Simon’s Gambling and Casino Guide – St. Barthelemy
Simon’s Gambling and Casino Guide – St. Barthelemy
It might come as a surprise to many, considering that at first glance it is your typical, lavish caribbean tourist destination, that there are in fact no casinos in St. Barthelemy*. It also “lacks” some other traits of such places, like huge hotel complexes, shopping malls, golf clubs and so on. The tranquility of this pace is what makes it special even amongst all the heavenly caribbean islands.
Saint-Barthélemy, officially the Territorial collectivity of Saint-Barthélemy and commonly referred to as St. Barts, is an overseas collectivity of France. As such, in principal, it has its own statutory laws (gambling laws as well). It lies about 35 kilometres southeast of St. Maarten and north of St. Kitts. Puerto Rico is 240 kilometres to the west in the Greater Antilles. It has a land area of 25 square kilometres and a population of a mere 35000.
Gambling appears to be illegal in St. Barthelemy – or at least de facto illegal, as there are no reported gambling facilities on the island and there is no indication anywhere, that there is any gambling going on in this caribbean island state. It is a popular holiday destination amongst the rich and famous, so there is no doubt any gambling business would prove to be quite lucrative. However, locals (both residents and the authorities) seem to be against the idea. They want to keep the tranquil atmosphere and somewhat old-world charm of St. Barts. Whether there is any specific law that prohibits gambling, or the government simply does not issue licenses to any gambling venues is unknown.
Online gambling appears to be unregulated. The government does not appear to restrict locals from playing on foreign online gambling sites and casinos in St. Barthelemy. Although its needles to say, authorities do not issue licenses to operators either.
*Source: Huffington Post – All Kinds of Things You Won’t See on St. Barts
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Summary:
- St. Barts – casino gambling
- Bingo in St. Barthelemy
- Poker in St. Barthelemy
- Sports betting in St. Barthelemy
- Lottery in St. Barthelemy
- Bitcoin gambling in St. Barthelemy
St. Barts – casino gambling
Online casino gambling in St. Barthelemy: not regulated
There are no land based casinos on the island of St. Barthelemy. Unofficial sources suggest, that a plan for casinos in St. Barthelemy was introduced in 2008. The project went quiet for a few years, and it reappeared in another forum thread in 2013, where even a scanned version of an article, published in a local newspaper about the planned casino was posted*. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the casino being built on the island in the next few years.
There are no online casinos based in St. Barts, as authorities do not issue such licenses. However, locals don’t appear to be restricted from playing in foreign online casinos licensed in other jurisdictions.
The following online casinos accept players from St. Barthelemy:
BGO casino – accepting players from St. Barts
32 Red casino – accepting players from St. Barts
Betsson online casino – accepting players from St. Barts
Betsafe online casino – accepting players from St. Barthelemy
Casino Euro – accepting players from St. Barthelemy
Black lotus casino – accepting players from St. Barthelemy
Lotus Asia casino – accepting players from St. Barthelemy
GT Bets accepts players from St. Barthelemy – accepting Bitcoins as well
*Source: SBH Online – Thread: That casino idea is back. Just up the hill from Le Repaire
Bingo in St. Barthelemy
Online bingo in St. Barthelemy: not regulated
There are no bingo halls in operation on the island of St. Barthelemy. Whether they are directly outlawed or the government simply chooses not to issue licenses to such facilities, is uncertain.
However, locals don’t appear to be restricted from playing on any foreign online bingo sites legally licensed in other jurisdictions.
The following online bingo websites accept players from St. Barthelemy:
BGO bingo – accepting players from St. Barthelemy
Betsson Bingo – accepting registrations from St. Barthelemy
32 Red Bingo – accepting registrations from St. Barthelemy
Poker in St. Barthelemy
Online poker in St. Barthelemy : not regulated
There are neither any casinos with poker tables, nor standalone poker clubs in operation on the island of St. Barts. Whether they are illegal, or the authorities simply choose not to issue licenses, is unknown.
However, access to foreign online poker rooms does not seem to be restricted for locals and players from the country are not prosecuted or penalised in any way for playing on such platforms.
The following online poker websites accept players from St. Barthelemy:
Betsson online Poker – accepting players from St. Barthelemy
Betsafe online Poker – accepting players from St. Barthelemy
32 Red online Poker – accepting players from St. Barthelemy
Sports betting in St. Barthelemy
Online sports betting in St. Barthelemy : not regulated
There are no reported legally operating brick and mortar betting shops on St. Barthelemy. If locals or tourists engage in any land based betting activities at all, they must do so through illegal bookmakers.
However, access to foreign online betting sites does not seem to be restricted for locals. Nor do punters from St. Barts trying their luck on such platforms appear to face any charges or penalties.
The following online sportsbooks accept registrations from the St. Barthelemy islands:
Betsson online sportsbook – accepting registrations from St. Barthelemy
Betsafe online bookmaker – accepting registrations from St. Barthelemy
32 Red sport online sportsbook – accepting players from St. Barthelemy
GT Bets online bookmaker – accepts registrations from the St. Barthelemy, also accepts Bitcoin
Lottery in St. Barthelemy
Online lottery in St. Barthelemy: not regulated
St. Barthelemy does not operate a national lottery. Nor does it seem to be a part of the Caribbean Lottery, or any other multi-state lotteries operating in the region.
Although local authorities do not issue licenses to any sorts of gambling operators, including lotteries, locals are not restricted from accessing foreign online lottery sites. They also don’t appear to be penalised or prosecuted in any way for participating in foreign online lottery draws.
Bitcoin gambling in St. Barthelemy
Bitcoin gambling in St. Barthelemy : not regulated
St. Barthelemy does not have any laws that restrict the use of Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrencies in the country. It also don’t appear to have any specific rules pertaining to online gambling – let alone Bitcoin gambling.
Locals don’t seem to be restricted in any way from trying their luck on foreign Bitcoin gambling platforms.
The following Bitcoin casino accepts players from Saint Barthelemy:
GT Bets accepts players from St. Barthelemy, and also accepts Bitcoin
If you have questions or any feedback don’t hesitate to drop a comment below. Please let me know in the comments section if you think we might have gotten something wrong or if you have additional information, clarification about the legal status of online gambling in this country.
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This page is part of Simon’s List – Legal Status of Online Gambling – a definitive guide to the legal status of all forms of online gambling activities in every country around the world.
Last updated: 2015.1.25.
