Casino Online Russia
Online gambling is completely banned in Russia, as is land based gambling in all but four regions of the country. It doesn’t appear that this is likely to change any time in the near future either, although it is believed many Russians. Bonuses for Russian Online Casino Players. Let’s face it, the first thing every casino gamer wants to know about is the bonus. Online casinos are overflowing with bonuses, and they are one of the greatest boons of Internet gambling. We have good news for you; Russian online casinos. Russian online gambling laws are strict, and as such, they limit players to a minimal number of Russia-accepted online casinos that are still open. However, with the online casinos ban opening doors to the illegal gambling business, players can find under-the-counter Russian casino. Russian online casinos can offer free spins as a standalone bonus or as part of another bonus such as welcome or deposit bonuses. The free spins allow you to play your favourite or a specific slot without.
Casino activity can be difficult to track throughout the world, as governments tend to have a say in the matter. In much of the world, and specifically much of Europe, gambling activity remains mostly legal, and accordingly, there are casinos operating openly.
In Russia, however, things are a little bit different. The country passed laws to outlaw casino gaming throughout the entire country, with the exclusion of four designated regions. This more or less killed the casino business in Russia just a few decades after it got off the ground.
The ban of casino play largely extends to the internet, which is significant particularly given Europe’s general acceptance of gambling sites. Online websites based in the UK allow users to discover the latest slot games on a consistent basis, with some titles having been adapted from real life slot machines and others being originally developed by online game makers. Other sites all over Europe host poker tournaments that most anyone can dive in on, provided they’re playing from a location where gambling activity is not outlawed. But in Russia, the goal appears to be to ban access to all of these kinds of online casinos, though the enforcement of this ban appears to be somewhat sporadic.
If you’re actually traveling to Russia, however, you probably want to know where you can enjoy a casino in person.
Are there any casinos in Moscow and St. Petersburg? And where is the best place to gamble in Russia? You’ll find out answers to these popular questions below.
You Won’t Find a Casino in Moscow & St. Petersburg
Yeah, the answer is very short – there is no place to gamble in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Maybe, things might change in the future, but as of now, casinos are not allowed in the two most popular Russian cities.
I feel like the Russian government is missing out on this one big time. Can you imagine how popular it would be if there was a nice big casino in Moscow?! And it would bring so much money for the city budget which they could spend on better things.
4 Places to Gamble in Russia
Anyway, where could you find a casino in Russia? Well, as I stated earlier, there are four designated regions the country where casino activity has remained legal: Altai Republic, Krasnodar Krai, Kaliningrad Oblast, and Primorsky Krai. Let’s find out a little bit more about these places.
- Altai Republic
Altai is a relatively small region in the Russian Siberia. It’s very well-known for its beautiful natural landmarks such as Lake Teletskoye, Mount Belukha, and Chulyshman Valley. In fact, it’s quite a nice destination for outdoor activities (hiking, bungee jumping, kayaking, horseback riding, etc.).
The Altai Republic of Russia is also home to the “Altai Palace Casino”, which is located in Gorno-Altaysk. The Altai Palace Casino was opened in 2014 and it offers to the visitor’s roulette tables, poker room, blackjack, baccarat, and more than 100 slots to play.
- Krasnodar Krai & Sochi
Krasnodar is perhaps a more traditionally appealing region for travelers as it is located in the European part of Russia. This gambling zone includes complex “Azov city” and the city of Sochi, which was made particularly famous when it hosted the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Sochi is the place where you’ll find the largest and the most popular casino in Russia – “Sochi Casino and Resort”. This is the newly built casino complex (it was opened in 2017) where you can play Blackjack, hold em poker, roulette or one of the 569 slots games.
“Sochi Casino and Resort” is the first casino in Sochi and there are plans to open more casinos in the city in the near future. In the next few years, Sochi will become one of the biggest gambling destinations in Europe!
- Kaliningrad Oblast
The Kaliningrad Oblast is effectively a Russian exclave located between Lithuania and Poland. As such it is arguably the most accessible part of Russia to travelers from Europe, though it tends to be a fairly light tourist area.
