Whenever you look up Canada, natural beauty, national parks, and the hard to leave out maple syrup come up. As of lately, the online slots market is also showing up as a result of its popularity in Canadian regions.

According to the 2011 Canadian Gaming Market Report, internet gambling in Canada generated 1 billion Canadian dollars with 26% of it contributed specifically by online slots. The report also revealed that at least 10% of the adult Canadian population was participating in online slots. As alarming as these numbers are, this was 8 years ago when online casino gaming was just on the dawn; the numbers are obviously much higher by now. Today, popular titles such as China Shores are responsible for driving the popularity of the online slot world because of their extensive 30 pay line platforms that offer numerous opportunities to win. Some of the other impressive features of China Shores free slots from Konami include:

·         Wild and scatter symbol

·         RTP: 96.1%

·         Features bonus round

·         Medium volatility with winnings multiplier

·         A jackpot of 15471

Absolutely Legal

Unlike most jurisdictions in the world, Canada is not one of those places where free online slot games are frowned upon by anyone including the authorities. The situation looked a bit complex in the last years but continued education and research on the legality of online slots in Canada have made things much clearer.

As it is, the government of Canada restricts itself from involvement in gambling issues other than those outlined in part 7 of the Criminal Code of Canada. This part clears out the exemptions laid out in Sec 207 as follows:

·         “Lottery Scheme” used in the code refers to games like free bingo, table games, and slots.

·         The regulation of gambling shall not fall entirely on the state but shall rely on the control of provincial/territorial governments as recognized by the federal law change of 1985. This interpretation gives any province in Canada the right to license or host online casinos as long as it is legally recognized as a separate province by the state.

Kahnawake, a region located within the boundaries does not conform to the rules of the Canadian government as it recognizes itself as a separate state. This means that the Canadian government cannot prosecute the Kahnawake Gaming Commission for licensing casinos as it is not breaking any of its laws. Thanks to the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, Canada is one of the largest online gambling licensers in the world.

The Kahnawake Gaming Commission

The Kahnawake Gaming Commission is a regulatory body responsible for licensing and regulating online casinos, poker rooms, and sports betting sites. It is also responsible for the three brick and mortar poker rooms that are located in the Mohawk region of Kahnawake. The commission has also set out dispute resolution teams that listen to grievances from concerned masses as they are allowed to do so by the law on a full-time basis.

The commission does not issue licenses just randomly to casinos. All the casinos that want to be licensed must meet certain requirements. The cleanness of the procedure is a huge part of the government’s efforts of ensuring that gambling remains safe for the residents in the territory.

The principles overrunning the commission’s operations in the region include payment guarantee for the customers, fair gaming, and preventing exploitation of the masses by offshore casinos. Most experts see the Kahnawake Gaming Commission as the ultimate solution for regulating gambling within the Canadian boundaries although the Canadian government is reluctant to admit to it.

As of now, the Kahnawake Gaming Commission issues four types of licenses. This was legally authorized by the I Gaming recommendations highlighted on September 2010.

Offshore-based online casinos in Canada

Continued reforms by the government have seen things work out for land-based gambling activities in Canada. The same can be said for the online casinos that obtain operating licenses locally from the Kahnawake Gaming Commission. Where does that leave offshore online casinos that want to venture into the Canadian market?

From a player’s point of view, it is illegal to play in an overseas online casino. This, however, is not true because the existing rules do not actually say something in regard to online casinos specifically. As things are, as long as the offshore online casino doesn’t restrict Canadians from enjoying their services, the Canadian territory remains a safe market to venture in.

How the Canadians go about it

Canadians are not known for being hasty about anything without thinking it through first. With the online slots, Canadians prefer the online casinos that offer slots games with free play. This is quite important as it reduces the risk of jumping right into the game without personally evaluating important parameters such as the RTP and volatility first hand. Slots like China Shores are famous among the masses because of having this feature.

Casino Banking Options in Canada

The larger part of online casinos operating in Canada is not based locally.  This could potentially make it hard for Canadians to complete their payments but thanks to technology, virtually all the online casinos that offer free slots in Canada offer a variety of deposit methods including MasterCard, Visa, bank transfers, PaySafeCard, Skrill, Entropay, and many others. This means that Canadians can easily set aside their online slot gambling budgets and deposit at their own convenience.

How old do you have to be to gamble online in Canada?

You must be at least 18 years of age to participate in any form of online casino gaming in Canada. The websites operating in Canada are also not allowed to target other vulnerable masses who might not understand the implication of participating in online slots.

Final thoughts

Debating whether free slots are legal in Canada or not is now a thing of the past. More and more Canadians are taking into the industry with some of the slots like China Shores accounting for the largest fan bases.

The existence of the Kahnawake Gaming commission works in favor of everybody. It serves the purpose of making sure that all the casino companies operate fairly. This regulating body acts as the sole overlooker of gambling activity and is legally equipped to handle any issues that may arise. If any site operating in the Canadian territory breaks the rules, they are automatically shut down for non-compliance or are levied with huge fines. As positive as it sounds, it is now a matter of asking whether the Canadian government will participate in more clarifying talks with the provincial regulators to ensure an even safer online gambling environment for the Canadians.