Updated October 2026
This guide is for general information and is not legal advice. Confirm your plan with your own gaming counsel before you launch.
Short answer: As of October 2026, nine states ban sweepstakes casinos by statute: California, Connecticut, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Montana, New Jersey, New York and Tennessee. Operators handle this with a restricted-state list, location checks before sign-up, play and redemption, and a counsel review of every new law. Oklahoma has passed a ban that is not yet in force.
Which US states restrict sweepstakes casinos in 2026?
As of October 3, 2026, BagEngine’s state ban tracker lists nine states with a law in force that bans sweepstakes casinos. The table below summarizes each law, its effective date and its penalty, based on the statute text that tracker read. Laws and their interpretation change, so check the primary source for any state you plan to serve.
| State | Law | In force | Penalty or enforcement |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | AB 831 (Penal Code 337o) | January 1, 2026 | Misdemeanor, fine of $1,000 to $25,000, county jail up to one year, or both |
| Connecticut | Public Act 25-112 (amends CGS 42-301) | October 1, 2025 | Professional gambling penalty and an unfair or deceptive trade practice under CUTPA |
| Indiana | HEA 1052 (2026) | July 1, 2026 | Civil penalty up to $100,000, assessed by the Indiana Gaming Commission |
| Louisiana | HB 883 (Act 182, 2026) | August 1, 2026 | Up to $20,000 and/or up to five years; the Attorney General can serve notices on operators, platform providers and payment processors |
| Maine | LD 2007 (Public Law 2025, chapter 645) | July 29, 2026 | Civil violation, fine of $10,000 to $100,000, possible licensee revocation |
| Montana | SB 555 (2025) | October 1, 2025 | Online casinos using any form of currency treated as prohibited internet gambling |
| New Jersey | A5447 (P.L.2025, c.128) | August 15, 2025 | Civil penalties under C.52:17B-139.18 |
| New York | S5935-A (Chapter 605 of 2025) | December 5, 2025 | $10,000 to $100,000 per violation; loss of or ineligibility for a gaming license |
| Tennessee | SB 2136 / HB 1885 (Public Chapter 1117) | May 22, 2026 | Unfair or deceptive act under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act of 1977 |
The same tracker says Oklahoma has passed a ban that is not yet in force. Enforcement is also active. The tracker reports that the New York Attorney General announced an $8 million settlement with VGW, the operator behind Chumba Casino, Global Poker and LuckyLand, on September 9, 2026.
Some states act through existing law instead of a new statute. In a June 2025 article, geolocation vendor Locance reported that the Washington Gambling Commission said no Washington law or rule uses “sweepstakes” to reference a raffle or promotional contest of chance, and that Michigan’s Attorney General ordered sweepstakes operators to cease operations. A state without a specific ban can still be a state you should not serve.
Why does a state ban change what you build?
A ban is not only a marketing problem. The statutes differ in who they reach:
- New York makes it unlawful to operate, conduct or promote online sweepstakes games in the state.
- Maine treats a person that operates, promotes or supports the operation or promotion of an online sweepstakes game as committing a civil violation.
- Louisiana lets the Attorney General or Gaming Control Board serve 10-day cease-and-desist notices on operators, platform providers and payment processors.
- Tennessee treats operating, conducting or commercially promoting online sweepstakes games as unlawful.
Because some laws reach platform providers, payment processors and promoters, the restricted-state list becomes a shared operating task. It touches your game lobby, your payment flows and your affiliates, so agree who owns it before launch.
How do operators geo-block a sweepstakes casino?
Geo-blocking means using a location result to decide whether a person in a given place may take a given action. Geolocation estimates where a device is. The geofence is the rule your product applies to that estimate. Jacobs Counsel lists the common signals and the limit of each:
| Location signal | Useful question | Limit to resolve |
|---|---|---|
| Account or billing address | What address did the player or payment provider record? | It does not establish the device’s current physical location |
| IP-derived location | What location does the network connection suggest? | Routing, shared networks and proxy services can produce an incomplete picture |
| Device location | What position does the device report with permission? | Check accuracy, age of the reading and resistance to manipulation |
| Vendor risk result | Do the available signals support the requested activity? | Understand result codes, unsupported devices and conditions that need another check |
No single signal is enough. Locance, which sells geolocation, argues that passive checks are no longer sufficient and that a compliant setup combines device location, IP analysis, proxy and VPN detection and behavioral checks, then updates its rules quickly when a state changes its law. Jacobs Counsel adds a practical point: ask a vendor to show ordinary travel, border locations and missing permissions in the environments your players actually use, and do not treat a sales description as a completed test.