There are some intriguing old cathedrals and museums to enjoy, though the casino may just be the main attraction in the area. Known as “Sobranie Casino”, it’s the most popular casino in Kaliningrad Oblast with 350 gaming machines and several poker rooms, roulette and blackjack tables.
- Primorsky Krai
Primorsky Krai is about as far from Kaliningrad as it could possibly be, situated on the Pacific coast of Russia across from Japan. It’s mostly marked by the port city of Vladivostok, which is the biggest city in the region.
Vladivostok is also becoming something of a hub for gambling with some casinos built and more on the way. It could wind up being the main casino center in Russia, perhaps to rival some of the other casino hot spots in Southeast Asia, like Macau.
The only casino in Primorsky Krai at the moment is “Tigre de Cristal” which was opened in 2016. There are a few more casinos will be built in 2017-2020.
As you can see, there are quite a few casinos recently opened in Russia. You can’t gamble in Moscow and St. Petersburg, but there are casinos in Altai, Sochi, Kaliningrad, and Vladivostok. And who knows, maybe Russia will soon become a popular gambling destination among visitors from all over the world.
A common complaint relating to gambling legislation in many parts of the world is that it’s very confusing. There are several regions where the laws aren’t at all explicit, and the actual legality of gambling is something of a grey area.
This isn’t an issue in Russia, because their gambling laws are perfectly clear.
Online gambling is completely banned in Russia, as is land based gambling in all but four regions of the country. It doesn’t appear that this is likely to change any time in the near future either, although it is believed many Russians do continue to gamble online.
On this page, we take a look at how the gambling laws in Russia have changed over the years, and what they mean for anyone wanting to gamble in this country.
Brief History of Russian Gambling Laws
In 1928, when Russia was under Soviet Rule, all forms of gambling were banned. This was the case until the late 1980s. Slot machines were legalized in certain locations in 1988, and the gambling ban was lifted completely in the following year.
Land based casinos began to open, and by 2002 there were over 50 operating in Moscow alone.
As the popularity of gambling rose, and there was little regulation in place, the government took steps to control the activity. In 2006, they passed a law which prohibited all forms of online gambling.
Up until this point, the majority of gambling sites welcomed Russian customers. Many of them continued to do so, despite this legislation.
In 2009, under Vladimir Putin, land based gambling was restricted to four zones: Kaliningrad Oblast, Krasnador Krai, Altai Krai, and Primorsky Krai. Gambling in all other parts of the country was banned, which remains the case today.
A ruling from the Russian Supreme Court, in 2012, took the online gambling prohibition a step further. It stated that internet service providers must block sites operated by online gambling operators, with a view to making it impossible for Russians to access their services.
Internet providers had previously refused to do this, and had even won a lawsuit brought against them trying to enforce them, but this ruling threatened them with the loss of their licenses if they didn’t comply.
Later in 2012, the Roskomnadzor was made public. This is a list which details all the sites which are deemed illegal by the Russian government. It features a number of domains belonging to international gambling operators, including some of the biggest names.
As a result, some of these operators closed their virtual doors to Russian customers.
Some operators continued to provide their services to Russian customers though, and interestingly the government hasn’t yet taken steps to block financial transactions. They do seem to be committed to preventing online gambling in any way possible however.
The Roskomnadzor also contains sites that don’t directly provide gambling services; they provide information on gambling related topics as well.
The strict anti-gambling laws make it clear that you are breaking the law if you choose to gamble online. There’s some debate about whether poker falls under this law, due to the argument that it’s a game of skill rather than a game of chance, but casino games and sports betting certainly do.
With that being said, it appears unlikely that you are facing the prospect of prosecution if you do. While the government has the right to do so, their focus seems to be on going after those facilitating online gambling rather than those that actually partake in it.
Domestic operators are prohibited from offering online gambling services and, as we’ve mentioned, internet service providers are required to block gambling sites operated overseas.
It’s this last point that makes it difficult to gamble online from Russia, although not every single gambling site is on the blacklist that internet service providers have to block.
Changes to Russian Online Gambling Legislation
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We will report any changes to Russian online gambling legislation here, along with other updates which may affect online gamblers in Russia.