Australia introduces gambling reform bill to Parliament
The Australian Government has introduced its long-awaited gambling reform legislation to Parliament. In a joint media release issued on Thursday, Ministers Anika Wells and Tanya Plibersek announced a package of reforms aimed at reducing children’s exposure to gambling advertising, strengthening consumer protections and expanding enforcement against illegal gambling operators.
The Interactive Gambling Amendment (Gambling Reform) Bill 2026, introduced to Parliament, contains what the government describes as Australia’s strongest gambling harm reduction measures to date. The legislation seeks to break the link between gambling and sport by introducing tighter restrictions across television, radio, online platforms, and sporting venues, while strengthening the powers of the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to act against illegal gambling websites.
Ministers defend reforms as harm reduction measure
In the media release, Communications and Sport Minister Wells said Australians should be able to enjoy sport without excessive exposure to gambling advertising.
“These reforms break the connection between sport and wagering, minimising kids’ exposure to gambling ads and reducing their saturation on TV, radio and online,” Wells said. “We are also acting to protect people, businesses, genuine lotteries and charities from new and emerging threats through these substantial changes.”
Meanwhile, Social Services Minister Plibersek said gambling-related harm affects entire families and communities.
“Gambling harm touches too many Australian lives, and we know its impact does not stop with the person who is gambling,” Plibersek said. “These reforms are about reducing that harm, and making sure children grow up loving sport for the game – not seeing gambling as an essential part of it.”
Advertising restrictions expanded across media and sport
The proposed reforms introduce new limits on gambling advertising across broadcast, digital, and sporting environments. Under the bill, television gambling advertising would be limited to no more than three advertisements an hour between 6:00am and 8:30pm, while gambling advertisements would be completely banned during live sports broadcasts within those hours.
Online gambling advertising would only be permitted for users who are logged in to an account, aged 18 or over, and who have the option to opt out of receiving gambling advertisements. Radio gambling advertisements would also be prohibited during school drop-off and pick-up periods.
The legislation would also prohibit athletes, celebrities, and influencers from promoting wagering products, ban broadcasts of sporting odds promotions, and remove gambling advertising from sporting venues and from players’ and officials’ uniforms.
Illegal gambling operators face tougher enforcement
Beyond advertising, the bill introduces new measures to combat illegal gambling activity. Banks and payment providers would be empowered to block transactions linked to illegal gambling operators, while the ACMA would receive additional powers to respond more quickly by blocking unlawful gambling websites.
The government also proposes banning online keno products described as “pocket pokies” and foreign matched lotteries. The legislation would further define and regulate trade promotion services to better protect consumers while providing greater certainty for legitimate lotteries, charities and small businesses.
According to the joint media release, these measures are intended to address emerging threats while strengthening protections for Australians and legitimate businesses.
Government strengthens BetStop and support services
Alongside the reform bill, the government introduced the National Self-Exclusion Register (Cost Recovery Levy) Bill 2026, allowing the costs of strengthening BetStop to be recovered from gambling companies.
The government said BetStop had recorded more than 65,400 registrations by the end of June. Additional funding will support greater public awareness of the register, in line with recommendations from the statutory review of the scheme.
The joint media release also confirmed additional funding for gambling financial counselling and a new national public awareness campaign announced in the federal Budget. The government said the investment would double the number of people able to access gambling financial counselling while increasing awareness of available support services.
Political debate continues over scope of reforms
While the government has described the legislation as Australia’s strongest gambling reform package to date, debate continues over whether the measures go far enough.
According to ABC News, members of the Coalition, the Greens, the crossbench, and some Labor MPs have called for broader restrictions, including stronger limits on gambling advertising, tighter controls on gambling inducements, and tougher online advertising rules. Some lawmakers have also advocated a Senate inquiry into the bill, while the government has argued that delaying the legislation would postpone measures intended to reduce gambling harm.
Be more than an observer. Take the stage, speak at SiGMA, share your vision and build meaningful connections that move the future of iGaming forward.
