American Samoa, an unincorporated territory of the United States in the South Pacific, has one of the most restrictive gambling regimes under the US flag. Territorial criminal law makes gambling “in any form” an offence, with a single exception for the occasional playing of bingo and raffles whose proceeds go to religious, educational or charitable purposes. There is no casino, no lottery, no licensed sports betting and no licensing system for online gambling. Federal law adds further layers: the Johnson Act bans gambling devices in US possessions, and American Samoa, unlike Guam or Puerto Rico, cannot opt out of it. This guide sets out how the framework developed, how it is applied, the position of players, taxation, the limited support available for gambling harm, and the status of reform proposals.
Key points
- Gambling is a criminal offence under Title 46, Chapter 43 of the American Samoa Code Annotated (A.S.C.A. §§ 46.4301–46.4303); it is classed as a class A misdemeanour.
- The only lawful gambling is “occasional” bingo and raffles run for religious, educational or charitable purposes; in practice, bingo has been held far more often than “occasionally”.
- In 2000 the High Court of American Samoa held that poker machines are illegal under the federal Johnson Act and that a territorial licensing scheme for them was void.
- No online gambling operator is or can be licensed in the territory. Placing internet bets is unlawful under territorial law and probably also engages the federal Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act.
- Proposals for casinos (from 1999) and for a government lottery have been raised but none has been enacted; no gambling reform was found to be pending in 2023–2026.
Last reviewed: 13 October 2026.
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Historical development
American Samoa became a US territory by deeds of cession beginning in 1900, and its people are US nationals rather than US citizens. The territory adopted its own constitution in 1967 (US Department of the Interior, Office of Insular Affairs). For the first half of the twentieth century it was administered by the US Navy, and the earliest gambling rule dates from that period.
The most detailed account of the subject is Robert M. Jarvis’s article Taaloga Faitupe: Gambling in American Samoa, published in the UCLA Pacific Basin Law Journal (vol. 41, 2024), which describes itself as the first detailed description of gambling in the territory; much of the history below draws on it. According to Jarvis, Commander Edmund B. Underwood issued Regulation 1-1903 on 21 March 1903, banning all gambling on pain of a fine of up to $250 and six months’ imprisonment. In 1961 the law was relaxed to permit “occasional” bingo and raffles where the profits went to charitable, educational or religious purposes. The present provisions were enacted by Public Law 16-43 in 1979 and replaced the earlier section 521 of the American Samoa Code (1973).
During the 1990s electronic poker machines spread through the territory, and the legislature, the Fono, enacted a licensing and taxation scheme for them. Police raids seized machines in 1998 and 1999, and litigation followed (see below). In 1999 a member of the House of Representatives introduced a casino bill but later withdrew his support after concluding that casinos would harm Samoan culture; according to a source quoted by Jarvis, later proposals for land-based and cruise-ship casinos have all been rejected. A 2006 House bill to delete the word “occasional” from the bingo exception, which would have allowed bingo at any time, also failed.
Legal framework
Territorial law: Title 46, Chapter 43
Gambling is dealt with in Chapter 43 of Title 46 (Criminal Justice) of the American Samoa Code Annotated, which the American Samoa Bar Association publishes online (A.S.C.A. Title 46, Chapter 43 – Gambling). It has three sections:
- § 46.4301 (Definition) provides that a person commits the crime of gambling if he “engages in gambling in any form with cards, dice, or other implements” (A.S.C.A. § 46.4301; enacted by PL 16-43 in 1979). The section also reaches gambling devices on which anything of value is wagered, the keeping of gambling premises or equipment, and knowingly allowing property to be used for gambling.
- § 46.4302 (Exception for bingo and raffles) states that “Nothing contained in this chapter prohibits the occasional playing of bingo or the selling of chances for the raffling of an item of value when the profits from the bingo game or raffle are used for religious, educational or charitable purposes” (as quoted by Jarvis).
- § 46.4303 (Misdemeanor) states: “Gambling is a class A misdemeanor.”
A misdemeanour is the less serious of the two main categories of criminal offence in US-derived legal systems. Under the general fines provision, A.S.C.A. § 46.2102, a class A misdemeanour may attract a fine of up to $1,000 or, at the court’s discretion, up to twice the gain derived from the offence, capped at $20,000 (Jarvis, p. 150). The sentencing chapters of Title 46 also provide for imprisonment (A.S.C.A. index by title and chapter); the precise maximum term for a class A misdemeanour could not be confirmed from the official text during this review.
