In general, Hawaii is not considered to be gambling friendly. While there are no laws in Hawaii that specifically outlaw online gambling for Hawaii residents, there is also no law that specifically legalizes it.Hawaii’s legal position on gambling is clear and simple – gambling is not legal in the state. Online Gambling Legality In Hawaii. A cursory reading of 712-1220 (4) & (5) will show: 4) “Gambling. A person engages in gambling if he stakes or risks something of value upon the outcome of a contest of chance or a future contingent event not under his control or influence, upon an agreement or understanding that he or someone else will.

• Year Hawaii Regulated Gambling: There are no forms of regulated and legal Hawaii gambling
• Estimated Tax Revenue from Gambling: None
• Estimated Gambling Revenue: None
• Hawaii Gambling Age: None
• Smoking ban: Hawaii bans smoking in all public places
• Hawaii Online gambling: There are no forms of legalized online gambling in Hawaii

Hawaii is one state with no casinos, and does not allow any form of gambling. Utah is the other. Bingo is not even allowed. This includes charitable purposes. With no Hawaii gambling available, it is still great for tourists.

Hawaii is not anti-gambling, it simply does not want to compete with Las Vegas and other bigger gambling vacation spots. Most tourists do not go on vacation to Hawaii with the thought of gambling. Hawaii casinos would simply take money out of the local economy and be mostly funded by residents of the islands. There are services residents and tourists can use, like casino party and event centers. You can play casino games, but there is not real betting or money exchanged. Below you can use our Hawaii casinos map of services.

Hawaii does not allow casino cruise ships to operate from their state. Even though most states without gambling allow cruise ships to operate. Cruises that originate or end in Hawaii may not possess commercial gambling devices, including electronic casino games. Hawaii casino gamblers must go to the mainland to get any kind of gambling action.

Hawaii Casinos Map of Event Services

• None

• Number of B&M Casinos: 0
• Number of Poker Rooms: 0
• Number of Indian Casinos: 0

Types of Online Hawaii Gambling Allowed

There are no forms of legal online gambling in Hawaii, including online casino gambling. Daily fantasy sports are not even legal. Hawaii Attorney General Doug Chin announced in January 2016 that daily fantasy sports were illegal in the state. Honolulu Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro followed this up by sending cease-and-desist orders to FanDuel and DraftKings, ordering the two sites to stop accepting action from players in Oahu. DraftKings immediately complied with this order, something that shocked the daily fantasy sports industry as the site typically ignores these demands and challenged them in court.

Types of Live Hawaii Gambling

There are no forms of live gambling that are legal in Hawaii. The closest thing to it is home poker games. Bars may offer poker tournaments as long as there is no buy-in.

There are no Hawaii casinos on any of the islands. This is due to the fact that most tourists do not go to Hawaii looking to gamble, but rather enjoy any of the other amenities that the state has to offer. On top of this fact, Hawaii does not want to compete with the larger states where gambling is expected and anticipated when tourists travel to those locations, like Las Vegas.

Hawaii Gambling Laws

Hawaii gambling laws are serious about not legalizing any forms of gambling. Promoting gambling in the first degree and possession of gambling records are both Class C felonies in Hawaii. Most other crimes in Hawaii gambling laws are considered misdemeanors. Hawaii gambling law defines gambling as a person staking or risking something of value upon a game of chance or upon any future contingent event not under the person’s control. Any material degree of chance is considered a wager under state law.

Best Online Gambling Sites

Most states without casinos permits boats to operate gambling as long as they go into international waters. Hawaii does not allow any casino cruise ships to do this. Any cruises that originate or conclude in the Hawaiian Islands are not permitted to possess gambling devices.

Where to Gamble in Hawaii

There is no gambling in Hawaii. Any Hawaii casino gamblers looking for these types of games must catch a flight to the mainland. The most popular destination is Las Vegas, Nevada.

Those that want the experience of playing casino games while in Hawaii can find these services. There are plenty of Hawaii casinos services, like party and event centers that offer the games, without the real money gambling being involved.

