Top Online Casinos for Saint Martin
Online gambling is legal and regulated in the Collectivity of Saint Martin, a Caribbean nation that shares one small beautiful island with another country – Sint Maarten. Unique in many ways, the island is known as the world’s earliest entity with an open border, which was established back in 1648 by the treaty of Concordia – long before the first ideas about the formation of the European Union were put on the table. Without further ado, let’s take a closer look at the land-based and distant opportunities to gamble in St. Martin.
Overview
One of the most sought-after tourist destinations, the island attracts thousands of guests from all over the globe with its pristine beaches, incredibly delicious rum, engaging pirate stories, and multicultural and binational character. Well, the latter often causes confusion for first-time visitors because the absence of a border makes them feel like they are in two different parts of one country.
However, the reality is different and the tiny island is home to two nations, each has its own government, laws, and currencies. Saint Martin, the subject of this review, is a part of France while Sint Maarten is an autonomous part of the Netherlands. The French side covers a bigger area (2/3 of the island) but is less developed than the Dutch one, which is actually the center of incendiary nightlife and Vegas-style entertainment.
All 13 land-based casinos…
… are located on the Dutch territory, so tourists looking for real action should literally pick the right side - the French part features no brick-and-mortar gambling venues.
Many people find it strange – as a part of France, the Collectivity of Saint Martin follows French gambling laws and the latter allows a wide variety of betting activities, so why are there no casinos on the French part of the island? As a matter of fact, the reason is more prosaic than one would expect – it’s not for restrictions, it’s for taxes.
High taxes, incredibly high taxes for gaming businesses – the home of the Great revolution is widely known for its insatiable progressive taxation system that hardly can create an encouraging or favorable environment. That’s why all land-based casinos are on the Dutch side, even though gambling there is technically unregulated.
Local Gambling Laws
All common forms of gambling activities are legal in Saint Martin and regulated by ANJ, which is short for the French Gambling Authority. The Caribbean nation itself doesn’t have any dedicated agency or licensing body, so ANI is in charge of everything related to land-based and online betting.
The list of offline activities that can be licensed in the Island of Salt (natives call the island Soualiga due to its huge salt ponds) is really extensive, covering slot machines, table games, bingo, lottery, and other popular gambling activities. The legal gambling age was changed in 1987 and decreased from 21 to 18.
And online gambling?
When it comes to distant forms of gambling permitted in Saint Martin, licenses are issued for poker, sports betting, as well as horse racing. Since 2020, the entire process of obtaining gaming licenses has been less complicated and more business-friendly thanks to the introduction of the PACTE Law, known as France's action plan for business growth and transformation regulation. Plus, there were certain changes in the GGR tax plan.
The main piece of legislation to regulate online wagering activities is the French Gambling Act (Law number 2010-476) passed by the French Government in 2010 after the pressure of the European Union. The same year, interactive entertainment (poker, sportsbook, and horse racing) was automatically legalized in Saint Martin. Unfortunately, slot machines, roulette, blackjack, and other popular casino games were not covered by the newly adopted law.
Online Casinos In Saint Martin
While there are no online casinos licensed in Saint Martin, the good news is players who reside on the island or visit it have unrestricted access to foreign websites. St. Martin is a part of France, which is one of the EU member states, and the Freedom To Provide Services (Article 56 TFEU) is at the core of the EU functioning.
Quite simply, if a country does not provide opportunities for offshore gaming operators to obtain a local license, then this country cannot prevent individuals from visiting such sites or sanction them for playing. In other words, online casinos licensed and regulated in other jurisdictions are not blocked in Saint Martin, which provides players access to a great many top-rated websites - just take a look at the list featured below and see for yourself.
Further Reading
Angola
Aruba
Benin
Bolivia
Central African Republic
Casinos found: 750
Vegas Casino Online
Bonus code: VEGASPLAY
09/08/16
300% up to $3000
Sign Up Bonus
Las Vegas USA
09/08/16
25% Cashback
Cashback Bonus - EXCLUSIVE
300% up to $3000
Sign Up Bonus
200% up to $7000
Sign Up Bonus - Slots
25% Cashback
Cashback Bonus - EXCLUSIVE
250% up to $1250
Sign Up Bonus
200% up to $2000
Sign Up Bonus
$35
No Deposit - Exclusive
500% up to $2500
Sign Up Bonus
150% up to €300 + 100 Spins
Sign Up Bonus
-
-
-
-
All Software
€/$50
No Deposit
100% up to €/$200 + 100 Spins
Sign Up Bonus
-
-
-
-
All Software
100% up to €/$25000 + 100 Spins
Sign up Bonus
-
-
-
-
All Software
100% up to €/$300 + 30 Spins
Sign Up Bonus
-
-
-
-
All Software
222% up to €/$500 + 50 Spins
Sign Up Bonus - EXCLUSIVE
450% up to $10000
Sign up Bonus - Exclusive
45 Spins
No Deposit
-
-
-
-
All Software
200% up to $1000
Sign Up Bonus - Exclusive
-
-
-
-
All Software
130% up to €200
Sign Up Bonus - Exclusive
-
-
-
-
All Software
130% up to €300
Sign Up Bonus - Exclusive
-
-
-
-
All Software
100% up to €100 + 50 Spins
Sign Up Bonus
-
-
-
-
All Software
250% up to $250
Sign Up Bonus - EXCLUSIVE
-
All Software
Examples of deposits:
Bitcoin$68
No Deposit Bonus - EXCLUSIVE
-
All Software
100% up to $1000
Sign Up Bonus
-
-
-
-
All Software
