Is Online Gambling Legal in Singapore? The Gambling Control Act 2022 Explained

Desk research, checked 2 October 2026. This guide quotes the Gambling Control Act 2022 as published on Singapore Statutes Online (the version current on 2 October 2026), the Gambling Regulatory Authority’s own pages, Singapore Pools’ and DBS’s published FAQs, and the websites of ScamShield, the Singapore Police Force, NCPG, Samaritans of Singapore and IRAS. It is general information, not legal advice.

Only with Singapore Pools. Singapore’s Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA) says Singapore Pools (Private) Limited is “the only operator licensed by GRA to provide remote gambling services”. Gambling online with any other operator is an offence for a person in Singapore under section 20 of the Gambling Control Act 2022, with a fine of up to S$10,000, up to six months’ jail, or both.

Many offshore casino sites accept Singapore players, quote licences from other countries and show PayNow at their cashiers. None of that makes them legal here. The Act reaches gambling run from outside Singapore for people physically present in Singapore, “whether or not it is lawful in the place where it is conducted”.

This guide covers what the Act says about players and operators, who is licensed, the age limits and exclusion orders, how websites and payments are blocked, where PayNow and your bank fit in, what happened to the Remote Gambling Act 2014, and where to get help.

The short answer

What the Gambling Control Act 2022 says

The Gambling Control Act 2022 is Singapore’s main law on gambling outside the casinos. Its long title describes it as consolidating the law on suppressing unlawful gambling and regulating authorised gambling services outside casinos, and it repeals the Betting Act 1960, the Common Gaming Houses Act 1961, the Private Lotteries Act 2011 and the Remote Gambling Act 2014. Most of it, including every offence discussed below, came into force on 1 August 2022.

Offshore sites are covered: section 17

Section 17 extends the Act to betting, games of chance and lotteries that people physically present in Singapore take part in, or can take part in, even when they are run from outside Singapore, “whether or not it is lawful in the place where it is conducted”. That is why a licence from another country, however genuine, is not a Singapore licence.

The operators: section 18

Section 18(1) says no one may conduct a betting operation, gaming or a lottery unless they hold a licence or class licence under the Act, work for or act as an agent of such a licensee, are exempt, or hold a casino licence for gambling inside a casino. Running an unlicensed service is punished far more heavily than using one: in most cases a fine of up to S$500,000 plus a jail term of up to seven years, and up to S$700,000 and ten years for a repeat offender. The Act says the offender “shall also be punished with imprisonment”, so the jail term is not optional.

The players: section 20

Section 20(1) is the offence that matters to readers. An individual commits it by gambling with someone who is providing a gambling service in breach of section 18(1), where the individual “knows, or ought reasonably to have known” that the service is being provided in breach of it. GRA publishes on its own website that Singapore Pools is the only operator it licenses for remote gambling.

The penalty, in section 20(3), is a fine of up to S$10,000, up to six months’ jail, or both, and section 20(4) makes it an arrestable offence. GRA puts it plainly: “It is also an offence for any person in Singapore to participate in unlicensed remote gambling activities.” Section 20(2) adds a second offence for gambling at a place in Singapore that the person knows, or ought reasonably to have known, is an unlawful gambling place.

What about a game with friends?

The Act’s exception for social gambling is narrow. Section 12 covers non-remote gambling in someone’s home in Singapore, among family members or people who know each other personally, that is substantially spontaneous (even if it happens regularly), is not run for anyone else’s gain or in the course of a business, and where the only way to profit is by winning. Because it is limited to non-remote gambling, the exception does not extend to playing online.

Who is licensed: GRA and Singapore Pools

On its page about unlawful remote gambling, GRA states: “It is unlawful for any person to provide unlicensed remote gambling services in or from Singapore, or from outside Singapore to persons situated in Singapore. Singapore Pools (Private) Limited is the only operator licensed by GRA to provide remote gambling services.”

