Unsurprisingly, gambling of any kind is unequivocally illegal, and that includes UAE waters and airspace. However, if you’re a bit of a numbskull and are willing to try and stretch the boundaries of the blanket ban on gambling – and stupid enough not to fear the retribution – you may be tempted by an online casino. Gambling remains illegal in Dubai just as it remains illegal in every other part of the United Arab Emirates and – despite some suggestions to the contrary a couple of years ago – things are likely to stay that way. However, in the United Arab Emirates, you’ll find that the law is much stricter, and anyone found gambling can be imprisoned for up to two years. Another country where gambling is illegal is Singapore. This country has banned all forms of online gambling under the Singapore Remote Gambling Act unless an exemption has been made. Gambling is strictly illegal in Qatar as it is an Islamic country. Although the residents of Qatar are fond of different types of sports, ranging from camel racing to cricket, placing bets on any sport is illegal as per the country’s gambling laws. Residents and tourists will not find any legal poker clubs, bingo halls, or casinos in Qatar.
It is not a good idea to go gambling in the United Arab Emirates. As is typical of strictly Islamic countries, the U.A.E. prohibits all forms of gambling. Not only is it illegal to start any sort of gambling business, but it is also illegal to participate in games of chance. This means you may not play casino games, bet on sports or play poker.
Of course, some betting websites accept customers from the U.A.E. despite the country’s strong stance against gaming. If you’re willing to take the risk, there are a few sites that will accept your business. Just make sure you don’t get caught.
Best UAE Betting Sites
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None of these UAE betting sites openly advertise or go out of their way to attract customers from the country, but they will allow you to sign up for an account. You can then deposit via a range of deposit methods that may or may not work. You’ll need a bank account or access to certain types of prepaid gift cards to participate.
The Emirati dirham is not accepted by default but you may still deposit. What will happen is the gaming site will automatically exchange your currency for some other currency, usually euros or British pounds. Your account will be held in that currency until you withdraw. At that point, the money is converted back into dirhams and sent back to your bank account.
How real is the risk?
This is a hard question to answer definitively because the United Arab Emirates do not publish statistics on gambling-related arrests. The government actively censors the internet and supposedly blocks access to known gaming sites. What we don’t know is if there’s actually someone who monitors the internet and bank accounts to see if illegal online gambling is taking place.
On the other hand, we do know that the UAE has a cyber-crime unit that monitors the internet for violations of certain laws. Numerous people have been arrested by Emirati authorities for activities that take place online. The only news releases I can find relate to political activity (such as Tweeting about politics).
So in summary, we know the authorities have the capability and the will to monitor the internet and take action against political dissidents. We also know the authorities routinely crack down on illegal gambling dens in the real world. What’s unclear is whether or not any of this extends to online gambling in the UAE.
Gambling Laws in the UAE
Gambling is clearly outlawed in the United Arab Emirates. This goes for locals as well as tourists in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and everywhere else across the country. The UAE penal code defines gambling as:
“Gambling is a game in which each party agrees that if he loses, he will pay the party who wins the game an amount of money or anything else agreed upon.”
This leaves no wiggle room for any form of betting. If there is money or anything else of value on the line, it’s classified as gambling. The punishment for being caught is as follows:
“Whoever gambles shall be punished by detention for a maximum period of two years or by a fine not exceeding twenty thousand Dirhams. A penalty of detention or a fine shall be inflicted if the crime occurs in a public place, a place open to the public, or in a place or house prepared for gambling.”
We can safely assume that this code extends to the internet due to the government internet censorship program including gambling-related websites. No specific gaming sites are mentioned on the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) website, but it does have a category for “content that is relevant to gambling.”
Dubai is famous for being home to the super-rich and most extravagant personalities of the Middle East. However, while extravagance is commonly associated with gambling in other parts of the world, with the world’s flashiest casinos filled with the rich and famous rubbing elbows and flaunting their luck on the spin, this is not the case in the United Arab Emirates.
Despite horse and camel racing being great tourist activities, and recognised sporting events in the nation, most betting on these events is outlawed. Dubai even has a place on Formula One’s world championship calendar, with the Yas Marina Circuit, having decided some championships in the past. Yet, while many fans across the world will be betting on the race, those in the United Arab Emirates aren’t allowed.
Even if you’re the richest visitor in the world, you won’t be able to visit a casino in Dubai. However, if you want the casino experience, there may be a way. The world of online casino gaming is constantly improving and become more akin to the real experience. As shown by the Immersive Roulette review at https://www.roulettesites.org/games/immersive-roulette/, playing live dealer games like this roulette delivers the real-feel. So, are gambling games hosted elsewhere illegal to play in Dubai, or are all forms of gambling illegal?
The state of gambling law in the UAE
The United Arab Emirates is an Islamic nation, and its government and lawmakers adhere to Islamic law. While betting with real money does exist in tiny pockets across the country, it is disapproved of and outlawed for the most part. So, casinos and bookmakers do not formally exist in Dubai. It is illegal and seen as sinful to operate a gambling house, run gambling games, or incite others to partake in gambling.
As explained here, gambling is illegal across the UAE per Article 414 of the UAE Penal Code. The law stipulates that those found gambling can be punished with up to two years of imprisonment or a fine of up to Dhs20,000 (£4300), with a certainty of detention if the gambling takes place in a venue prepared for gambling, in a public place, or open to the public.
If caught running a gambling operation in the form of a venue or in a public place, a maximum period of ten years' imprisonment can be charged, per Article 415 of the UAE Penal Code. As for foreign gamblers, according to Article 121 of the UAE Penal Code, a custodial penalty can be changed by the court to deport the foreign offender from the nation.
Gambling Illegal Uae Law
Online gambling will be seen with the same disapproving gaze as land-based gambling of any form. It does, however, come under the ruling of a different set of laws, which have recently been updated and tightened.
Dubai has made a point of being as modern as possible in all areas, which includes its lawmaking. While many nations have struggled to adapt their gambling and internet laws to adapt to the ever-advancing world of online gambling, the United Arab Emirates have been quick to update where necessary.
Under Federal Law No. 5, the New Cyber Crime Law, Article 17 dictates that the statute punishes those who publish, produce, exploit, or transmit online gambling or any other material deemed to have the potential to prejudice public morals. Anyone found to supervise, establish, or operate gambling websites, can be punished by incarceration and a fine between Dhs250,000 (£53,800) and Dhs500,000 (£107,600).
In 2018, these laws were further amended to tighten the nation’s stance against what is deemed to be cybercrime in the United Arab Emirates. As shown in the article, changes were made to manage terror websites and those deemed to inciting acts against the interests of the UAE, which includes, under Article 42, the expulsion of non-citizens who break the laws.
As you can see, not only is gambling frowned upon in Dubai, it is also illegal. There are plenty of laws in place to punish those found to be running gambling operations or partaking in gambling activities in the nation. However, unless you play in a public place, it’d be very difficult to be caught and punished for playing online.
If you can gain access to an online casino that runs live casino games while you’re in Dubai – likely via a proxy or VPN – and keep it very much to yourself, you may be able to enjoy some Immersive Roulette while you visit. But then again, why risk it when there are all of these fantastic experiences to enjoy during your visit to Dubai; best save your online live casino play until you're back in the continent of its origins, Europe.
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Can I Gamble on My Trip to Dubai? April 12, 2019
2 comments
Is Gambling Illegal In Uae
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