Online Casino guide is known as the most effective guidance that New Zealand players can use to get to the tune of the online casino gaming world. Whether you are starting a fresh journey into online casino gaming or simply looking to get more informed about the industry, our Kiwi Casinos Online Casino Guide is packed full of the things you need and want to know regarding gambling in New Zealand.
Top Online Casino Guide | The History of Kiwi Gambling
New Zealand’s gambling Industry is under the control of the Department of Internal Affairs, and most of the casino establishments are state-run. The country began its gambling days during the colonial period when the first settlers from Europe came. However, with the eventual introduction of the Gambling Act of 1908, legal gambling practices became restricted to racetracks.
Racetrack gambling became popular in 1835 and is currently governed by the NZ Racing Board and New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing. With about 3000 races held every year across 52 race courses, the games continue to be a big part of the entertainment industry.
In 1951 the Totalisator Agency Board (TAB) was introduced, leading to the laws around gambling being relaxed. Gambling services became more available in their different sorts. This includes lotteries, with the first national lotteries system being established in July 1987 and growing larger and larger since then.
Pokies made their entry in 1991 and were likely to be found more in hotels, clubs, and bars at the time. Today, (non-casino) Pokies total over 16 500 located across about 1,500 of New Zealand’s sites.
Best New Zealand Land Based Casinos
The largest New Zealand casino is Skycity in Auckland, and it is one of the five top licensed casinos in New Zealand. The others are Skycity Christchurch, the first to open its doors in 1994, Dunedin Casino, Skycity Queenstown, SkyCityHamilton, and Wharf Casino.
Online Kiwi Casinos
Like in many countries, it is illegal to operate an online casino within the borders of New Zealand. However, it is not illegal for players and other residents in the country to gamble at the best Kiwi online casinos for 2024, which are located outside New Zealand. This is according to the Gambling Act of 2003. Also, the country pronounces winnings from such gambling to be non-taxable.
Welcome Bonuses and Other Rewards
The first thing that an Online Casino will usually offer its newest players is a Welcome Bonus. Throughout the gaming journey, more bonuses and other rewards are a constant part of the package. Kiwi-friendly casinos are no different. But what exactly are these bonuses?
Casino Guide on Welcome Bonuses
As explained before, a Welcome Bonus is (usually) a bundle of bonuses offered to a player when they first register a new account with an Online Casino. This is a reward for making their first purchase/deposit.
Such a bonus may be offered as a once off claimable gift or split across two to five deposits. The welcome bonus sometimes comes with an extra reward like Free Spins on popular games, especially pokies. This Bonus is designed to attract new players; hence it will typically be put forward and upfront on the casino website.
Kiwi Guide to Percentage Deposit Bonuses
Like a welcome bonus, a percentage deposit bonus is based on the player’s deposit amount. The casino will match, to a stated percentage, the amount that the player has made to their casino account and award this to the player as bonus credits. The difference, however, is that this bonus is offered to any player group the casino chooses, not just the new ones. The percentage deposit bonus may be awarded for specific games, but this is not always the case.
No Deposit Bonuses – Kiwi Guide
As it states in the name, this bonus does not require any deposit to be made prior to claiming. The No-deposit Bonus gives potential players a chance to get to know the casino and its games better before they make any financial contributions to the casino. Thus it is used as an acquisition marketing tool.
Other Rewards and Bonuses
Loyalty Rewards
Just like in retail stores, some Online Casinos offer reward points for long-standing and active membership. This usually works by the casino giving the player a point or so for every, say NZ$20 that the player bets on the game, or when the player bets a frequent amount of times.
Referral rewards
Also, common in other industries are being rewarded for forwarding a friend, relative or any other third person to an establishment. New Zealand Online Casinos also pay a reward to any player that makes a successful referral. As soon as the referred person makes their first deposit, the referrer gets credited for it, assuming that the new player stated the name of the referrer.
High Roller Rewards
Players that have a reputation for depositing and betting substantially large amounts of money at a casino are called high rollers. In hopes to win big, these players also bear a great deal of risk, and so online casinos appreciate them with significantly bigger Bonuses than those offered to other players.
Payment Method Bonuses
Many Kiwi Casinos offer players bonuses for using one or more of their deposit or withdrawal methods. Since casinos typically have many banking methods for players to use, they may run promotions on the most popular ones, newly introduced methods, or whichever ones they choose.
