While gambling legislation of Russian Federation leaves no room for loose interpretation and clearly states that all betting online activities are banned, a surprisingly vast number of web-based casinos offer their services to the residents of the largest country in the world.
How is that possible?
Well, strict adherence to the laws requires lots of effort and resources, which is not always easy to provide. On the other hand, different games of luck have always been very popular in Russia and current four gambling-friendly (yet pretty remote) zones are obviously unable to meet the needs of innumerable punters.
In their turn …
… big international names in the industry cannot afford to ignore 170 million population. Even despite the fact, the Russian Supreme Court in 2012 ruled that Internet providers must block all sites operated by gaming or betting companies, offshore gambling platforms manage to reach out to their customers.
In reality, it appears that the Russian government is more interested in identifying and sanctioning illegal operators rather than looking for individuals who place bets online. The possibility of transactions between Russian citizens and foreign betting companies can also serve as a pretty good argument in favor of such an idea.
Online Gambling Laws In Russian Federation
- Federal Law No. 149-FZ „On Information, Information Technologies and Protection of Information“ (2006) - Comprehensively covering respective domain, in its Article 15.1 the law introduced The Comprehensive Register of Domain Names, Indications of Site Pages on the Internet and Network Addresses Enabling to Identify the Sites on the Internet Whose Dissemination in the Russian Federation Is Prohibited.
One of the grounds for being included in the register is “information which violates the provisions of Federal Law No. 244-FZ of December 29, 2006 on the State Regulation of the Organisation and Conduct of Gambling and on Amendments to Some Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation and of Federal Law No. 138-FZ of November 11, 2003 on Lotteries concerning ban on the organisation and conduct of gambling and lotteries by means of the network "Internet" and other communication means”.
Founded in 2008 with the aim to implement the above law and censor all media and telecommunications, the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media or Roskomnadzor is the executive body responsible for overseeing compliance with the current legislation and, among other things, for creating and updating the register.
Getting Started with Russian Online Casino Action
All chances are, it won’t take you long to find the online casino able to suit your preferences, all the more so, there are dependable in-depth reviews below of all brands that operate on the market.
In any case, be sure to stick with properly licensed and regulated websites and avoid way too peachy bonuses offered by illegal sites regularly emerging here and there.
The good news is …
… renowned web-based venues have no shortage of all sorts of table games and video slots. In addition to that, many places can brag of a decent video poker offering.
Players who like spinning&winning adventures the most can take advantage of the extensive directories loaded with all types of virtual one-armed bandits, from unpretentious 3-steppers to the latest action-packed blockbusters. What’s more, they have at their disposal a variety of free-roll tournaments run on a daily or weekly basis, as well as numerous slots-related perks.
