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NEW DELHI: Within a span of a week, India introduced and passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025. The bill was first passed in the Lok Sabha, followed by the Rajya Sabha the next day. It then received presidential assent and was officially notified in the gazette. The only thing pending now is for the government to issue a notification indicating the date from when the law will come into force and start being implemented.
What does his mean? Any app or online platform offering money-based games or related services in India is now considered illegal. These platforms will no longer be allowed to operate in the country and will be subject to penalties and punishment if found in violation. However, the Act also states that it will promote social gaming and e-sports, with a focus on building a healthy online gaming ecosystem. In simple terms, the government has imposed a blanket ban on all online games involving monetary transactions.
As a result, platforms that offer real-money games — such as Dream11, Games24x7, Winzo, GamesKraft, 99Games, KheloFantasy, and My11Circle — will be required to shut down their services in India.
The government reasoned that money-based online gaming has become increasingly addictive, leading to serious financial harm and social distress. In its view, protecting citizens from these harms takes priority over supporting a small segment of the gaming industry.
Industry experts and companies argue that the real-money gaming sector contributes approximately Rs 20,000 crore annually in direct and indirect taxes. The industry also supports nearly 2,00,000 direct and indirect jobs across more than 400 companies. They warn that the ban could lead to widespread job losses and the closure of numerous firms.
Different online games
The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 divides online games into four types: e-sports, social games, educational games, and online money games. According to the Act, an “online money game” is any online game—based on skill, chance, or both—where a user pays a fee, deposits money, or places a stake with the hope of winning something valuable in return, usually money. Simply put, money games in India, also called real money games (RMG), are online platforms where people pay to join games and have a chance to win cash based on how well they play. These include games like fantasy sports (such as cricket or football), rummy, poker, and other games that involve financial transactions. In these games, players usually deposit money to participate, and the platforms earn revenue by taking a percentage of the winnings or charging entry fees.
Some popular platforms offering these money games in India are Dream11, which is the largest fantasy sports platform focused on cricket, football, and more; Games24x7, which runs My11Circle for fantasy sports and RummyCircle for online rummy; GamesKraft, known for its rummy games; and Mobile Premier League (MPL), which offers a mix of fantasy sports, rummy, poker, and other games. Apart from money games, the Act also includes e-sports, social games, and educational games. E-sports are competitive video games played in tournaments, much like traditional sports, with games like PUBG and FIFA being popular examples. Social games are casual games mainly played for fun with friends, such as Ludo King, Candy Crush, or online chess. Educational games are meant for learning and skill development. The Act encourages these types of games because of their positive impact.
Promotion of games
Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, while introducing the bill in Parliament, said that it is only banning games involving money transactions, which are addictive, while promoting other e-sports. According to the Act, the government will take steps to officially recognise and support e-sports as a legitimate competitive sport in India. This means treating video game competitions similarly to traditional sports like cricket or football.
What is prohibited
The Act clearly states that it is illegal for anyone to offer or help others offer online games where real money is involved. That includes organising, supporting, or even encouraging people to play such games.
Simply put, if a game involves people paying money to play and the chance to win money in return, it is not allowed. Additionally, no one is allowed to create or share advertisements promoting these types of games.
This includes ads in newspapers, TV, apps, websites, social media, or even messages sent through email or messaging apps. Also, as per the Act, banks, digital wallets, and any financial platforms are also not allowed to help process payments related to these games. If they do, it will be treated as a violation of this law.
Regulatory authority
The Act allows the Central government to create or appoint a special body, called the Authority, to regulate online gaming. This Authority can include a Chairperson and other members. The Authority can decide whether a particular game involves real money or not, based on applications it receives or by starting its own investigations.
If the law is violated—like offering games, promoting them, or helping in payments—the government can block websites or content related to such games. The Centre can appoint officers who can enter physical or digital spaces, such as offices, homes, websites, apps, or servers, to search or arrest people involved in illegal gaming, without needing a warrant. If someone is arrested by a non-police officer, that person must be taken to a police station or court quickly. The law protects government officers and members of the Authority from legal action if they act in good faith.
Penalties and offences
The Act includes provisions to penalise everyone from service providers to advertisers to those who facilitate transactions like banks, but not players. According to minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the player is a victim, not an offender.
As per the Act, anyone offering a real-money online gaming service despite the ban, can be jailed for up to three years or fined up to Rs 1 crore, or both. If someone breaks the advertising ban and promotes these games, the punishment is up to two years in jail, a fine of up to Rs 50 lakh, or both. Anyone who helps transfer or receive payments for real-money gaming can also face up to three years in jail or a Rs 1 crore fine, or both.
If someone repeats the same offence (like a second or third time), the punishment becomes harsher. Offences related to offering games or processing payments are also classified as “cognizable” and “non-bailable”, meaning police can arrest without a warrant, and bail is not guaranteed.
Why the legislation
According to the government, online gaming in India has grown rapidly, mainly because of affordable smartphones and widespread internet access. However, there is currently no single law or clear set of rules to regulate this industry. At the same time, online money games—where players deposit money for a chance to win cash—have become very common and easy to access.
These games are causing serious problems for individuals and society. Many people become addicted, lose large amounts of money, suffer from stress, and fall victim to scams.
The technology behind these games is often hidden. The algorithms may be designed to keep users playing, and some platforms even use bots or fake players. Some platforms have been used for illegal activities like money laundering, financial fraud, and even funding terrorism, making them a risk to national security.
Earlier attempts at curbs
This is not the first time the government has targeted the online money gaming industry. In October 2023, the GST Council, following its 50th and 51st meetings, imposed a 28% GST on the full face value of deposits made by players on real-money gaming (RMG) platforms. This applied to both games of skill and chance. It replaced the earlier system where GST was charged only on platform fees or gross gaming revenue (GGR). After this change, several RMG companies, including Dream11, Gameskraft, and MPL, received GST evasion notices totaling over Rs 1.5 lakh crore for the period from 2017 to 2023.
In April 2023, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) amended the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, to regulate online gaming. These rules proposed creating self-regulatory bodies to certify games, enforcing KYC norms, ensuring transparency, and attempting to block illegal offshore betting platforms. However, enforcement proved difficult.
Industry reaction
The online gaming industry strongly reacted to the ban on real money games. The All India Gaming Federation (AIGF) wrote to Home Minister Amit Shah, requesting urgent help. It suggested regulation instead of banning the industry. AIGF warned that the ban could hurt millions of players and push them toward unsafe and illegal gaming sites. It said the law could destroy a growing industry that creates jobs and helps the economy. These companies are exploring options to escalate the matter to the Supreme Court of India.
Following the new law banning real money games, Dream11 announced it is stopping all cash contests. Nazara Technologies’ partner company, Moonshine Technologies (which runs PokerBaazi), has also halted real money operations. Games24x7, the company behind RummyCircle and My11Circle, confirmed it has stopped real money games and allowed users to withdraw funds. WinZO and other major platforms like A23, Zupee, MPL, and GamesKraft followed suit.
