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Online Casinos in the USA versus
Online Casinos in the UK
 
 
 
Now that online gambling is spreading across the USA, players in the UK might get the idea that more choice and competition will offer them better deals and sign-up offers, as that is what normally happens when the consumer is presented with more options. In this case not so as things are quite a bit different across the pond than they are in the UK or even Europe. One important thing to understand is that no legitimate U.S. casino will allow UK players to play on their site. If you find one that does then it will not be based in the USA but likely somewhere offshore and we advise treating the situation with extreme caution.

Age

One obvious difference that younger players will encounter is the age at which you can gamble at USA casinos is different than in the UK and this applies online as well as the physical casinos. You have to be 21 in the USA to gamble absolutely everywhere, even if you are not American. Across the border in Canada it is 19 except in Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec where it is 18.

Geolocation

All legitimate online casinos around the world now have geolocation as standard. If yours doesn't then beware. This is done because licensing is strict and casinos allowing nationals from countries where either gambling is prohibited, or the countries license themselves, will get the attention of serious fines and legal actions. However it is normal for the geolocation to take place on a nation wide basis. In the USA it is done by state because of the complex rules surrounding gambling created by federal law intervention in internal state operations. The Federal Wire Act still prevents cross-border gambling transactions by phone and the internet.

If you are in a U.S. state that has online facilities and you go to some online casinos USA, whether on a computer or mobile app, you will also be getting a geolocation app that will verify your exact location every time you play. If you happen to be near a state line and the software thinks you are across the border by six feet, then you will be excluded from joining in.

Tax

Something quite shocking to UK players is that gambling winnings over $5000 are subject to a 24% tax unless you declare yourself a professional gambler and then you get taxed as self employed and at the normal income tax rates for your state. If you are from one of the countries with mutual tax agreements, like the UK, then you can fill in a tax exemption form and be exempt from the tax withholding should you strike it lucky.

Scarily if you are an American citizen playing online then you will have to enter you social security number and you will have a tax file generated for you by the casino operator. Loses will offset winnings and you will have to pay tax on any winnings over an amount set by the state, normally $5000 but in some its as low as $1500. Be warned.

Games

Most of the casino games are the same as in the UK with some rule tweaks that the savvy punter should investigate at each individual casino. All the real money pokies and standard table games are there provided by the big software house that they use in both countries. Some crucial differences to know are with games like roulette where the odds are seriously different.

American Roulette is proudly displayed in the USA but it always has a Zero and a Double Zero as standard. This gives the house an edge of 5.4% which is massive. There are other versions like 100-1 roulette but this has one hundred numbers with 5 symbols, so the edge is 5% against you. You can of course hunt down the games labelled “European” or “French” and then you'll be back to the single Zero games with and edge of 2.78%.

Whilst American Roulette is not recommended the blackjack games are better than you might find in the UK or elsewhere in the world. The rules are more favourable with double down allowed on any 2 cards and early surrender which you won't find in the UK. Check your basic strategy tables for the rules that you find as they are different fro casino to casino and state to state.
 
 
 

 
 
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