National Law
According to the regulations of the Austrian government and applicable laws, Casino Austria AG holds a gambling monopoly in Austria. This applies to both physical casinos and classic online casinos in Austria. According to these regulations, all providers other than Casinos Austria AG are prohibited, thus it is not allowed to offer internet casinos with slot machines and other games in our country, as they are simply illegal under national law.
EU Law
For many years, this Alpine republic has been a member state of the European Union. Therefore, Austrians must comply with both national and EU laws, with EU law taking precedence over Austrian law. Importantly, the EU has a free internal market, meaning that EU suppliers can offer their products and services in all member states.
This specifically means for online casinos that as long as they are licensed by an EU country or an EU territory (such as Malta, Curaçao, or Gibraltar), they are also 100% legal for our country's players.
As a player, you can easily open platforms like Bob Casino in your browser, select games from the game selection, and play them, and if you are lucky, you can even win a lot of real money. Thus, for Austrians, the Austrian gambling monopoly does not matter.
It is most important to comply with EU law, which also allows EU online casinos to operate in Austria. This means you can legally play games, have fun, and win money at any online casino in Austria that has an EU license.
Online Casino Gambling in Neighboring Countries
Neighboring countries Germany and Switzerland also offer online gambling services with various games. Of course, these countries have specific legal regulations for online gambling that guests must comply with. Here you can learn more about the legal status of online casinos in our neighboring countries.
Germany
Germany recently introduced its own licensing system, but according to legislative regulations, only online casinos certified by Germany are allowed to operate. However, Germany is also a member of the EU, so just like Austria: according to EU law, Germans can also play games, enjoy entertainment, and pay out winnings at EU online casinos. And all this is 100% legal.
Switzerland
Switzerland is not a member of the EU. The national ESBK license is also binding here. It is not allowed to establish foreign online casinos for gambling. However, some Swiss still gamble at EU casinos (such as 20bet Casino) because there the selection of games, bonus offers, and live entertainment are better.
Online casinos that offer services in Switzerland without an ESBK license may eventually be blacklisted. However, Swiss players need not worry: playing games at online casinos without a Swiss license is 100% unpunishable, so there will be no problems.
