in the US?

Yes, online poker is legal to play in the US. You can play for real cash if you are at least 21 years old and physically located in one of the states that allow online poker. These states are Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania.

Can I gamble online in California?

No, you cannot gamble online in California. The state gambling legislation does not allow internet gambling, so it isn’t possible to bet on sports, play any online casino games or any online poker games. However, California does allow tribal casinos and land-based card rooms.

Is playing poker for money illegal in California?

No, playing poker for money isn’t illegal in California, since poker is one of the gambling options available in the state. California card rooms aren’t allowed to offer house-banked games. This is not the case for poker, which means that you can play poker games for money in CA.

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What kind of gambling is legal in California?

Real Money Online Poker California

The forms of legal gambling in California are tribal casinos, card rooms, charitable gambling and horse racing wagering. The state does not allow any forms of internet gambling, however. Commercial casinos and sports betting are also illegal in California.