GRA says it renewed Singapore Pools’ licence to conduct betting operations, gaming and lotteries under section 54 of the Act for five years from 25 October 2025. Singapore Pools’ website lists three product areas, Lottery (TOTO, 4D and Singapore Sweep), Sports and Horse Racing, and no casino games. In other words, no online casino is licensed in Singapore.

Singapore Pools’ account FAQ sets out who can open an account. You must:

• be a Singapore citizen or permanent resident, or a foreigner residing in Singapore with a valid FIN;
• be at least 21 years of age;
• provide a local mobile number and a Singapore residential address;
• not be subject to certain exclusion orders under the Casino Control Act.

Each customer can have only one account. Its website adds that its game rules bar anyone under 18 from placing a bet or claiming a winning ticket prize. Our Singapore Pools review covers its products, limits and app in more detail, and Singapore Pools also heads our Singapore sports betting guide.

Because it is the only licensed option, our Singapore online casino ranking puts Singapore Pools first. The offshore casinos listed there are not licensed in Singapore, and each of their cards says so, with the same offence warning.

What else is legal

• The two casinos. Gambling inside Singapore’s two licensed casinos, at Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa, is legal for adults aged 21 and over. Under section 116 of the Casino Control Act 2006, citizens and permanent residents pay an entry levy of S$150 for 24 hours or S$3,000 for a year’s membership. Our guide to Singapore’s land-based casinos has the details.
• Singapore Pools outlets. Lottery tickets and bets placed in person with Singapore Pools are licensed. The minimum age is 18 for most of them, and 21 at venues that show a live broadcast of the sporting event being bet on (section 13).
• Social gambling at home, within the limits of section 12 described above.

Age limits and exclusion orders

Section 13 sets the minimum age for remote gambling at 21. Under section 31, an underaged person who gambles commits an offence, with a fine of up to S$1,500. A person who gambles in breach of an exclusion order or ban that applies to them faces a fine of up to S$10,000, up to 12 months’ jail, or both. Section 31(6) makes both strict-liability offences, so it does not need to be shown that the person meant to break the rule.

GRA says the National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) “is also empowered to issue exclusion orders for gaming machine rooms and general remote gambling under the Gambling Control Act 2022”, and that under section 79 the Commissioner of Police may ban a person from engaging in general remote gambling by written notice.

NCPG’s self-exclusion covers the casinos (Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands), jackpot machine rooms at private clubs and Singapore Pools online betting. You apply with Singpass. NCPG says applicants must be at least 21, and must stay on the exclusion for at least a year before applying to revoke it. Family members can apply for a Family Exclusion Order against someone whose gambling has caused serious harm to the family, and NCPG may make a provisional order while the application is decided if it is satisfied that further harm is imminent.

How Singapore blocks gambling websites and payments

Two sections of the Act deal with remote gambling directly.

• Access blocking (section 117). On the authority’s direction, the IMDA orders internet service providers to disable access to an online location that provides unlicensed remote gambling, or that is or may be used by people in Singapore to gamble in breach of section 20(1). It also covers online locations that invite young people to gamble or that publish unlawful remote gambling advertising. A provider that does not comply faces a fine of up to S$20,000 for each day, up to S$500,000 for each offence.
• Payment blocking (section 118). Where the authority is satisfied that a person is taking part, or has taken part, in unlawful remote gambling, it can have the Monetary Authority of Singapore order a financial institution such as a bank, or itself order a financial transaction provider, to stop transactions. The Act’s definition of unlawful remote gambling includes a player’s offence under section 20(1). An order can bar the institution from making or accepting electronic transfers to or from that person, from accepting credit extended to them or cheques drawn by or in their favour, or require it to block payments coded as gambling. An institution that ignores an order faces a fine of up to S$20,000 for each transaction it fails to block.

The Act gives these powers to “the Authority”, meaning GRA. GRA’s own page says that “with effect from 1 January 2025, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) has taken over the functions of blocking access to unlawful remote gambling services, the advertising of such services and payment transactions”, and that anyone who comes across unlawful remote gambling websites, apps or advertisements can report them to SPF through I-Witness. SPF’s I-Witness page notes that information sent that way is not a police report.