The legislature has no separate gaming statute, gaming commission or licensing law for casinos, lotteries or betting. Nor does any other title of the Code contain a chapter on lotteries, gaming or bingo licensing: the Bar Association’s index lists Chapter 43 as the only gambling chapter.
Federal law
As an unincorporated territory, American Samoa is subject to those federal statutes that are expressed to apply to it. Three are relevant to gambling.
- The Johnson Act (Gambling Devices Act) of 1951. 15 U.S.C. § 1175(a) makes it unlawful “to manufacture, recondition, repair, sell, transport, possess, or use any gambling device … in any possession of the United States”. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1171, Guam, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands are defined as “States” and so fall outside this direct ban, while every other possession, including American Samoa, is a “possession of the United States” to which it applies without any local opt-out. Violations carry a fine of up to $5,000, up to two years’ imprisonment, or both (15 U.S.C. § 1176).
- The Wire Act. 18 U.S.C. § 1084 penalises anyone “engaged in the business of betting or wagering” who knowingly uses a wire communication facility to transmit bets or wagering information across state or national borders. Its definition of “State” expressly includes “a commonwealth, territory or possession of the United States”.
- The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act 2006 (UIGEA). 31 U.S.C. § 5362 defines “unlawful Internet gambling” as placing, receiving or knowingly transmitting a bet over the internet where the bet is unlawful under applicable federal or state law, and defines “State” to include “any commonwealth, territory, or other possession of the United States”. Because betting is unlawful under A.S.C.A. § 46.4301, online wagers placed from American Samoa fall within this definition. UIGEA forbids betting businesses to knowingly accept payments in connection with unlawful internet gambling (31 U.S.C. § 5363) and requires designated payment systems to adopt policies to identify and block such transactions (31 U.S.C. § 5364).
Since the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, federal law has also prohibited cockfighting in all US territories; a 2019 bill to reverse the ban, co-sponsored by the territorial delegates including American Samoa’s, did not change this (Jarvis).
Regulator and licensing model
American Samoa follows a prohibition model: the law does not license commercial gambling at all, so there is no gambling regulator in the usual sense. Enforcement is a matter for the territorial police and prosecutors, and gambling cases come before the District Court and the High Court of American Samoa. Jarvis places the territory among only four US jurisdictions, with Guam, Hawaii and Utah, that ban all forms of commercial gambling.
Bingo and raffles
The bingo exception is administered in practice through permits. A Samoa News report from the COVID-19 emergency indicates that bingo permits were dealt with by the Department of Commerce, notes that the law allows “occasional” bingo run by non-profit groups, and records that the Fono and others had questioned that term because games were held on most days of the week except Sundays, mostly run by large church denominations (Samoa News, Gov’s office clarifies to public — bingo banned during pandemic). The same report records that the Governor directed that the issuing of permits stop during the pandemic and that bingo be treated as banned, while stating that he believed all bingo games should have a permit.
Government-owned premises have also been rented for bingo. The American Samoa Administrative Code (2024 edition), Title 6, Chapter 2 (§ 6.0201), sets a fee of $200 for each bingo game held at the Market Place in Fagatogo, raised from $100 by Rule 9-83 with effect from 1 July 1983 (ASAC Title 6, Revenue).
The courts have read the exception strictly. In a 1995 decision (28 A.S.R.2d 195, CA No. 13-92), the High Court held that loan-making with bingo profits was not a religious, educational or charitable purpose within the proviso, observing in a footnote that “There does not seem to be anything ‘occasional’ about bingo games” as they were then being run (High Court of American Samoa, 28 A.S.R.2d 195 (1995)). Jarvis also discusses an unreported 2015 High Court decision (CA No. 33-11, 13 July 2015) that refused to enforce a bank loan used to renovate a bingo hall because the loan formed part of an illegal gambling arrangement, and quotes a local attorney’s view that the “occasional” part of the law “is not enforced at all”.
Gaming machines
The status of poker machines was settled in litigation brought by private plaintiffs against the government in 1999. On 31 January 2000 the High Court denied the plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment, noting that “the law regarding the legality of poker machines in the territory is anything but clear” (High Court of American Samoa, 4 A.S.R.3d 65 (2000)). In its decision of 20 June 2000, however, the court held that the territory “constitutes a possession for purposes of the Johnson Act”, that it was “abundantly clear that these machines are illegal in the territory under federal law”, and that the Fono’s licensing scheme at A.S.C.A. § 11.0601 et seq. was “preempted by the Johnson Act, and declared null and void to the extent of its repugnancy” (High Court of American Samoa, 4 A.S.R.3d 184 (2000)). The court also treated A.S.C.A. § 46.4301 as an independent ground of illegality. Slot and poker machines therefore cannot lawfully be licensed in American Samoa without an Act of Congress.
