Gambling Laws in Louisiana

Louisiana is home to a thriving gambling industry, but online casinos remain outlawed in the state. After recent changes to the law in 2020, all types of sports betting are now legal.

Which Type of Gambling Is Legal in Louisiana?

Gambling laws are detailed in the Louisiana Revised Statutes, sections 14:90 and 27 and the state's regulatory body is the Louisiana Gaming Control Board. The current laws work on the basis that gambling is deemed illegal - unless otherwise specified.

In practice, most forms of gambling are legal and provided for in the state except for online gambling.

Playing Casino Games

Gambling in land-based casinos is legal with the state home to 24 establishments. Most of these are floating casinos, which operate along the Mississippi River. Four race tracks also feature casino-style games (called racinos) and one land-based casino, Harrah's New Orleans. *Many of the riverboats are in the process of setting up permanent venues on land after changes to the law in 2018 permitted this.

If you fancy playing some online casino slots then it's bad news, as all online gambling is outlawed in Louisiana. It's the only state to make specific mention of this in its laws too.

There is some debate over the interpretation of the law though. Many claim this only extends to operators of online gambling sites and their employees rather than the players.

Poker Tables and Machines

Land-based poker gambling is legal, with many existing casinos offering the game within their multi-table rooms. Home-based poker is also permitted if no commercial profiting occurs. 

Video poker machines are also very common in Louisiana, mostly because the licence for such machines is granted alongside alcohol licences. As such, these machines are commonly found in bars and restaurants, truck stops and some shops.

Online poker gambling is illegal with the state expressly forbidding the operation of such sites within its borders.

Bingo

Playing bingo is legal in Louisiana, but only in games offered by charitable organisations. Online bingo gambling is of course illegal but there are out-of-state sites which accept Louisianan residents. Whilst it's an illegal activity, many residents still take the risk. Operators are usually targeted by the authorities rather than the players.

Purchasing Lotto Tickets

Lottery gambling is legal and the Louisiana Lottery was created to accommodate this in 1991. State residents can buy tickets at participating retailers and automated WinStations machines.

Online lotto gambling is illegal and whilst the Louisiana Lottery operates a website, it's purely for informational purposes.

Social Gambling and Crypto Casinos

Social gambling within private residences is permitted if there is no profit beyond player winnings. Modern forms of what could be interpreted as gambling, such as loot boxes and skins gambling, are still the subject of much debate across the US. These activities as yet are unregulated in Louisiana.

The state is crypto-friendly and recently (2023) passed the Virtual Currency Business Act, which permits virtual currency businesses to operate under licence. However, none of the existing casinos in Louisiana currently accept Bitcoin or altcoins as a form of payment.

Crypto gambling sites do accept residents from the state though it's an illegal activity and classed as online gambling.

Louisiana Sports Betting Laws

Both online and offline sports betting are legal in Louisiana. 55 out of the 64 parishes in the state voted to approve the legalisation of the activity in late 2020. This means that geolocation tools work on a parish-by-parish basis, preventing access to those located in the remaining nine parishes.

Sports betting is offered at the state's existing casinos and racinos, with betting machines also available at bars, restaurants and truck stops. Online sports betting markets are also permitted to be offered by up to 41 operators. With the top sites including FanDuel and Caesars being the primary choices for residents.

Parimutuel horse race betting is legally permitted with the state's four racinos offering live betting. Off-track betting is also legal and widely offered, with online betting on such events available at licensed sites, including TwinSpires.

Similar to sports betting, the legalisation of DFS was approved in 47 parishes in late 2018.

What's the Minimum Age to Gamble in Louisiana?

This is set at 18 years old for parimutuel sports betting and bingo. Whilst residents must be at least 21 to participate in state lottery games, casino games and general sports betting.

Paying Tax on Gambling Winnings

Louisiana gambling tax regulations require land-based sports betting operators to pay a 10% tax. With online sports betting operators being required to pay 15%.

Gambling winnings for players are considered as income, with the state deducting a 6% tax, while a 24% withholding rate is charged on a federal level.

History of Gambling Laws in Louisiana

Gambling in the state dates back to the 1750s when the government operated a lottery. When Louisiana joined the United States in 1812, it had the highest number of casinos compared to the others. This became troublesome for the government, which outlawed casinos the following year. Only casinos located in New Orleans continued to operate at the time, but even these were closed after an outright ban in 1866.

The same year, the government launched a state-wide lottery, which became very popular. Even those residents outside the state were allowed to purchase tickets. Congress deemed this illegal in 1890, and the program was shut down in 1893. 

1923 saw horse racing betting legalised and ten years later both lottery gambling and casino gambling (on riverboats) were reinstated.

Today's Louisiana Lottery was launched in 1991. In 2018, riverboats were permitted to open land-based venues and daily fantasy sports contests were legalised. Both online and offline sports betting were also made legal in 2020.

Key Facts

• Casino gambling is legal in Louisiana, with the state home to 24 licensed riverboats, casinos and racinos.

• Online casino gambling is unregulated and deemed illegal.

• Poker gambling is legal, with poker rooms available at most of the state's casinos.

• Online poker gambling is unregulated and deemed illegal.

• Bingo gambling is legal, but only via charitable organisation events.

• Online bingo gambling is unregulated and illegal.

• Lottery gambling is legal via the Louisiana Lottery, but online ticket sales are prohibited.

• Sports betting is legal in both offline and online forms.