Online in BC
Online casinos in BC, explained
In British Columbia, the province runs the only legal online casino site, PlayNow.com, through BCLC. This page sets out what that rule means and where the paid link on this site's home page fits.
The rule in BC
In B.C., the only legal gambling is gambling the provincial government operates. On the government's behalf, BCLC manages every kind of commercial gambling, including casinos and online play. Online, that leaves one legal site: PlayNow.com, run by BCLC.
April 13, 2026: all gambling in BC came under the regulation of the Independent Gambling Control Office (IGCO). It replaced the former provincial regulator, and the Gaming Control Act came into force the same day. August 28, 2026: the IGCO stated that the sole regulated commercial online gambling website allowed to operate in BC is PlayNow.com. Every other online gambling website that lets BC players in, it said, operates illegally in the province. The IGCO advises the public to play only on PlayNow.com.
Age is a separate rule: 19 or older, for online gambling as for casinos, lottery tickets and charitable events.
Other provinces, and what comes next
Mid-July 2026: a regulated private market for online gambling opened in Alberta. It was the second province to do so; Ontario was the first. In British Columbia, no such market has been announced.
June 2026: the Independent Gambling Control Office announced plans to seek changes to the Gaming Control Act. The stated aim is to cut the presence that unregulated online gambling operators have in the province, and their impacts.
The paid link on this site
An independent guide, this site runs no casino. No bet can be made here, and nobody can open an account. Three paid links, each tagged Ad, sit on the front page: one in the menu, one below the first screen, one near the foot. All three point to an identical online casino partner. No inner page, this one included, holds a paid link.
Those links go to a private online casino, which is not PlayNow. Neither its operation nor its licence comes from the province. BCLC, the IGCO and the casinos in this guide have nothing to do with it. Playing there, a BC resident keeps none of the province's protections. PlayNow limits stop at its edge, Game Break agreements do not extend to it, and complaints about it are outside the IGCO's reach.
For each of those links the site collects a commission; which partner sits behind them can change over time.
Questions
Is it legal in BC to play at an online casino?
Only on PlayNow.com, which BCLC runs. August 28, 2026: the IGCO stated that every other online gambling website admitting BC players operates illegally in the province.
Does Game Break cover other online sites?
Game Break agreements apply to entry and play at BC gaming facilities, and to play on PlayNow.com. Other online sites fall outside it.
Is this site's partner licensed in BC?
No provincial licence covers the partner. The province does not run this private online casino, and it is separate from PlayNow.