Gambling Laws in Rhode Island

Rhode Island has many forms of legalised gambling, such as casinos, sports betting, bingo and the state lottery. In the last few years, the Ocean State even approved online sports betting and online casinos - making it one of the most permissive US states.

Which Types of Gambling Are Legal in Rhode Island?

Gambling laws are laid out in the Rhode Island General Laws, sections 11-19-1 and 41-3-1. These state that any unlicensed gambling activities are deemed illegal in the Ocean State. This hasn't stopped plenty of venues from obtaining the relevant licenses from the state though. In fact, Rhode Island has a popular industry both offline and online.

Playing in Online and Land-Based Casinos

Gambling in casinos is legal here, with the smallest state in the US home to just two brick-and-mortar venues. These are both owned by Bally's and are the Twin River and Tiverton casinos. Residents can enjoy a wide variety of games with slots, poker, blackjack, roulette and baccarat.

The legalisation of online gambling was a recent occurrence. The latest bill approved by the governor allows the current Bally's land-based casinos to extend their services online. So there are plenty of legal online casino slots, RNG tables and all the best live casino games.

Gambling on Poker

It's legal to play poker in Rhode Island, with the Twin River Casino in Lincoln operating a 22-table room for residents to enjoy various games. Cash games of Texas Hold'em (NL and PL) and Stud run regularly at the venue, but tournaments are rare.

Online poker was legalised alongside other online gambling sites in June 2023. The state is then expected to join the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA). This allows the pooling of online poker players from several states, including Michigan, New Jersey, Nevada and Delaware.

Bingo

Bingo gambling is legal, with charitable organisations permitted to run games at specialised halls across the state. Games are also held at the Twin River Casino.

Online bingo may be permitted under the latest iGaming bill, but there is no indication of where players could participate in games. Currently, there is little in the law to prevent state residents from playing at foreign bingo casinos online, with prosecution for doing so highly unlikely.

Lottery, Scratch Cards, Keno and Instant Win Games

The Rhode Island Lottery (RILOT) offers tickets for various draws, including Powerball and Mega Millions, instant games, scratch cards and keno. Playing online is also legal, with the state lotto operating a website which features a broad range of online lottery games for real money.

Social Gambling and Online Crypto Casinos

Playing card games at home with money is permitted as long as no commercial profits are made. The same goes for fees and rake money. Social casinos that only use play chips are also legal as are free slots apps and sites. While there has been talk of Rhode Island introducing restrictions on video games featuring lootboxes, there is currently no such regulation. Skins gambling is another activity that isn't yet regulated in the state.

Cryptos are recognised as having monetary value but are not classed as legal tender. This means that the 2 existing land-based casinos do not accept virtual currencies as payment. Online crypto casinos are yet to be licensed in Rhode Island, meaning that residents would be breaking the law by registering at offshore sites.

Rhode Island Sports Betting Laws

Sports betting is legal and offered via the state's two casinos. Online sports betting is also permitted, with only one operator currently offering such markets - Caesars Casino.

Horse race betting is permitted, with off-track and simulcast types offered at the existing casino venues. There are no longer any live horse or greyhound races in the state though. Online horse race gambling is also legal via providers such as TVG and TwinSpires.

DFS is legal, on the basis that the games involve more skill than chance. Although there is no bill yet to make this official, residents are free to play games at top sites such as DraftKings and FanDuel.

Minimum Gambling Age Restrictions

Rhode Island's legal gambling age is 18 for all activities. This contrasts with most other states which reserve online casino gambling and sports betting for those aged 21 years or older.

Rhode Island Gambling Tax Regulations

The state has some of the strictest regulations in the US for online operators, with those offering slots expected to pay a whopping 61% tax on revenue, while table games attract a 15% rate.

Residents of Rhode Island are liable for gambling taxes, with winnings classed as income and taxed up to 5.99%. This is in addition to the 24% withholding tax which the federal government charges.

History of Gambling Laws in Rhode Island

-Even though gambling initially funded the original Rhode Island government, all activities were outlawed completely in 1896. 

-Horse and greyhound racing betting was legalised in 1934. Lottery gambling followed this and the Rhode Island lotto was launched in 1973.

-Charitable organisations were permitted to run gambling activities such as bingo and raffles in 1979.

-In 1992 video lottery terminals (VLTs) were legalised.

-A referendum on permitting land-based casinos was held in 1994, but voters said no. However in 2012, voters agreed to Lincoln Park racetrack being transformed into Twin River Casino.

-Daily fantasy sports betting was deemed legal in 2016.

-Tiverton Casino, the state's second casino, was opened in 2018.

-Sports betting was approved in 2018, and online sports betting followed on in 2019.

-Online casino gambling was legalised in June 2023 with sites being required to hold licensing within the state to legally accept residents.

Key Facts

• Casino gambling is legal, with the state home to 2 venues.

• Online casino gambling is legal but must be offered by sites licensed by the Rhode Island government.

• Both offline and online poker gambling are permitted.

• Bingo gambling is legal, both online and offline.

• Lottery gambling is legal, both online and offline.

• Sports betting is legal, both online and offline.

• Horse racing betting is legal online and offline (although the state no longer features live races).

• Daily fantasy sports betting is legal.