In practice, a gambling site that will not load in Singapore, or a payment your bank refuses, may be one of these orders at work.

PayNow, your bank and gambling sites

PayNow is a way to move money between bank accounts, not a gambling licence. A PayNow QR code on a casino’s cashier page tells you nothing about whether the casino is licensed.

Singapore Pools is the only licensed PayNow option

Singapore Pools’ deposits and withdrawals FAQ, read on 2 October 2026, says:

What your bank says about PayNow transfers

DBS’s PayNow FAQ says your PayNow limit is the same as your daily local interbank transfer limit, which you can change in iBanking. Transfers up to a cumulative S$1,000 a day need no iBanking token; above that, you must sign with your token to add the recipient as a payee. Before you confirm a transfer, the app shows part of the recipient’s name, and DBS asks you to check it.

For a transfer sent to the wrong PayNow number by mistake, DBS tells customers to call its DBS/POSB hotline immediately, to lodge a police report, and to be responsive to police investigations. It says the bank “will do its best to help recover the funds for you”, but warns that the money may not be recovered. A payment you made deliberately to a gambling site is not a mistaken transfer. Other banks set their own limits and procedures, so check your own bank’s pages.

Warning signs at a “PayNow casino” cashier

1. You are paying a person, not a company. A personal mobile number, or a different QR code each time, means your money goes to an individual. If the name your banking app shows before you confirm is a stranger’s, stop.
2. Top-ups through an “agent” on WhatsApp or Telegram, with a screenshot of your transfer as “proof”.
3. A fee, “tax” or “verification deposit” before a withdrawal. Paying more to release your own money is a classic advance-fee pattern.
4. A “free credit” link that asks for a PayNow “activation” payment. A credit you have to pay for is not free. Our page on free credit offers in Singapore covers fake claim links and the “release fee” trick.
5. A licence claim with no link to the regulator’s own register. And even a genuine foreign licence is not a Singapore licence.

What happened to the Remote Gambling Act 2014?

It no longer exists. Section 139 of the Gambling Control Act 2022 repealed the Betting Act 1960, the Common Gaming Houses Act 1961 and the Remote Gambling Act 2014, with effect from 1 August 2022. Pages that still cite the Remote Gambling Act are out of date: the player offence is now section 20 of the 2022 Act, and website and payment blocking sit in sections 117 and 118.

If you have lost money to a gambling site

1. Call your bank at once, on the number in its official app or on its own website. DBS lists 1800 339 6963 for personal banking. Have the date, the amount and the payee’s PayNow name or number ready.
2. Call the ScamShield Helpline on 1799, open 24 hours a day (+65 6869 1799 from overseas). ScamShield says the helpline can direct scam victims to their bank, with direct connections to seven banks, but it cannot make a police report for you.
3. Lodge a police report online through the Singapore Police Force’s e-services, or call 999 in an emergency. An I-Witness tip is not a police report.
4. Keep the evidence: screenshots of the site, the cashier page, chats and your bank’s confirmation.
5. Do not pay anyone who offers to recover the money for a fee.

This page is general information, not legal advice. If you are worried about your own legal position, speak to a Singapore-qualified lawyer.

Where to get help

If gambling has stopped being entertainment, for you or for someone close to you, help is a phone call away. This content is for readers aged 18 and over.

• NCPG Helpline: 1800-6-668-668, with webchat, every day from 8am to 11pm.
• Samaritans of Singapore: 1767, 24 hours a day, or its 24-hour CareText service on WhatsApp at 9151 1767.
• Gambling Therapy (gamblingtherapy.org): free online advice and support worldwide, a service of Gordon Moody.
• Exclusion: apply to NCPG with Singpass to exclude yourself from the casinos, jackpot machine rooms and Singapore Pools online betting. NCPG can help with an application on 6354 8154.

