Iowa Online Casinos
Iowa is a gambling-friendly state, at least when it comes to land-based real money gaming venues. The available options include horse and greyhound races, Native American casinos, commercial casinos and a state-controlled lottery. Racetracks are allowed to offer slot machines on their premises, which means that all things considered, Iowa residents have plenty of games and venues to choose from. Nevertheless, the state hasn’t regulated online casino gaming yet and has rather strict laws that have been designed to protect its gambling industry.
Iowa Gambling Laws
Gambling in Iowa is covered by Iowa Code 703 and 725. The state recognizes the difference between skill games and luck-based games and allows for some limited social gambling, which is acceptable as long as no more than $50 is won or lost throughout 24 hours of play. Iowa law does not address the issue of online casino games, but you should keep in mind that state officials may argue that playing on offshore sites is still illegal according to the existing regulations. For example, an Iowa resident could be charged with a misdemeanor based on Section 725.1:
A person shall not do any of the following:
a. Participate in a game for any sum of money or other property of any value.
b. Make any bet.
c. For a fee, directly or indirectly, give or accept anything of value to be wagered or to be transmitted or delivered for a wager to be placed within or without the state of Iowa.
Nevertheless, the authorities aren’t really interested in going after individual players and focus on tracking down illegal gambling operators instead. Consequently, no Iowa players have been prosecuted so far, which means that there’s nothing to stop your from registering on sites like Bovada or WinPalace.
Online Casinos
Iowa doesn’t have a regulated, intrastate online gambling market, which means that local casino enthusiasts have no access to any Iowa-licensed casino sites. Nevertheless, most offshore gambling sites accept Iowa-based players, allowing them to join massive, international player pools and compete for some of the highest payouts in the entire online gambling industry. Please note that there are a few scam sites masquerading as legit offshore businesses, so you should be really careful about choosing where you want to play. The sites listed here are 100% reliable, which means that they guarantee that your withdrawals will always arrive on time and that you will be able to claim your promotional money as long as you follow the terms and conditions outlined by the casino.
Offshore Casino Sites That Accept Iowa Players
Most of the Iowa-friendly offshore casino sites are powered by Real Time Gaming software. Some of the best casinos also offer games from BetSoft and other developers, but there’s no denying the fact that you’ll start recognizing the games each time you visit a new site after you play on sites Bovada for a while. Unfortunately, there’s currently no way to circumvent this problem, as most software developers including industry giants like Playtech or Microgaming prefer not to cooperate with online casinos that offer their services to US-based customers.
Funding an offshore casino account can get somewhat troublesome for an Iowa resident, as US-players aren’t able to deposit via popular services like Skrill or Neteller. The primary deposit method for most sites is to make a payment using your credit card, but keep in mind that American Express and MasterCard cards tend to have lower acceptance rates than their Visa counterparts. If you don’t want to go through all the hassle of trying several credit cards before finding the one that works, you can always look for a site that supports Western Union/MoneyGram. Whether you make a deposit or request a withdrawal, money orders are always 100% reliable.
Developing Legal Scenarios
In 2012, Iowa Senators tried to pass a bill that would regulated online casino gambling within the borders of the state, but unfortunately their efforts were in vain. On a brighter note, this wasn’t the first time pro-gambling groups tried to pass igaming-friendly legislation, which means that Iowa is very likely to have its own intrastate online casino market as soon as online gambling gains some more popularity with the local public.
