How to Open an Online Casino in Argentina? Laws Defined

How to Launch an Online Casino Argentina

The biggest players in the market consider Argentina to be one of the most yielding markets in the future of Latin American online casinos. The pandemic has witnessed a complete shutdown from March 2020. However, the gambling services were back in business by the end of 2020. Since then the country has made vigorous efforts to decriminalize online casinos in Argentina.

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The federal tax was increased from 2% to 5% to keep up with the economic recovery after covid-19, in 2021.

Online Casino In Argentina Attaining Legal Status

Online casino legislation in Argentina was non-existent till 2008 and when they were introduced, it was criminalized. It was only legalized after the disagreements were settled and the government found a middle ground.

Although legalized, the online gaming regulations in Argentina are very strict with a limited scope for promoting their services within the country. The biggest takeaway from the article is that online gaming in Argentina is proscribed unless exclusively permitted by the 24 provinces collectively.

Can Argentinians Play with Offshore Gaming Operators Legally?

The country is taking baby steps to effectively regulate online gaming and help domestic and global brands thrive within the region. But the power struggle is only feeding the profit of the offshore gambling operators as they are widely accepting Argentinian punters.

Online gambling is not an offense anymore in Argentina and in fact, offshore operators can offer their services to Argentinian citizens ethically. However, according to the gambling law in Argentina, local casinos operating online without a permit would be considered a punishable offense. But this condition leads the population to try out overseas casinos which might not come with the most reliable infrastructure.

Some of these entities in the online casino market are without recognition and proper certification which often leads enthusiastic players into the trap of fraudulent gambling websites.

How Betting Laws and Regulations Argentina Evolved?

To give you a little back story, the gambling laws in Argentina were imposed back in 1999. Through a formal decree, the decisions related to gambling services were handed over to the respective states. In 2006, the government divided the right to gambling laws into 23 provinces apart from lotteries and sports betting.

In 2018, the Latin American gambling scene was facing a lot of hindrance due to the unalignment among the rest of the 23 Latin American provinces. Due to the high density of population, the industry was kept under check and some limitations were imposed to safeguard the citizens.

Online casino in Argentina

Current Decision makers of iGaming Regulations in Argentina

The online gambling regulations in Argentina are mentioned below:

Regulatory figures	Provinces
Lotería de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires SE	Buenos Aires City
Instituto Provincial de Lotería y Casinos de la Provincia de Buenos Aires	Buenos Aires Province
Caja de Prestaciones Sociales de la Provincia de Catamarca	Catamarca Province
Lotería Chaqueña	Province of Chaco
Instituto de Asistencia Social de Chubut	Province of Chubut
Lotería de la Provincia de Córdoba SE	Province of Córdoba
Instituto de Lotería y Casinos de Corrientes	Province of Corrientes
Instituto de Lotería y Casinos de Corrientes	Province of Corrientes
Instituto de Ayuda Financiera a la Acción Social	Province of Entre Ríos
Instituto de Asistencia Social	Province of Formosa
Instituto Provincial de Juegos de Azar de Jujuy	Province of Jujuy
Instituto de Seguridad Social de La Pampa	Province of La Pampa
Administración General de Juegos de Azar de La Rioja	Province of La Rioja
Instituto Provincial de Juegos y Casinos de la Provincia de Mendoza	Province of Mendoza
Instituto Provincial de Loterías y Casinos de la Provincia de Misiones SE	Province of Misiones
Instituto Provincial de Juegos de Azar de Neuquén	Province of Neuquén
Lotería para Obras de Acción Social de la Provincia de Rio Negro	Province of Río Negro
Ente Regulador del Juego de Azar de la Provincia de Salta	Province of Salta
Caja de Acción Social de San Juan	Province of San Juan
Caja Social y Financiera de la Provincia de San Luis	Province of San Luis
Lotería para Obras de Acción Social de la Provincia de Santa Cruz	Province of Santa Cruz
Caja de Asistencia Social de la Provincia de Santa Fe	Province of Santa Fe
Caja Social de Santiago del Estero	Province of Santiago del Estero
Instituto Provincial de Regulación de Apuestas de Tierra del Fuego	Province of Tierra del Fuego
Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur	Province of Tierra del Fuego
Caja Popular de Ahorros de la Provincia de Tucumán	Province of Tucumán

Cumulatively there are 3 authorities in power to make any decision related to online gambling regulations:

One of the provincial regulatory bodies mentioned in the table,
Asociación de Loterías, Quinielas y Casinos Estatales de Argentina (ALEA) — a government organization that looks after several gambling issues
Dirección General de Juegos de Casino y Máquinas Tragamonedas from the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism

Present Situation— Online Casino In Argentina

Currently, online gambling in Argentina is legalized but restricted under various conditions. These licenses are awarded based on auctions and hence the competition is cutthroat among the top companies trying to apply for it. Only about 950 platforms worldwide provide iGaming services in Argentina.

Only around 350 of them are aligned with the needs of every Argentinian, including currency acceptance, locally available payment gateways and digital wallets, language particular UX, etc.

But can we expect to witness a silver lining anytime soon?

The Argentinian Government is in the process of cleaning up a mess that it has currently been in for the past few decades. It’s better to not expect anything major to happen rapidly but they are surely on the lookout to improve the situation for the natives.

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How To Open An Online Casino In Argentina? Beginners Guide

PieGaming Staff

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