Next Monday is the day when the online gambling in Singapore can be criminalized. The so called Remote Gambling Bill will be discussed by the Parliament authorities on the next available sitting and in case it is accepted, the Singapore players will experience serious restrictions, regardless of their whereabouts.
The new law intends prohibiting Singaporean players make payments to online casinos and even denying access to online gambling websites. If necessary, the credit cards of the customers will also be blocked. Any other forms of gaming such as gambling via smartphones, tablets or any other device shall also be considered illegal.
Although the new law will be valid for all the Singaporean players and providers of gambling activities, no matter if the operator is located in the country or not, there will be some exceptions. According to the Parliament, the online gambling providers whose aim is raising money for charity or important to the local communities events via offering various games, will not be affected by the Remote Gambling Bill. However, they will be asked to prove that they have never broken the local online gambling laws and regulations before.
There is one more important aspect of the online gambling prohibition in Singapore. If the law passes, it will restrict the popularization of the online gambling activities by banning any form of advertising and promoting.
For the time being, the Singapore laws are really strict and to a certain extent, that’s understandable. The authorities want to protect the customers from dishonest practices. However, there is another side of the coin. Nowadays, the technology is advancing with a tremendous speed. We are living in the era of the Internet, which makes the Singaporean online gambling rules and regulations outdated.
When asked for details about the Remote Gambling Bill, the Ministry of Home Affairs of MHA commented that the main reason for suggesting such a law is achieving their goal – protecting the vulnerable part of the society – namely the teenagers, from the dangers the online gambling exposes them to. The press statement also says that a considerable research, concerning the Hong Kong, France and Norway online gambling laws was conducted. In addition, a month and a half for consultation and a feedback was allowed before putting forward the Remote Gambling Bill.
Gerald Singham, who is part of National Council on Problem Gambling, supports the Bill. That became clear from the comment he made: “By introducing the Remote Gambling Bill, what the Government is trying to move punters towards the authorised operators. By doing this, we are hoping to implement social safeguards, through these authorised operators who have been exempted.”
Bearing the harsh Singaporean laws in mind, the probability to pass the Remote Gambling Bill are pretty high.
