Australia‘s Senate has approved a rule to ban the use of credit cards for online gambling in the country.
This includes a near-total ban set to come into effect within six months.
The Interactive Gambling (Credit and Other Measures) Amendment Bill 2023 was introduced in September.
This legislation aims to ban credit cards and other credit-related products, as well as digital currencies, in Australia.
Australia’s House of Representatives approved the bill last month, allowing it to advance to the Senate.
The Senate also approved the legislation, paving the way for it to become law.
The country already prohibits credit card gambling in physical locations. This means the bill effectively bans credit card gambling across Australia.
What is on the credit card statement?
In addition to the ban on credit products, the bill presents several other related measures.
This includes fines of up to $154,000 for operators who fail to enforce the ban.
The bill also grants new powers to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).
These powers include enforcing new and existing criminal provisions and assuming responsibility for imposing sanctions on those who violate the prohibition.
Transition period
However, the bill will not come into force immediately.
The Australian government previously said it would run a six-month transition period to allow operators, payment providers and consumers to comply with the new rules.
This period will begin as soon as the project receives official approval.
The bill is the result of in-depth and broad consultation with many interested parties.
These include operators, harm reduction advocates, betting and lottery providers and bank payments organisations.
