Online casinos accepting players from Colombia

Latin Americans do know how to enjoy gambling, as history shows. Many states in Latin America have legalized and regulated gambling, allowing their players to participate in all kinds of games in a safe environment.

Colombia is one of these states…

… that has been offering legal gambling to its citizens for years now. Regulated with the 1977 and 1978 Presidential Decrees on Gambling, the country has been issuing licenses to interesting operators for a long time. The majority of licensed establishments, however, are based within the city of Bogota. El Castillo is the country’s sole racino. Nevertheless, sportsbetting is one of the most popular forms of gambling in the country, with a particular focus on greyhound and horseracing.

The regulatory body Coljuegos…

… is the one responsible for issuing licenses to operators. But also the one that puts huge efforts into stopping illegal gambling facilities, something the country is most known for. In 2013, it managed to crackdown many unlicensed establishments, but the fight never stopped. In 2015, in cooperation with the Ministry of Local Government and Coljuegos, the national police issued arrest warrants and shut down 27 slotmachine providers and five unlawful betting facilities. Those found guilty of the crime were to pay a financial penalty of COP193 million or serve an imprisonment term of 6 to 8 months.

The same crackdown…

… of illegal gaming houses continued, but Coljuegos extended the scope of the search, trying toclean up the industry and started busting down illegal interactive offshore operators, as well. The regulator urged online casinoplayers to report unlicensed operators. But despite all the efforts, international operators continued to target players from Colombia.

Best Online Casinos for Colombia

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Legal Online Gambling in Colombia

The first talks about legalizing online gambling…

… started sometime in 2015, when GTECH-operated brand Baloto, announced its intention to legally apply for a license to operate over the internet in the country in 2016. Towards the end of the same year, Coljuegos published a number of draft proposals seeking to regulate online gambling. The regulatory framework was detailed in those proposals, including the requirements for operators. The games to be permitted were blackjack, roulette, online slots, poker, baccaratand bingo, as well as sportsbetting. Non-sports events, horseracingand pari-mutual betting were excluded from the plan. No limit on licenses was set, but the tax was set at 15% of gross to be paid to the government and 1% to Coljuegos.

The eGaming Act was formally passed in 2016…

… by the government, and the proposed regulatory framework was accepted. However, in addition to the 15% of a gross win, operators needed to pay a license fee of around $190k, too, except those offering daily fantasy sportsor other games of skill. In the meantime, Coljuego, entrusted with the enforcement of the new regulations and the licensing, continued its fight with illegal gambling sites. In 2017, the regulator directed the Communications Ministry to block all interactive operators which were offering their services in the country without a proper license. A blacklist of 325 operators illegally targeting Colombian players was published, too. Payments to and from unlicensed operators illegally operating in the market were blocked, as well.

On the bright side…

… many operators received their five-year interactive gambling licenses to operate in the legal online gambling market in Colombia, including Wplay.co, Betplay.com, Zamba.co, Colbet.co, CodereApuestas and Masgol.co, among others. Sportium, a brand which is a product of the collaboration between the UK bookmaker Ladbrokesand Spain’s Cirsa Gaming Corp, was also granted a five-year license. A USoperator Rush Street also got its license.

Towards the end of 2019 and the beginning of 2020…

… the regulator amended regulations to permit betting on virtualevents effective immediately, permitted gambling advertising, and allowed operators to offer Live Dealercasino games. In 2020, Colombia even temporarily legalized online bingo and scratchcards, to assist the economic recovery from the closure of facilities due to COVID-19 virusthat hit the world by a storm.

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Colombia Online Casinos

As you could see…

… from the online gambling overview, Coljuegos is pretty serious when it comes to busting illegal operators and licensing the ones that meet the criteria to legally operate on the market. You could see how strict the regulator is with blacklisting casinos that are not licensed to provide Colombian players with online gambling services, and you could see that it blocks payments to and from these sites.

Therefore…

… you should avoid trying to join unlicensed casinos. Online gambling in your country is perfectly legal and regulated, so you should, for your own good, play at the licensed sites. That way, you will get the proper player protectionhttps://news.worldcasinodirectory.com/event/2020-player-protection-forum, you will play at sites that comply with the country’s regulatory framework, and will keep your private and financial details safe.

True, unlicensed casinos…

… continue offering their services to Colombian players and continue targeting the market, but for your own benefit, you should only play at sites that are properly licensed. That way you will avoid getting your funds frozen on an illegal online casino account.

Games at Colombia Online Casinos

Premier developers …

… like NetEnt, Booongo, Greentube, ORYX, Wazdan, and Red Rake have entered the legal online gambling in Colombia thought the years. That means that as a player from Colombia, you get to play some of the world’s most popular and most engaging games in the industry, as these are all developers that have been recognized as the very best in their respective verticals. In 2020, when Live Casino games were legally introduced in the country, Evolutionwas the first developer to represent its offer in Colombia, so you can try out its world-class Live Dealers portfolio, as well.

The thing is…

… across the sites licensed to operate in the country, you will today find all kinds of games. Since virtually all forms of online gambling and games are allowed, you can all you need to do is join one of the licensed brands and you’ll instantly get legal access to all the previously mentioned games, and the following ones, among others:

The previously mentioned developers ensure players get the widest choice of games at their disposal, so they often create unique, innovative titles which are a combination of two or three game types. Therefore, in addition to the all previously mentioned and listed games, you should expect to find combos like Slingo, Live Craps and TV show-style Live Dealer games like Deal or No Deal, for instance.

You can rest assured…

… that all of these games are perfectly random and fair, as they are all running on a Random Number Generator. This device, which generates only random game results, is tested for fairness by respective third-party auditors like eCOGRA and iTechLabs. Whichever casino displays their logos, means that it is a fair and safe site to join, offering random game results.

Best Live Dealer Casinos for Colombia

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Mobile Betting

If worried whether …

… you’ll be able to play across licensed online casinos via your mobile device, you’re worrying for nothing. Considering online gambling is perfectly legal in your country, you can enjoy your favourite online casino games wherever you go. You don’t need to hide your phone or tablet in public while you’re playing roulette, for instance, or placing a bet on your favourite team. No, you can play on the go whenever you want.

The thing is…

… online casino operators that provide its services in the country have all optimized their sites for mobile play. And, they have even created mobile casino apps that you can download. Developers, on the other hand, have made their games compatible with mobile devices, so you have everything pre-set for you to play on the go.

Colombia Banking & Casino Payment Methods

If you’re playing at a legit casino…

… a casino licensed by the Coljuegos, you can use any method of your preference to fund your online gambling time and cash out your winnings. The thing is, the regulator blocks only payments to and from unlicensed casinos. So, as long as you’re playing at a legit site, you can use any method that you want, any method that you’re already using in your everyday life.

Therefore, your choices…

… are limitless. Whether you prefer using credit cards, debit cards, eWallets, vouchers, prepaid cards, or gift cards, you can use them all across Colombia-licensed online casinos. The following are some of your choices:

The best part is…

… you can use the Colombian peso as your default currency. All the casino and sportsbetting sites licensed in the country allow you to use your currency and avoid paying unnecessary conversion fees like you would if you're playing at an international online casino site.

FAQ

1. When I want to play on my mobile device, must I download the casino app?

Not necessarily. As explained, casinos do offer apps, but it is up to you whether you want to spare space on your phone memory to download an app or you just want to play via the mobile-optimized site.

2. How to check whether the casino I want to join holds a license by Coljuego?

If an online casino is licensed to operate by Coljuego, it should have the license displayed at the bottom of its homepage. If not, you should check the Terms and Conditions or Legal page, to look for the license.

3. Is there a way to see the payment methods offered before I join the casino?

In most cases, yes. The casino should have the logos of all the payment methods offered at the bottom of its homepage, or on pages like Deposits/Withdrawals or Cashier/Banking/Payment Methods.

4. Do sites licensed in Colombia offer Customer Support?

Sure. In order to comply with the regulations and rules as set by Coljuego, all casinos must provide a Customer Support service, which would attend to players’ problems and questions, and guide them what to do in case there’s a dispute.

5. Does Customer Support speak Spanish or only English?

In most cases, the casinos that get a license to operate on the market are international casinos, and they would probably offer support in English as a primary language, and maybe in Spanish, as it is one of the most widely-used languages in the world. But there are such casinos that take the next step and create sites just for the market, and in that case, the Support agents would all be Spanish native speakers.

6. Do all the sites licensed in Colombia support Spanish on their sites?

That’s highly likely. Especially casinos with sites containing .co in their domain, which are specifically created for the market. These sites should offer even offer Customer Support in Spanish as a primary language.

7. Do licensed casinos offer special bonuses for the players from my country?

Yes! As a matter of fact, casinos always tend to attract new players, and that’s why they are constantly running bonus and promotional offers, special offers for players from the country included.

8. What is the gambling age limit in Colombia?

The legal gambling age limit in the country is 18. Therefore, to join a licensed online casino, you would have to be at least 18 or older.

9. Is the gambling age limit across international online casinos different?

In most cases, no. The age limit is usually 18 across international online casinos, as well, even though there are such casinos where the limit is 21 or older. Usually, these are casinos that are based in a country like the US, where 21 is the age you become an adult, and you’re allowed to drink and gamble.

10. Will online bingo be available permanently on the market?

That’s highly unlikely. The government regulated online bingo for the time being in 2020, to help the industry cope with COVID-19-caused losses. But Coljuego clearly explained that these games would be permitted only until the end of 2021.