History of Gambling in Hawaii

Gambling has never been a part of the culture in Hawaii. Some racetracks operated in the country before it joined the United States. There have been no forms of gambling in Hawaii since it became the 50^th state in 1959. There have been few attempts to change this. One exception is online poker. A handful of Hawaii Assembly members tried to legalize online poker starting in 2008. This went on for six years until the effort proved to be futile. No attempt was made in 2015 or 2016.

Daily fantasy sports sites operated in Hawaii until 2016. In January of that year, Attorney General Doug Chin and his office released an opinion that stated daily fantasy sports is illegal.

“Gambling generally occurs under Hawaii law when a person stakes or risks something of value upon a game of chance or upon any future contingent event, not under the person’s control,” Chin said in a statement at the time. “The technology may have changed, but the vice has not.”

DraftKings left the Hawaii market within days. This was only the second time DraftKings obeyed an order from a state attorney general. The other state was Nevada. On the other hand, DraftKings decided to fight attorneys general in New York and Illinois. It is believed that DraftKings did not feel the Hawaii daily fantasy sports market was worth fighting to save due to its size. Football, baseball, and basketball are not nearly as popular in Hawaii as they are in most other states. The time zone and great weather are thought to be reasons for the lack of interest in sports in the state.

Hawaii Casinos & Gambling FAQ

There are currently no casinos in Hawaii due to strict gambling laws.

Casinos are not legal in Hawaii.

There is no legal gambling in Hawaii. It is one of just two states without any forms gambling. Utah is the other.

No. Only ships that temporarily dock in Hawaii may offer gambling. Cruises that begin or end in Hawaii may not.

Lotteries are illegal in Hawaii.

Daily fantasy sports sites are considered to be illegal in Hawaii.

These sites and others like it are not legal in Hawaii.

Contents

Out of all states in the US, Hawaii, Washington, and Utah are the only ones that outlaw all forms of gambling. They even prohibit bingo for charitable purposes. The definition of gambling Hawaii’s law is as follows — “betting something of value on a contest of chance.” The Aloha state’s government considers gambling to be a misdemeanor offense.

Since there aren’t any brick-and-mortar casinos, a lot of Hawaiian citizens decide to breach the law and play in either offshore casinos or underground gambling establishments. We strongly recommend that you avoid both.

This article is an in-depth overview of the gambling laws in Hawaii and covers the specifics of what you can and can’t do regarding gambling. The article will also guide you through all forms of gambling that are legal in the state today, as well as provide a comprehensive overview of the state’s most important laws.

Top 5 Hawaii Online Casinos

A Short History of Hawaii’s Gambling Laws

Back in 1778 when Captain James Cook discovered Hawaii, gambling was a popular way to relax among the Aloha state’s citizens during the Makahiki festival. Residents were able to wager on different contests and games from October to February. Even those who didn’t participate in competitions could wager on their outcome.

However, as the festival lost its popularity over the years, in the 1800s the Christian missionaries banned gambling based on ethical grounds. In August 1825, Hawaii’s native chiefs had a meeting and decided to forbid theft, vice, gambling, and violation of the Sabbath.

The Aloha state is a gambling-free zone ever since it joined the United States in 1959. Not even charitable bingo or horse racing are permitted based on the premise that if domestic legislators enabled gambling that would damage the local economy. This state is one of a couple of states that don’t approve a state lottery. To this day, the bills created to change this weren’t approved.

The local authorities believe that the Aloha state shouldn’t try to battle Las Vegas and Atlantic City dominance in land-based gambling. This is because if they were to introduce brick-and-mortar casinos, this would only damage the domestic companies since they would have to compete with gambling establishments over the tourists’ spending.

The Current Gambling Laws in Hawaii and Their Future

Hawaii’s principal gambling provisions didn’t change for the most part ever since Hawaii joined the United States in 1959. The Aloha state is widely different from other States since its amendments have actually reinforced the anti-gambling laws instead of permitting particular forms of gambling.

Like the majority of other law definitions, the ones the Aloha state utilizes are wide enough to ensure that gambling enthusiasts of any specific game can’t state that they weren’t included. According to Chapter 712-1220, Hawaii’s legal definition of gambling is as follows:

“A citizen engages in gambling if they risk or stake something of value upon the result of a future contingent or a game of luck not under their influence or control, upon an understanding or contract that they or another person will gain something of value in the case of a particular outcome.”

