Legal Gambling Age in Canada: Gambling laws in Ontario and other provinces

Without a country-wide law or central gambling authority, the regulation surrounding online casinos and sports betting sites varies across Canada. Although most provinces currently do not allow local online casinos to host their services there, it's allowed to play at legal online casinos with an international license, as long as players meet the provincial age criteria.

However, for those living in Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, or Quebec there's a more favourable gambling landscape, as these regions have licensing agencies to ensure safe gambling. Residents of Ontario can even choose between state-run online gambling sites or offshore casinos, while the other provinces only have access to the former. Although most regions with only state-run casinos have only one localized casino operator, there's a guarantee of fairness and security.

Ontario stands out as the province with the most online casino and sportsbook operators available in Canada. Since legalizing online gambling in April 2022, the province has welcomed over 70 online casinos in Canada, as well as around 30 legal sportsbooks. The gambling age in Ontario is 19, but for lottery and bingo, the minimum age drops to 18.

All offline and online gambling activities are governed by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO). The organization is responsible for determining a suitable casino age limit, preventing underage gambling, and setting responsible gambling standards. iGaming Ontario (iGO) is also a key part of the regulatory landscape, handling the collaboration between the AGCO and the various private casinos.

Alberta is another part of Canada that presents a distinct example of regulating gambling platforms. Apart from setting age limits, the Alberta Gaming, Liquor, and Cannabis Commission requires gambling operators to contribute part of their earnings to charity. This way, residents who engage in any form of gambling get more than just entertainment for their money.

The province is also one of the few where the age for gambling is 18, resulting in a more inclusive gambling environment. Unfortunately, the province currently only has one online casino—Play Alberta—as private gambling platforms are yet to be legalized. Despite this, the lower gambling age requirements give Alberta good potential to become another hotspot of online gambling in Canada, if it were to allow more operators to enter the market.

According to the Canada Revenue Agency, taxes are not applied to gambling winnings unless they qualify as income earned by a professional gambler. A gambler must be highly organized, have special knowledge or skills to reduce the element of chance, and regularly gamble with the intent to earn to qualify as a professional. In essence, most Canadians won't have their winnings taxed. An exception is an additional income generated from gambling winnings. For example, interest from investing your winnings will get taxed.

It is the moral obligation of all authoritative gambling resources to implement incentives promoting responsible gambling. As such, our team has made a responsible gambling guide and compiled a list of resources to help our readers.

We encourage all players to use our guide and check the legal gambling age in their province or territory before joining a casino.