Online Gaming Bill 2025: Money Games Ban and Penalties
Why in the news
The Bill targets online money gaming harms while backing e-sports and safe social games.
Key facts
- Covers all of India and offshore platforms serving Indian users.
- Money games of chance, skill or hybrid, with their advertising and transactions, are prohibited.
- E-sports recognised; safe social/educational games to be registered.
- A national Online Gaming Authority will classify, register and handle grievances.
- Firms and their officers face liability unless due diligence is shown; enforcement agencies can conduct searches and seizures, and arrest without a warrant, as per the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
Penalties
| Offence | Punishment |
|---|---|
| Offering or facilitating | Up to 3 years, ₹1 crore |
| Repeat offence | Up to 5 years, ₹2 crore |
| Advertising breach | Up to 2 years, ₹50 lakh |
Why needed
- Addiction, ruined finances and suicides; the WHO classes gaming disorder as a health condition.
- Fraud, money laundering and terror financing risks.
- Online space less regulated than physical gambling.
Related laws
- IT Act, 2000 and Rules: register permitted games, block illegal sites.
- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023: betting and cybercrime.
- IGST Act, 2017: offshore platforms register and pay tax.
- Consumer Protection Act, 2019: misleading ads.
- Helpline 1930 and cybercrime.gov.in.
Exam angle
- Voice vote in Lok Sabha.
- Regulator: Online Gaming Authority.