There were some attempts in the recent past to legalize gambling. However, they ended very early in the law-making activity and hadn’t even arrived at the committee level, let alone had the chance to be placed at the popular vote. Some of the more notable examples include:

• 2010 — A couple of bills for investigating the opening of a committee that would explore the possible expansion of casino gambling and a motion to create a State lottery. Not a single one of them reached anything beyond the floor.
• 2011 — Hawaii almost legalized poker because a bill was introduced defining poker as a game of skill, meaning it would be exempt from the state gambling rules. Unfortunately, the bill didn’t receive a House Finance Committee hearing because of the lack of required public support.
• 2012 — The bill 2242 that appealed to the creation of another committee. This one would explore the legislation surrounding online gambling. Yet again, the bill lost approval before it had the chance to reach a serious debate.
• 2013 — A bill that would push the setup of a Hawaii Online Lottery and Gaming Corporation was proposed. However, it didn’t acquire the state’s approval.

Possible new bills frequently rouse the gambling press, but veteran industry commentators speak of something different — that those opposing gambling are powerful enough in the Aloha state to make sure that the current situation won’t change in the near future.

Even today, Hawaii, Washington, and Utah represent the most rigorous anti-gambling States in the US, with the first permitting only social poker games for its citizens. You should keep in mind that those merely participating in gambling are scarcely touched by the frequent crackdowns and busts. This is because busts and crackdowns target profiteers and organizers, rather than those merely enjoying gambling. If you want to gamble in offshore casinos, you could be breaching the law in its strictest sense, but you’re doing so with the slightest risk of the government persecuting you personally. However, you should take legal advice from a Hawaiian lawyer before deciding whether to play online casino games in offshore casinos from Hawaii.

For now, it seems that the future scenario of the island state’s gambling landscape is one of no change. The only way for something to change would be an improbable loss of tourism income. At the moment, the Aloha state seems to be very content with the current zero gambling situation.

What Types of Gambling Are Allowed?

As we said, the Island State’s gambling legislature is rigorous, meaning it forbids any kind of gambling. In other words, you can’t gamble anywhere, including that on ships as well as in gambling establishments of any kind. Not even dog or horse races are allowed. Although social gambling is allowed, it must not be played in a:

• Bar
• Nightclub
• Motel
• Hotel
• Or any company establishment or public place.

Even though you can enjoy social poker in the island state, there exist harsh rules that surround it. For starters, those who organize them can’t profit from being their host. The legislature even says that the one hosting them can’t make money from selling food or beverages.

Online Poker

Not a single form of casino table games, including online poker, is permitted in the Aloha state. While the state’s gambling landscape will change a bit in the future, it’s highly improbable that the legalization of online poker would occur any time soon. With this in mind, any Hawaiian citizen should enjoy private poker games instead of breaching the law by playing online.

Is Online Gambling Legal in Hawaii?

Even though Hawaii doesn’t explicitly prohibit online gambling, the overall legislative situation is rigorous and broad enough to include any kind of online gambling activity. If you were caught gambling in the Aloha state you could be fined up to $2,000 or go to jail for a year. Although particular legislative exceptions exist regarding social gambling, online gamblers can’t exploit them.

Hawaii Gambling Legislature Regarding Indian Tribal Lands

Even states that directly prohibit brick-and-mortar casinos don’t forbid Indian tribes that are present there to open gambling establishments based on the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. However, this isn’t the case for Hawaii. Since Hawaii doesn’t have any federally recognized Indian tribes, no such gambling can exist.

FAQ

No, as Hawaii is one of the strictest states regarding gambling.

For now, the answer is no. Hawaii doesn’t even take part in multi-state games like Mega Millions and Powerball, so its citizens can’t purchase any lottery tickets.

Zero, since gambling isn’t allowed in the Aloha state.

Online Gambling Hawaii

Unfortunately, any kind of gambling is illegal in Hawaii. However you can play at offshore online casinos instead.

Hawaii Online Gambling Laws

The island state’s minimum gambling age is 18. However, Hawaii’s residents can only join social gambling or legally sanctioned offshore casinos.