Online Casino Guide: Banking Methods
Casino gaming, especially as a real-money gambler, means you will need to pay a deposit to start ‘real money play’ and access your winnings whenever you want to. This means you need a way to do your banking, in a reliable, convenient and safe manner. It is thus that New Zealand Casinos offer their Kiwi players more than enough options in depositing and withdrawal methods.
These options include Wire Transfers, Credit Card payments, Pre-Paid Cards, E-Checks and E-WalIet Services. Here is a quick analysis of each method group:
Credit Card Methods
The Good –
- These are convenient since they directly link your bank account to your casino.
- Easy to use and loved for their accessibility; they are largely accepted by many countries, including New Zealand.
- They support various currencies.
- Examples are Master Card, Visa, Visa Electron and Maestro.
The downside –
- These methods are heavily regulated by casinos to guard against fraud, and so they are slower at processing transactions, taking anything between 3 and 5 working days.
Wire Transfers
The Good –
- All your personal data is kept safe thanks to not using third parties.
- Easy, convenient and supports NZ$ and many other currencies.
- Withdrawals are processed instantly.
- Broadly accepted by online casinos.
The downside –
- Transactions may take longer.
- Transaction charges tend to apply on withdrawals below a certain amount.
E-Wallet Services
The Good –
- Highly secure
- Restricted access to your banking information.
- Deposits and withdrawals processed instantly.
- Examples:
- Ecocard
- Instadebit
- Click2Pay
The downside –
- A lengthier process, depositing from the e-wallet before crediting the casino account.
- Some currencies are not supported.
- Charges may apply to Withdrawals.
Online Casino Guide: Licensing and Regulation
To ensure responsible gaming both on the part of Online Casinos and players, the Kiwi Government has had to enforce rules and regulations around the activity. This has led to an establishment of casino licensing authorities and commissions. The industry is under the general control of New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs, and to maximise easy governance, the majority of gambling enterprises are run by the state.
Licensing for New Zealand Casinos- 2017
Licenses are one of the first ways to ensure casinos operate legally, and the owners need to apply for these at the Gambling Control Boards/Commission of their jurisdiction. To be granted a license, the casino has to prove its integrity and good financial standing amongst other things.
New Zealand Online Casino Regulation – 2017
On top of being licensed, the Online Casino must also remain under strict regulation to ensure adherence to stipulated rules and regulations governing the industry. These include fair and responsible gaming, safety and security of all player information, funds, and others. The regulating board also has to mediate any disputes that arise between players and casinos.
Online Casino Guide| Casino Security
Since Online Gambling requires many transactions, including money and critical information transfer, it is of utmost importance for the casino to keep all things safe and secure. There have been many fraudulent activities in history, and these must be kerbed. To do this, New Zealand online casinos have endeavoured to employ several security measures.
Some of these steps include the well-known SSL encryption technology that guards online transactions. Additionally, to enhance the protection they offer their Kiwi players, the Online Casinos make use of personal identification, account, and withdrawal verifications before resuming with any transaction. The top New Zealand online casinos have also opened up 24/7 Customer Support centres to ascertain that players can receive assistance ‘round the clock should any red flags pop up.
Other standard measures that have been undertaken by the New Zealand government and other such authorities are Gambling Licensing Boards and Regulatory Bodies to monitor the very viability and trustworthiness of online gambling service providers. These determine whether an Online Casino, for instance, is suitable for operation judging from their business character, financial standing, etc., and may grant or deny their license application following their assessment of the casino.
NZ Online Casino Guide FAQs
Casino Glossary for Kiwi Players
Bankroll – A financial budget by the player to determine and monitor the movement of their money.
Bet – a wager.
Deposit – an amount of money a player pays into their online casino account to play with.
Free Play – a mode of play where the casino gamer is allowed to play the games without risking any of their money. Free play does not pay out any real money winnings either. It is for fun and practice purposes only.
Gaming Control Board – a commission by the government assigned to licensing and ensuring the adherence of casinos to state laws within a specific jurisdiction (also known as Gambling Board/Commission).
Referral Bonus – a bonus reward given to a current player for bringing in a new player to the casino.
Welcome Bonus- an acquisition tool where a new player is rewarded with a bonus for making the first deposit to the casino.