Our responsible gambling guide for Singapore covers warning signs, limits and other practical steps.

Frequently asked questions

Is online gambling legal in Singapore?

Only with Singapore Pools. GRA says Singapore Pools is the only operator it licenses to provide remote gambling services, and gambling with any other online operator is an offence for a person in Singapore under section 20 of the Gambling Control Act 2022: a fine of up to S$10,000, up to six months’ jail, or both.

Is it illegal to use an offshore online casino from Singapore?

Yes. The Act applies to gambling offered from outside Singapore to people physically present in Singapore, whether or not it is lawful where it is run, so a foreign licence does not make an offshore casino legal here. Section 20 makes it an offence to gamble with an unlicensed provider where you know, or ought reasonably to have known, that it is unlicensed.

Does using a VPN make offshore gambling legal?

No. A VPN changes where your connection appears to come from, not where you are. GRA’s statement covers “any person in Singapore”, and the Act applies to gambling by people physically present in Singapore. A VPN does not give the operator a licence it does not have, and this guide does not recommend using one.

Who can open a Singapore Pools account?

According to Singapore Pools, you must be a Singapore citizen or permanent resident, or a foreigner residing in Singapore with a valid FIN; be at least 21; have a local mobile number and a Singapore residential address; and not be subject to certain casino exclusion orders. Each customer can have only one account.

Can I deposit with PayNow at an online casino in Singapore?

Singapore Pools is the only licensed online operator, and its FAQ says deposits are made by bank link or PayNow QR from a personal bank account in your own name, with no transaction fee. A PayNow QR code on any other gambling site does not make that site licensed, and section 118 of the Act allows payments linked to unlawful remote gambling to be blocked.

Are gambling winnings taxed in Singapore?

IRAS lists winnings such as Toto and 4D among income that is not taxable, saying “Winnings received from betting or lottery are not taxable.” A tax rule does not change the offence of gambling with an unlicensed online operator.

Is the Remote Gambling Act 2014 still in force?

No. Section 139 of the Gambling Control Act 2022 repealed it, with effect from 1 August 2022. The offence for players is now in section 20 of the 2022 Act, and website and payment blocking are in sections 117 and 118.

What should I do if a gambling site has taken my money?

Contact your bank at once, call the ScamShield Helpline on 1799 (24 hours a day), and lodge a police report online through the Singapore Police Force’s e-services; ScamShield cannot make the report for you. Keep screenshots of the site, your chats and your payments, and do not pay anyone who offers to recover the money for a fee.

Sources

• Singapore Statutes Online — Gambling Control Act 2022, version current on 2 October 2026: long title and commencement; sections 12, 13, 17, 18, 20, 31, 116, 117, 118 and 139. Casino Control Act 2006, section 116 (entry levy). Read 2 October 2026.
• Gambling Regulatory Authority — Unlawful Remote Gambling Activities; Exclusion Order & Visit Limits by NCPG & Others; Betting Operations, Lottery and Game of Chance (Singapore Pools licence renewal). Read 2 October 2026.
• Singapore Pools — Deposits and withdrawals FAQ; Account registration FAQ; its home page (product areas and age rules). Read 2 October 2026.
• DBS — PayNow FAQ (limits, recipient name check, mistaken transfers) and Latest scams & frauds (personal banking hotline). Read 2 October 2026.
• ScamShield — ScamShield Helpline (1799). Singapore Police Force — I-Witness and E-services. Read 2 October 2026.
• National Council on Problem Gambling — Helpline and webchat, Apply Self-Exclusion and Apply Family Exclusion Order (ncpg.org.sg now opens on the Ministry of Social and Family Development’s site). Read 2 October 2026.
• Samaritans of Singapore — sos.org.sg (1767 hotline and CareText). Gambling Therapy — gamblingtherapy.org. Read 2 October 2026.
• IRAS — What is taxable, what is not. Read 2 October 2026.