Cyprus Internet Gambling Law Bad

It is allowed in Atlantic City to wager at a land-based casinos but not at online venues. In Florida, patrons can play blackjack at a casino, except craps and roulette which could not be played. Kentucky permits horse race betting, but disallows casinos. We’ve only named some of the double standards that exist nowadays whilst dealing with gambling issues.

Cyprus is on the verge of joining other duplicitous jurisdictions that offer some variants of gambling but not others. Deputy Government Spokesman, Christos Christofides recently announced a new piece of legislation that will outlaw gambling online, whilst sports betting and lottery gambling will stay legal under the new law.

“The above is yet another example on how governments take common sense out of the gambling issue,” said Gaming Analyst Steve Schwartz. “Virtually every government strives to distinguish between the various forms of gambling. In reality gambling is gambling and no format of gambling is worse than the other.”

The Cyprus government instigated severe penalties for those who transgress the country’s proposed gambling laws. Any party found guilty of taking part in internet gambling, may face a prison sentence of up to five years. Sports bettors, however, have no problem when it comes to their gambling exploits. Talk about ambiguity!

“I place wagers on a number of sport betting sites and I like to play poker too,” Michael Conchitto, said. “As it stands I will only be able to do one legally? It’s preposterous! What’s to follow, are they going to tell me I can use one set of toothpaste instead of the other?”

Conchitto’s frustration is a feeling that Americans had to deal with for years since the inception of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) in 2006. In the United States, sports betting in some states are legal, whilst in others it’s illegal. Furthermore, casinos are legal in most states, although they’re governed by different regulations.

All is not doom and gloom in Cyprus, sports books and lottery retailers’ tax rate will drop from its present rate of ten percent to only three percent.