Can California and New York Play Social Casinos?
California and New York now prohibit dual-currency online sweepstakes casinos. See the current laws, operator exclusions, and limits of GC-only social play.
Casino Context
Updated July 24, 2026
California and New York residents cannot currently use the promotional dual-currency mode offered by mainstream sweepstakes casinos. California’s AB 831 took effect January 1, 2026, and New York’s S.5935A took effect when signed on December 5, 2025. Both laws target online casino-style sweepstakes using linked currencies and cash or cash-equivalent prizes.
Nonredeemable, entertainment-only social casino games can still be a different category when they offer no cash or cash-equivalent prize, but access depends on the operator. Stake US, RealPrize, McLuck, Zula, and Sportzino currently exclude both California and New York from new promotional accounts or service. Chumba excludes residents of both states from its sweepstakes.
California versus New York in 2026
| Question | California | New York |
|---|---|---|
| Controlling 2025 law | AB 831, Chapter 623 | S.5935A, Chapter 605 |
| Effective date | January 1, 2026 | December 5, 2025; act took effect immediately |
| Target | Online sweepstakes games using direct and indirect consideration in a dual-currency system for prize eligibility | Internet or mobile casino-style games using dual currency exchangeable for prizes, cash, or cash equivalents |
| Operator conduct | Operating, conducting, or offering the defined game is unlawful | Operating, conducting, or promoting the defined game is unlawful |
| Supporting businesses | Knowing and willful support by payment, geolocation, content, platform, and media entities is prohibited | Support by financial, payment, geolocation, content, platform, and media entities is prohibited |
| Ordinary no-prize social play | The statute says it does not make a game without cash prizes or cash equivalents unlawful | The statutory definition requires a dual-currency system tied to prizes; ordinary nonredeemable play is not that defined product |
This is a practical summary of current statutes, not personal legal advice. An operator can impose a broader block than the statute, and another law can still apply to a product that falls outside these specific definitions.
Current operator availability matrix
| Operator | California | New York | Current official evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stake US | Excluded | Excluded | Terms version 18.0 excludes both from the platform |
| RealPrize | Excluded | Excluded | Promotional Play Rules version 3.0 excludes both |
| McLuck | Excluded | Excluded | July 2026 service-area help lists both as excluded |
| Chumba | Sweepstakes excluded | Sweepstakes excluded | Terms version 25.0 excludes residents of both from sweepstakes entry |
| Zula | New accounts excluded | New accounts excluded | Terms version 2.3 excludes both from creating an account |
| Sportzino | New accounts excluded; legacy GC-only access described for affected existing users | New accounts excluded | Terms version 2.2 and participant requirements exclude both |
Verified July 24, 2026. A privacy policy mentioning California residents does not mean the gaming product accepts California players; privacy rights can apply to former users and site visitors.
California: what AB 831 changed
California AB 831 was approved October 11, 2025 and became effective January 1, 2026. Penal Code section 337o now makes it unlawful to operate, conduct, or offer an online sweepstakes game in the state.
The definition covers an internet or app-based game that uses a dual-currency system, allows play with direct or indirect consideration, and can make the participant eligible for cash, cash equivalents, or another prize. The definitions expressly capture a promotional prize currency provided free, through a bonus, or with a related purchased coin or product.
The law also reaches businesses that knowingly and willfully support the operation or promotion, including financial institutions, payment processors, geolocation providers, game-content suppliers, platform providers, and media affiliates. A compliant publication should not continue sending California readers to a prohibited promotional platform.
AB 831 does not make every sweepstakes or game illegal. The text preserves licensed gambling and the California Lottery, says games without cash or cash-equivalent awards are not made unlawful, and preserves limited, occasional marketing sweepstakes incidental to substantial bona fide consumer sales when they are not a vehicle for ongoing gaming.
New York: enforcement followed by a statutory ban
New York acted before the new statute. In June 2025, the Attorney General announced that 26 online sweepstakes platforms would stop cash-redeemable coin play in the state after cease-and-desist letters. The office warned that these platforms were not subject to state casino audits or consumer protections.
