Asia is comparatively new to the game of poker. It consists of48 countries. The Asia online poker law is, therefore, as diverse as the continent itself. With the internet revolution and influx of technology, there has been a paradigm shift towards the game of poker. You get to see both online and offline versions of the poker game in Asia.
The Asia online poker law – an overview:
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Afghanistan: Gambling was outlawed during the Taliban regime. There are a few sites that offer online poker games there.
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Armenia: Though online poker game is gaining ground in the mountainous country Armenia, there is still no legal site for the same.
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Azerbaijan: Online poker is still at bay in Azerbaijan though the people here have the appetite for it. In consequence, there has been a black market for the game of poker here.
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Bahrain: This island nation strictly prohibits the poker game.
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Bangladesh: Bangladesh follows a strict policy on poker that prohibits the game in totality there.
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Bhutan: Bhutan doesn’t endorse the game of poker though some online sites are accepting the players from Bhutan these days.
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Brunei: Playing poker in Brunei can bring harsh penalties on you.
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Cambodia: The country is known as the hotbed for the game of poker. People from across the border such as China, Thailand, and Vietnam come here to play the game.
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China: Except Macau and Hong Kong, gambling is illegal in China. As such, underground poker market is huge here.
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East Timor: Poker isn’t a popular game here. Moreover, the government has disapproved any form of gambling here.
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Egypt: Egypt allows poker and gambling as a whole. In fact, poker is quickly gaining the popularity here.
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India: Online poker game is not licensed here. You can, however, find many sites that are active here.
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Indonesia: Indonesia is conservative about any form of gambling. Poker isn’t legalized here.
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Iran: Iran endorses strict laws on gambling. Poker is completely banned here.
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Iraq: Iraq despite being a Muslim country fully endorses gambling including the poker.
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Israel: Gambling is legal but highly regulated by the government. Local companies, except the official lottery and sports betting, cannot run online gambling sites.
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Japan: There is no legal casino in Japan. The government allows a restrictive practice here in the form of pari-mutuel betting with the official channels such as soccer toto, lottery, and public sport.
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Jordan: Gambling is limited in Jordan and poker is completely banned here.
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North Korea: Poker has no future in North Korea as gambling is completely prohibited here.
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South Korea: South Korea endorses a restrictive view on gambling. Poker isn’t legalized here.
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Kuwait: Poker is illegal in Kuwait and it bans any form of gambling.
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Kyrgyzstan: Poker is currently prohibited here. Talks are on to legalize gambling here.
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Laos: Gambling is technically illegal here, so is the poker.
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Lebanon: The country endorses legal gambling. Except some lottery sites, there is no legal poker site currently active in Lebanon.
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Malaysia: Poker isn’t popular here and there is no legal poker room in Malaysia.
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Maldives: Gambling is illegal and so is the poker here.
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Mongolia: Live poker is illegal here.
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Nepal: The Nepalese are fascinated about poker, but it’s banned now.
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Oman: Currently all forms of gambling is prohibited here.
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Pakistan: Some forms of gambling are allowed, but poker isn’t popular here.
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Palestine: Neither gambling nor poker is popular here.
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Philippines: Gambling is very popular so is the poker here.
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Qatar: Gambling is completely forbidden here.
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Russia: All forms of gambling is banned here.
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Saudi Arabia: Gambling is completely illegal in Saudi Arabia.
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Singapore: Poker is popular though the laws on gambling do not hold a clear view of the country.
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Sri Lanka: Gambling is legalized here so is the poker.
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Syria: Poker isn’t legal here.
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Taiwan: Poker is not legal in Taiwan though it is pretty popular here.
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Tajikistan: Gambling is illegal though poker sites accept players from Tajikistan.
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Thailand: Though illegal gambling is rampant, the Thai government is against it.
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Turkey: Gambling is now banned in Turkey, but Turks have a big appetite for it.
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Myanmar: Myanmar has 4 legal casinos, but poker is not popular here.
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Turkmenistan: It has 2 legal casinos and 5 poker tables in total. Average disposable income is low here.
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United Arab Emirates: All forms of gambling is strictly prohibited here.
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Uzbekistan: All forms of gambling is banned here.
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Vietnam: Except the state lottery, all forms of gambling is prohibited.
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Yemen: Neither gambling nor poker is popular here with per capita GDP pegged at $2000 p.a. only.
In a nutshell, the Asia online poker law is mostly crippled either by the conservative laws of the land or by the poor per capita income.