Crackdowns on Offshore Online Gambling Hubs in Asia

What the law says

The wave of crackdowns that reshaped Asia's online gambling map did not happen all at once. It started with the Philippines, which had spent years hosting the region's biggest licensed offshore hub, and it spread outward through Cambodia, India, Thailand and China. What each country did differs, but the direction is the same: the offshore model that let operators sit in one country and take bets from another has been squeezed hard.

The Philippines was the clearest case. All Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations, known as POGOs, were banned effective December 31, 2024¹. That single decision closed the licensed hub that had hosted hundreds of operators serving players across the region. The regulator, PAGCOR, now warns the public directly against illegal offshore gaming sites still trying to attract Filipino players¹.

Cambodia moved in two stages. Online gambling was formally banned back in 2019, when the prime minister restricted all internet gaming services and stopped issuing licenses⁶. Then, in September 2026, the government announced a further suspension: all online gambling operations conducted from casino premises nationwide would stop from October 2026². The suspension applies to online gambling activities operated or broadcast from casino premises, while ordinary casinos stay open⁷. It is described as temporary, and online gambling may resume only once adequate safeguards are in place, including clearer legal frameworks, digital monitoring systems and trained personnel⁸.

India went further than most. The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 imposed a complete ban on all forms of online money games, covering games of chance, games of skill and any mix of the two, along with their advertising, promotion and facilitation⁹. The ban took effect from May 1, 2026³. Banks and payment systems are barred from processing those transactions³.

Thailand has not passed a new online-specific law, but it does not need one to act. The Gambling Act does not cover online gambling directly, but it states clearly that nearly all wagering activities are banned, allowing only limited activities such as the state lottery and horse racing¹⁰.

China treats online gambling as banned outright¹¹, and online football betting specifically is classified as a criminal offense¹². Japan's position is that online casinos are illegal gambling, and crackdowns are being strengthened¹³.

Who it applies to

This is where most people get confused, so it is worth being precise. The rules that matter are the ones in force where you are sitting, not where the website is registered.

For players in India, the ban is written to catch everyone. No person shall offer, aid, abet, induce or otherwise indulge or engage in the offering of an online money game or online money gaming service¹⁴. That covers operators and the people who help them, and the underlying prohibition applies regardless of whether the game is based on skill, chance or both¹⁵.

For players in Japan, the position is blunt. Gambling by connecting from Japan is a crime regardless of whether it is legal in the country where the server sits, and police say they are pursuing strict enforcement¹⁶. That means a site holding a license in Curacao or Anjouan does not make your play legal in Japan.

For players in Singapore, most remote online casinos that market to Singaporeans are not authorized there¹⁷. The Remote Gambling Act was designed specifically to curb gambling via the phone and internet¹⁸.

For players in China, online gambling is banned¹¹, and the practical reach is long. Chinese citizens who gamble on cross-border sites have been prosecuted at home even when the site operated abroad.

Operators themselves increasingly block whole countries rather than risk it. Pinnacle's terms exclude residents of a long list that includes Singapore, China, Myanmar, the United States, the United Kingdom and many others¹⁹. SBOBET states plainly that customers residing in countries where online gambling is illegal or restricted are prohibited from using its services⁸. Khelo24Bet notes that residents of Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Assam may be restricted from online gaming²⁰.

The practical takeaway: if you are a visitor or expat living in one of these countries, the block usually follows residency, not citizenship. A Singapore permanent resident is treated as a Singapore player.

Penalties and enforcement

Penalties in this part of the world fall on players, not only on the people running the sites. That is the part most casual users miss.

In Singapore, players who get caught gambling online face a fine of up to $5,000 or a 6-month prison sentence⁴. In Hong Kong, anyone participating in illegal gambling, including illegal online betting, can be imprisoned for 9 months and fined upon conviction²¹. The maximum under the Gambling Ordinance for betting with an illegal bookmaker is a fine of HKD 50,000 and 9 months in prison⁵. In China, the risks that go along with gambling online include hefty fines and imprisonment²².

Enforcement has also moved beyond the player. In the Philippines, the total ban on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) is strictly enforced in 2026, after all POGOs in the country were banned effective December 31, 2024⁷. In Cambodia, online gambling operations at all casinos nationwide are suspended from October 2026, and the government has said it will review and improve the regulatory mechanisms before any resumption⁸.

For ordinary players, the practical risk is not usually a raid. It is a frozen payment, a blocked withdrawal, or a site that disappears with your balance. That is the everyday face of the crackdown.

What is legal and licensed

Very little of the old offshore model survives in licensed form, but legal gambling itself has not vanished from Asia. It has moved back to domestic, regulated channels.

Cambodia is the clearest example of the split between online and land-based. The suspension covers online gambling activities operated or broadcast from casino premises, while ordinary casinos will not be closed⁷. If you are visiting Sihanoukville, the wider destination remains open, and travelers should not assume casino hotels or the city are closing⁷. The beach city is about 150km from Ha Tien, roughly 3 hours by car, so the land-based resort trade continues⁶.

For Singapore citizens and permanent residents, there is an extra layer. The National Council on Problem Gambling operates Third Party Exclusion and Visit Limits designed to protect financially vulnerable citizens and permanent residents who gamble at the local casinos or who have a poor credit record²³. That is a domestic control, not an offshore one, but it shapes what local residents can do at the two integrated resorts.

What it means for visitors and expats

If you are a visitor or an expat, the crackdowns change three practical things:

• Which sites will take you
• Whether your payment will go through
• What happens if you are caught

First, access. Operators are increasingly geo-blocking rather than arguing. Pinnacle's restricted list includes Singapore, China, Myanmar and dozens of other countries and territories, and it adds a catch-all for any other country that may prohibit offering online gambling to its residents¹⁹. SBOBET says customers residing in restricted countries are prohibited for legal reasons tied to their jurisdiction⁸. If you are an expat in one of those places, you will often find the site simply will not load or will not accept your registration.

Second, payments. India's ban specifically bars banks and payment systems from processing online money game transactions³. That means even where a site is reachable, the deposit or withdrawal route can fail, and a failed withdrawal is the most common way players lose money in a crackdown.

Third, personal exposure. This is the part that differs most by country. In Japan, playing from Japan is a crime regardless of the server's location, and police enforce it¹⁶. In Singapore, the fine or prison term applies to the player⁴. In Hong Kong, the 9-month maximum applies to anyone participating in illegal gambling²¹. In China, online betting is a criminal offense¹².

A few worked examples make it concrete.

If you are a British expat living in Singapore and you sign up to an offshore casino, you are in the same position as a Singaporean player. Most remote online casinos marketing to Singaporeans are not authorized¹⁷, and the penalty for getting caught is a fine of up to $5,000 or a 6-month prison sentence⁴. Your passport does not change that.

If you are a tourist in Cambodia in October 2026, the casino floor is still open, but the online betting operation that used to run from the same building is suspended⁷. You can walk in and play table games; you cannot expect the online sportsbook tied to that casino to be running.

If you are an Indian resident, the ban is total. All online money games are prohibited, whether skill or chance, and the payment rails are closed³. There is no licensed online alternative inside India.

If you are in Thailand, the state lottery and horse racing remain the permitted channels, while nearly all other wagering activities are banned¹⁰.

The pattern across the region is consistent. Licensed offshore hubs have been closed or suspended, domestic legal gambling has been preserved, and the unlicensed sites that filled the gap are the ones carrying the risk. Before you deposit anywhere, the useful question is not whether the site is licensed, but whether the country you are sitting in allows you to play there at all.