Online gambling and enforcement
No territorial law authorises any form of remote gambling, and no body has power to license an online casino, sportsbook or lottery. Any online gambling offered to people in American Samoa is therefore unlicensed in the territory. Jarvis notes that internet betting is illegal under territorial law but that “such gambling is available at offshore betting sites”, and that it “likely violates” UIGEA as well.
Unlike some jurisdictions, American Samoa has no statutory system for blocking, meaning orders requiring internet service providers or payment institutions to cut off access to gambling sites. No territorial blocklist or advertising code for gambling was identified. The practical federal tool is UIGEA, whose payment-blocking duties fall on designated payment systems and whose prohibition is directed at betting businesses rather than individual bettors.
Recorded enforcement against gambling generally is rare. Jarvis, drawing on the Department of Commerce’s statistical yearbooks, reports one gambling arrest, in 2008, during 2008–2018 and none in 2019–2021, so that the last recorded gambling arrest was in 2008. No enforcement action against an online gambling operator or against an individual online player in American Samoa was found.
Position of players
The offence in A.S.C.A. § 46.4301 is framed against any person who “engages in gambling in any form”. It is not limited to organisers, so a player who stakes money on cards, dice, machines or bets, outside the bingo and raffle exception, commits a class A misdemeanour under territorial law. The same applies in principle to bets placed online, as Jarvis concludes. A player who uses an offshore website is also within the federal definition of “unlawful Internet gambling”, although UIGEA’s obligations fall on gambling businesses and payment providers rather than on the bettor.
In practice, no prosecution of an individual for online gambling was found, and the arrest statistics cited above suggest that gambling offences are seldom prosecuted. Low enforcement does not change the legal position: playing online casino games or betting with any operator from American Samoa remains unlawful. Players also have no local regulator or dispute-resolution body to turn to, and courts will not lend their assistance to gambling transactions, as the 2015 loan decision discussed by Jarvis illustrates.
Lawful participation is limited to charitable bingo and raffles. Residents who wish to gamble in a regulated casino typically travel abroad; in neighbouring independent Samoa, which licenses casinos under its Casino Act 2017, a member of Parliament has urged the government to ease the permit requirement that he said made it difficult for visitors from American Samoa to come to its casinos (Samoa News, MP lobbies to make it easier for Am Samoans to come to their casinos).
Taxation
Because commercial gambling is prohibited, American Samoa has no gambling tax on operators and no published gambling revenue figures. The 1990s attempt to raise revenue by licensing poker machines under A.S.C.A. § 11.0601 et seq. was declared void in 2000 to the extent that it conflicted with the Johnson Act (4 A.S.R.3d 184). The only gambling-related charge found in current regulations is the $200 per-game rental fee for bingo at the government Market Place (ASAC Title 6, Chapter 2).
For individuals, the US Internal Revenue Service provides Form 4563, which “is used by residents of American Samoa to figure the amount of income they may exclude from gross income” for US federal purposes. None of the sources reviewed addresses the specific tax treatment of gambling winnings in the territory, and since almost all gambling is unlawful the question rarely arises. Readers with a particular case should consult the American Samoa Government Treasury’s tax office or a qualified adviser.
Consumer protection and responsible gambling
American Samoa has no statutory consumer-protection regime for gambling: there are no licence conditions, deposit limits, age-verification rules or complaint procedures, because there are no licensed operators. There is also no territorial self-exclusion scheme, meaning a register through which a person can bar themselves from gambling services.
Jarvis states that “At present, American Samoa does not offer any publicly funded programs to help residents who have gambling addictions”, and that the proportion of residents who gamble compulsively is unknown. The US National Council on Problem Gambling operates the National Problem Gambling Helpline (1-800-MY-RESET, or 1-800-697-3738, by call or text, with online chat); it states that its network covers “all 50 states and U.S. territories” (NCPG, Help and treatment), although it does not name American Samoa specifically. General guidance on recognising and limiting gambling harm is available in our responsible gambling guide.
Recent and upcoming developments
- Lottery proposals. RNZ Pacific has reported a senator’s proposal for a government lottery, with 40% of proceeds for the LBJ hospital, 40% for education scholarships and the remainder for government operations. The then Treasurer, Velega Savali, said he would look into its benefits and disadvantages, that the proposal was expected to go to the next Fono session, and that “The only type of gambling we have now is the bingo which is more or less for charity organisations” (RNZ Pacific; RNZ Pacific). The archived reports carry no date online and their date could not be verified; no lottery law has been enacted.