Governor Kathy Hochul signed S.5935A on December 5, 2025. Chapter 605 prohibits operating, conducting, promoting, or supporting defined online sweepstakes games in New York. The definition centers on a dual-currency system linked to prizes and casino-style games such as slots, video poker, table games, lottery games, bingo, and sports wagering.
The statute authorizes enforcement by the New York State Gaming Commission, State Police, and Attorney General. It provides fines from $10,000 to $100,000 per violation and potential gaming-license consequences.
Can Californians still play Gold Coin-only games?
A game using a single nonredeemable entertainment currency and awarding no cash or cash-equivalent prize is outside the defining feature of California’s new online sweepstakes offense. California’s amended law expressly says it does not make a game without cash prizes or cash equivalents unlawful.
That does not force a sweepstakes operator to keep a GC-only service open. Zula’s current terms exclude California residents from creating an account. Stake excludes California from its platform. An operator may close the entire account system rather than maintain a separate social-only product.
Sportzino provides a useful legacy example. Its California support notice says existing affected players lost SC gameplay on December 22, 2025 but could access a GC-only social platform. Its June 2026 terms now exclude California from new accounts. A legacy exception is not a signup route for new users.
Can New Yorkers play ordinary social casino games?
New York’s new definition targets casino-style online games with dual currency connected to cash or cash-equivalent prizes. A conventional social game with one nonredeemable entertainment currency and no prize redemption is not the dual-currency product described by Chapter 605.
Again, operator terms control access even where a narrower no-prize product could exist. The six operators in the matrix do not provide a current new-player promotional route for New York, and several exclude the entire account or service.
New York has not authorized general real-money online casino gaming. State-authorized sports wagering, lottery, horse racing, and land-based gaming are separate categories and do not create permission for dual-currency casino-style sweepstakes.
What happened to existing SC balances?
Operators that withdrew generally set individual cutoff dates for purchases, promotional play, verification, and redemption. Those 2025 windows have now passed. A balance visible in an old screenshot does not establish a current right to play or redeem.
Sportzino’s California notice, for example, stopped accepting California mail-in requests with a postage or delivery date of December 10, 2025 or later, ended new KYC after December 17, and set December 26 as the redemption deadline for already verified qualifying users.
Former users should contact the operator through its official support channel about account records, tax documents, privacy rights, or a disputed pre-cutoff request. Do not relocate an account on paper, use another person’s address, or attempt a new redemption through a VPN.
Why a VPN does not restore eligibility
Eligibility can depend on residence, physical location, identity documents, address records, payment ownership, IP and device data, and geolocation. Hiding one signal does not change the player’s state or the law.
A VPN, false address, borrowed account, or out-of-state payment method can violate terms, cause forfeiture, interfere with identity checks, and create fraud or tax problems. Traveling temporarily also may not help when the rules require both residence and physical presence in an eligible state.
How to identify a lawful no-prize social product
- It uses entertainment credits that cannot be redeemed, sold, transferred, or converted into prizes.
- Gameplay cannot produce cash, gift cards, crypto, merchandise, or another cash-equivalent award.
- There is no second promotional currency tied to prize eligibility.
- The operator’s current terms expressly accept the player’s state.
- The app-store listing and privacy policy do not contradict the eligibility terms.
- Marketing does not suggest that a GC purchase unlocks or improves a cash-prize opportunity.
The label “social casino” alone proves none of these points. Read the wallet and prize definitions.
California and New York player checklist
- Assume promotional dual-currency casino play is unavailable unless a current state source and operator rule establish otherwise.
- Do not register through an affiliate link that claims an old state list.
- Check whether the operator blocks the entire account or only promotional mode.
- For entertainment-only play, confirm that every currency is nonredeemable and no cash-equivalent prize exists.
- Do not purchase GC on the assumption that an SC bonus can be restored later.
- Do not mail an AMOE from either state to an operator that excludes it.
- Preserve old statements and tax records if a prior account had prize activity.
- