Australia’s Lottery Corporation Requests Exclusion from Credit Card Ban

Australia’s Lottery Corporation has requested a waiver from the impending gambling reforms targeting credit card use. The Corporation has urged the government that its lottery tickets and scratch cards should exempted from the looming ban, arguing that lotteries are distinguished by a low-harm profile in contrast to other forms of gaming.

The lottery giant recently told a parliamentary inquiry that banning its customers from using credit cards would be inconsequential. The Corporation argued that its products, such as lottery tickets and scratch cards, are “low harm” games compared to other forms of gambling in Australia.

During the legislative submission, the organization said:

“The relatively modest $11.75 average weekly spend per player highlights the inherently recreational nature of lotteries. Despite very high participation, lotteries are associated with very low levels of gambling harm. This is mainly because they are infrequent, non-continuous, and low spend.”

Earlier this year, the Australian government announced plans to amend the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 to criminalize gambling using credit cards. The government plans to implement recommendations made by a parliamentary inquiry in 2021, which said credit cards make up at least 20% of gambling and betting deposits.

“People should not be betting with money they do not have,” Australia’s communications minister, Michelle Rowland, said.

According to the Lottery Corporation’s CEO, Sue van der Merwe, the inquiry committee’s recommendations showed that lottery games have a lower harm profile, saying the committee advised the government to exempt lotteries from the credit card ban.

The expected ban on credit cards on regulated gambling sites is part of the government’s strategy to reduce problem gambling among gamers in Australia. The ACMA (Australia Communications and Media Authority) recently directed ISPs (Internet Service Providers) to block five more gaming sites for violating the Interactive Gambling Act of 2001. This takes the total number of blocked operators to 835.