Online Gambling Law in Malaysia

Updated: 2025

Gambling in Malaysia is considered to be unlawful in all its forms, except for the limited and tightly regulated instances under the jurisdiction of the state-run gaming authority. However, the authority on the unlawful side of gambling does not reach into cyberspace, where operators of internet gaming schemes seem to have no fear of either laws or authority. The National Law of 1953, which prohibits gaming in all its forms, also does not mention or even conceive of the electronic form of gaming that is so widespread today. So, how does one go about declaring illegal a scheme that nobody imagined might exist when the laws were first written?

Generally speaking, online gambling is either ignored or, if not tolerated, at least swept under the rug. Every day, countless Malaysians wager real money on the internet. Most of the big-name international betting sites not only accept customers from Malaysia but also readily deal with us in our local currency.

Despite this, you aren't entirely safe from risk in Malaysia. Calls to ban online gambling are on the rise, and Sharia law influences a lot of what goes on in Malaysia. You have to weigh the odds and decide if the potential for profit makes it worth the risk. Most Malaysians who participate in online gambling do so with carefree abandon. Getting paid, making deposits, and placing bets is as smooth as butter if you stick with the major league providers.

If you choose to gamble online in Malaysia, it's advisable to use international sites that are NOT based in Malaysia. There are two reasons for this: 1. Any sites that operate out of Malaysia are completely illegal, have no oversight, and are as trustworthy as the underground casino operators of yesteryear. Should you use one of these places to gamble and it decides to shut down, you can expect with absolute certainty that it will make an untraceable getaway with all the funds you've deposited. 2. Malaysia-based sites have no incentives to pay out winnings because they exist outside the law.

Second, offshore sites have no physical presence in Malaysia. Malaysian authorities can't just hop on a plane to England and demand that Bet365 hand over its customer information. In other words, you're less likely to be "caught" gambling when you do business with a site that's operated legally in a gambling-friendly nation.

General Gambling Law in Malaysia

A country with a majority of Muslims, Malaysia considers nearly all types of gambling, both online and offline, as illegal. In Malaysia, three principal frameworks regulate gaming legislation. The Betting Act 1953 is the most significant of these.

Moreover, Malaysia's civil contract law stipulates that all agreements made in the form of gambling or wagering are null and void. Consequently, any individual who loses a bet to another can legally refuse to honor it, and the individual who wins the bet has no lawful means to compel the loser to pay up.

1. Betting Act 1953

The Betting Act 1953 completely bans all types of wagering. It even considers the use of the telephone and other means to get your bets to the betting houses and your money back to you. The act's language covers just about every possible way you might try to get around a law written that long ago. And even today, there is no easy way around it.

The law specifies a penalty of up to 200,000 ringgits and 5 years in jail for anyone caught running a betting house—or going into one. It’s unclear if today’s betting sites fall under the definition of a “betting house.” It could be interpreted either way.

This is how the act gives meaning to the term betting house:

(i) any location maintained or utilized for the purpose of making bets or wagers, whether in cash or on credit, on any event, contingency, or outcome relating to horse racing, other types of sporting events, or lotteries that are accessible to the public or segments of the public.

(ii) every spot maintained or employed for the regular practice of placing bets or wagers on the events or contingencies mentioned above, regardless of whether the public can, or might be able to, access such spots; or

(iii) any location utilized by a bookmaker for the reception or negotiation of bets or wagers on any such event or contingency as aforesaid, whether such bets or wagers reach the bookmaker by the hand of the person placing the bet or his agent or the bookmaker's agent or through the telephone, postal service, telegram, or by any other method;

The most troubling part of that excerpt for online betting is those last four words. It's easy to see how this law could be applied to gambling over the internet. The good news for gamblers is that Malaysia doesn't seem to bother with those who are gambling, as many countries do. Instead, it seems to be targeting those who are running, or owning, the betting operations.

2. Common Gaming Houses Act 1953

The Common Gaming Houses Act 1953 addresses nearly all other types of gambling, while the Betting Act 1953 was mainly concerned with sports betting and bookmaking. This act makes it a crime to run a gaming house—and to be found inside one.

Any individual apprehended within a gaming house is liable to a penalty not exceeding 5,000 ringgits and a possible incarceration of six months. The Act characterizes gaming as:

"...the engaging in any game of chance or in any game that is a mixture of chance and skill for money or something that is worth money..."

It also explains at great length the definition of gaming houses. We won't bore you with all the details, but suffice it to say, it covers pretty much every conceivable location where people could come together to place bets. Conceivably, the definition could also encompass gaming websites, but Malaysia seems to have no interest in going after individual online bettors.

3. Sharia Law

The Constitution of Malaysia mandates that all Malays must adhere to Islam, making it the religion of the majority (over 60%) in the nation. Sharia law does not apply to most citizens, who are non-Malay (mostly ethnic Chinese, Indian, and others). But because Sharia law applies to the majority of Malays, who make up more than half of the nation's population, it is important to note that Malaysia has Sharia courts.

In Malaysia, two separate judicial systems operate side by side: Sharia courts and a secular legal system. From the time of the first court established in 1984 until today, debates have persisted concerning the legal system of Malaysia and its future. Should Malaysia's legal system be based on secular law, religious law, or a combination of the two? This contentious discussion has yet to resolve itself amicably.

Malaysia has a dual justice system that is both complex and hard to implement. Sharia is mainly for family matters, but the individual states can apply Sharia in criminal justice. Gambling is prohibited by Sharia, and that could be interpreted to mean that it is also off limits for 60% of the country.