Legality of Online Poker :

Playing poker online is officially permitted in many countries including several around the vicinity of the Caribbean Sea and the United Kingdom. But when it comes to United States, the opinion differs among the states. In February of 2005 the North Dakota House of Representatives passed a bill that would legalize online poker sites. The legislation requires companies to move their operations within the state.

But this legislation was overruled by the State Senate in March of 2005. This is after the United States Department of Justice sent a letter to the North Dakota attorney general that stated that online gaming might be against the Federal Wire Act, although many legal experts dispute this claim.

The legislation's author, North Dakota Representative Jim Kasper, said that he won't stop until North Dakota will legalize internet gaming. He has introduced the legislation in the 2007 session of the North Dakota Legislature.

Because of this claim by the Department of Justice, majority of poker sites stopped the advertisement of their dot com sites in American mainstream media. Then they made dot net sites that are identical to their dot com but don't have any real money betting. These sites are advertised as poker schools that would teach users how to play the game. They also state in the site that it is not a gambling site.

In July of 2006, United States Federal agents arrested BetOnSports CEO David Carruthers on charges of violating the Wire Act. He was on his way to the United Kingdom from Costa Rica, both of which have legalized online gaming and poker. Later that year, two CEOs suffered the same fate. Manfred Bodner and Norbert Teufelberger of bwin were arrested while they were giving a press conference in France. They were charged for violating French gambling laws.

Credit card companies and major banks will not permit the transferring of funds to online gaming sites. That's why electronic money transfer companies provide online e-wallets to their costumers that they can load from their bank account. Then this could be used to finance your online bankroll. This made transferring funds from different gaming sites much easier.

On October of 2006, United States President Bush signed the Safe Port Act that is aimed at enhancing the safety and security at the different U.S. ports. Attached to the said act is the provision named Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). It states that unlawful internet gambling means to receive, place or otherwise knowingly place a wager or bet through the internet where such act is unlawful under State laws where the bet is initiated or received.

Because of this, the UIGEA bans any online gaming site from transacting with any American financial organization. After the bill was enacted, popular poker web sites like PacificPoker.com, PartyPoker.com and bwin ceased their U.S. based operations. Although there are still some site that have not closed down and American players can still play for real money. The UIGEA greatly affected the stock value of these companies.

Following the enactment of the UIGEA, former senator Al D'Amato joined the Poker Players Alliance or PPA. Their aim is to advocate and protect the right of poker players to play online. He kept on lobbying in the Senate and Congress to revoke the said law. As of March 2008, the membership of the PPA is around 900,000.

On April of 2007, Representative Barney Frank introduced the HR 2046 or the Internet Gambling Regulation an Enforcement Act (IGREA). It modifies the UIGEA by having a provision for licensing of Internet Gambling facilities by the Director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

On June of 2007, the House Financial Services Committee chaired by Rep. Frank held a public hearing called Can Internet Gambling Be Effectively Regulated to Protect Consumers and the Payment Systems? Details of the meeting along with achieved videos can be seen at the House Financial Services Committee web site. Expert witnesses testified at the hearing that online gaming can be regulated with regards to age verification, money laundering issues and computation for federal and state taxes. As of March 2008, the IGREA has 47 cosponsors.

A separate legislation HR 2140 or the Internet Gambling Study Act, was file by Representative Shelley Berkley on May 2007. The IGSA sponsors a study by the National Academy of Sciences to help recognize what should be the right response of the United States government with regards to the growth of online gambling. As of December 2007, the IGSA has 68 cosponsors.

There are lots of laws up for enactment. One legislation called HR 2610 or the Skill Game Protection Act is filed by Rep. Robert Wexler. If this law is passed, it will make online poker, chess, bridge, and other games of skill legal. On June 2007, Rep. Jim McDermott introduced HR 2607 or the Internet Gambling Tax Act. This law will help regulate the tax collection for internet gaming.