- Academic review (2024). Jarvis’s article, published on 12 December 2024, describes itself as the first detailed description of gambling in the territory and records that the 2006 bill to remove the “occasional” limit on bingo did not pass.
- No pending reform found (2023–2026). Searches of Samoa News, RNZ Pacific and the Bar Association’s code found no gambling, lottery, casino or online-betting bill before the Fono and no referendum on gambling in 2023–2026. No gambling proposal from the current territorial administration was found.
- Federal constraint. Any move to permit gaming machines or casino gaming would require Congress to amend the Johnson Act, a step that has not been taken; in 1976 the federal Commission on the Review of the National Policy Toward Gambling recommended repealing 15 U.S.C. § 1175 and criticised the different treatment of American Samoa compared with Guam and the Virgin Islands (Jarvis).
Casino listings for players in American Samoa
The listings below are generated automatically from our casino database and do not show that any operator is licensed in American Samoa. The territory has no gambling regulator and no licence register: gambling other than occasional charitable bingo and raffles is a criminal offence under A.S.C.A. Title 46, Chapter 43, and offering or playing online casino games is not lawful there. The listings must not be read as an indication that playing is lawful.
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Related country guides
- Samoa gambling guide
- Tonga gambling guide
- Fiji gambling guide
- Tuvalu gambling guide
- Cook Islands gambling guide
Sources and further reading
- American Samoa Bar Association, American Samoa Code Annotated, Title 46, Chapter 43 – Gambling (§§ 46.4301–46.4303) (accessed 13 October 2026).
- American Samoa Bar Association, A.S.C.A. § 46.4301 – Definition (accessed 13 October 2026).
- American Samoa Bar Association, Code Annotated by Title and Chapter (accessed 13 October 2026).
- Jarvis, R. M., UCLA Pacific Basin Law Journal, vol. 41(1), Taaloga Faitupe: Gambling in American Samoa (2024).
- Jarvis, R. M. (full text, eScholarship), Taaloga Faitupe: Gambling in American Samoa (PDF) (2024).
- High Court of American Samoa, Trial Division, 4 A.S.R.3d 65 (CA No. 30-99), order denying summary judgment on the legality of poker machines (31 January 2000).
- High Court of American Samoa, Trial Division, 4 A.S.R.3d 184 (CA No. 30-99), poker machines and the Johnson Act (20 June 2000).
- High Court of American Samoa, Trial Division, 28 A.S.R.2d 195 (CA No. 13-92), church bingo and the gaming statute proviso (6 September 1995).
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 15 U.S.C. § 1171 – Definitions (Johnson Act) (accessed 13 October 2026).
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 15 U.S.C. § 1175 – Specific jurisdictions within which manufacturing, repairing, selling, possessing, etc., prohibited (accessed 13 October 2026).
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 15 U.S.C. § 1176 – Penalties (accessed 13 October 2026).
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 18 U.S.C. § 1084 – Transmission of wagering information; penalties (accessed 13 October 2026).
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 31 U.S.C. § 5362 – Definitions (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) (accessed 13 October 2026).
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 31 U.S.C. § 5363 – Prohibition on acceptance of any financial instrument for unlawful Internet gambling (accessed 13 October 2026).
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 31 U.S.C. § 5364 – Policies and procedures to identify and prevent restricted transactions (accessed 13 October 2026).
- US Department of the Interior, Office of Insular Affairs, American Samoa (accessed 13 October 2026).
- American Samoa Government, American Samoa Administrative Code (2024 Edition), Title 6 – Revenue (2024).
- Samoa News, Gov’s office clarifies to public — BINGO banned during pandemic (accessed 13 October 2026).
- Samoa News, MP lobbies to make it easier for Am Samoans to come to their casinos (accessed 13 October 2026).
- RNZ Pacific, Report on the Treasurer’s response to a senator’s lottery proposal (undated; accessed 13 October 2026).
- RNZ Pacific, Report on the Treasurer’s view of a government lottery (undated; accessed 13 October 2026).
- Internal Revenue Service, About Form 4563, Exclusion of Income for Bona Fide Residents of American Samoa (accessed 13 October 2026).
- National Council on Problem Gambling, Help and Treatment: National Problem Gambling Helpline (accessed 13 October 2026).
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