Online betting is illegal in mainland China. All forms of gambling, including online casinos, sports betting and offshore gambling apps, are prohibited under national law. There is no online-gambling licence, no domestic regulator that authorises betting, and no legal offshore route. The only exception is the two state-run lotteries, which the government does not legally classify as gambling. Macau and Hong Kong operate under entirely separate legal frameworks and are not covered here.

No. Mainland China treats gambling as a criminal matter. Under Article 303 of the Criminal Law, gathering people to gamble, running a gambling house or making gambling a profession is punishable by up to three years’ imprisonment; opening a casino can bring up to five years, and serious cases five to ten years, plus fines. Criminal Law Amendment 11, adopted in December 2020 and effective from 1 March 2021, added a specific offence for organising Chinese citizens to gamble overseas. Cross-border and online operators that target Chinese players are a central focus of ongoing crackdowns.

Is There a Regulator or Any Licensed Operator?

There is no gambling regulator because gambling is banned. The only state-authorised games are the China Welfare Lottery (administered under the Ministry of Civil Affairs) and the China Sports Lottery (under the General Administration of Sport). These are government monopolies, sold as fundraising for social welfare and sport, and are not legally counted as gambling. No private company may operate betting, and no offshore casino is ‘licensed’ to serve mainland residents, regardless of what such sites claim.

Payments and the Crypto Question

Because betting itself is illegal, there is no lawful payment channel for it. State lottery tickets are bought through approved retail and official channels. Cryptocurrency offers no legal workaround: under the September 2021 People’s Bank of China-led notice, reaffirmed by financial authorities in November 2025, all crypto business activity, including trading, exchanges, mining and stablecoins, is illegal, and virtual assets have no legal-tender status. Using crypto to fund gambling combines two prohibited activities and heightens exposure to fraud and prosecution.

Taxes on Winnings

Illegal gambling winnings have no lawful tax framework; the underlying activity is a crime. For the state lotteries, individual income tax rules apply: a single prize above 10,000 yuan is taxed at a flat 20% as ‘incidental income’, while prizes at or below 10,000 yuan are exempt.

Safety and Responsible Gambling

Offshore gambling and crypto-betting sites aimed at Chinese users are unregulated and frequently linked to fraud, money-laundering and personal-data theft; players have no legal recourse if funds disappear. Mainland China has no dedicated national problem-gambling helpline, though a national mental-health support line, 12356, became available across all provinces in 2025 and can help with related distress. In the Hong Kong SAR, the Ping Wo Fund runs a gambling counselling hotline (1834 633).

Gambling should never be treated as a way to make money. If betting stops being fun or you feel out of control, seek professional help.

Sources

18+ only. Gambling is illegal in mainland China. This article is informational, not legal advice. If gambling is causing harm, seek professional help.