Treat registration, play and redemption as separate decisions
Whether someone in a state may register, may play and may redeem are three separate settings, as CasinoAPI’s state access guide puts it. Jacobs Counsel makes the same split in its own words: define separate decisions for account creation, funding, paid entry, continuing play and access to existing funds. A platform that has only one on or off switch cannot express a state that closes sign-ups first and handles existing accounts afterward.
What should you do when a new state ban takes effect?
Use this checklist, and have your counsel review each step:
- Record the effective date. Several laws took effect the day they were signed (New Jersey, New York and Tennessee), while others took effect months later.
- Close registration and coin purchases in the state before the date.
- Decide, with counsel and in line with your published rules, how existing accounts, play and prize redemption are handled.
- Update your official rules, terms and marketing, and tell affiliates and creators to stop promoting in that state, since several statutes name promotion.
- Keep a decision record of location checks and outcomes, so you can show what was checked and when.
- Test what happens when your location provider is unavailable, for new sign-ups and for ongoing sessions.
Our guide to the legal and compliance steps for new sweepstakes operators covers the wider legal checklist, and our guide to starting a sweepstakes casino in the US explains the full model.
What should you ask a provider about state controls?
When you compare platforms, ask the questions below. The right column shows how we answer them.
| Question for any provider | Why it matters | What we do |
|---|---|---|
| Who maintains the restricted-state list, and how fast is it updated? | Statutes took effect on very different dates, from the day of signing to several months later | You and your counsel decide which states to restrict. Geo-blocking is part of the compliance controls on our platform, and we can walk you through how it is configured on a demo |
| Can registration, play and redemption be set as separate rules? | A ban can hit sign-ups, game sessions and prize redemption in different ways | Ask every provider, including us, to show this in a live demo |
| Is there a decision record you can show a regulator or counsel? | Evidence of what was checked and decided supports your review | Ask to see the logs and reports before you sign |
| What is the legal basis for the US sweepstakes model? | State bans make the legal structure the first thing counsel reviews | For the US market we provide a sweepstakes-based framework supported by a legal opinion. Each state decides its own rules, so confirm yours with counsel |
Payments are the other place a state change shows up. Our guide on how sweepstakes coin purchases and redemptions work explains why purchase and payout rules should follow the same state list.
How does Maincard help with US sweepstakes state restrictions?
Many founders start with the game lobby and leave state controls for later, and then a ban date lands on a live product. We run the platform and operations behind your brand. Geo-blocking is part of the compliance controls on our platform, alongside player KYC, anti-fraud and anti-bonus-abuse, fiat and crypto payment integrations, CRM and affiliate platform integration, and 24/7 customer support. For the US sweepstakes market we provide a sweepstakes-based framework supported by a legal opinion, and we help you understand licensing terms. You decide which states to serve with your own counsel, and you follow the local laws of the states you target. On a demo, ask us how restricted-state rules are changed, how location results are logged and what our support team does when a state changes its law. Start at maincard.io.
FAQ
Is it legal to run a sweepstakes casino in the US in 2026?
It depends on the state. Nine states ban sweepstakes casinos by statute as of October 2026, and other states act through existing gambling law or regulator letters. Review each state you plan to serve with gaming counsel before you launch.
Is IP blocking enough to keep restricted states out?
Not by itself. IP-derived location can be incomplete because of routing, shared networks and proxy services, and a billing address does not show where a device is. Combine several signals, test them in real conditions, and keep a record of the decisions.
Who is responsible for blocking restricted states, the platform or the operator?
Several statutes apply to anyone who operates or promotes online sweepstakes games, and some reach supporting parties such as platform providers and payment processors. Treat it as a shared task and agree in writing who maintains the restricted-state list and who updates it when a law changes.
Do new state laws take effect immediately?
Not always. New Jersey, New York and Tennessee laws took effect on the day they were signed, while Indiana, Louisiana and Maine took effect months after signing. Track each effective date and plan changes before it arrives.
How does Maincard handle state restrictions?
Geo-blocking is part of the compliance controls on our platform, and we can show you how it works on a demo. You and your counsel decide the restricted-state list. We also help you understand licensing terms and provide a sweepstakes-based framework for the US supported by a legal opinion.
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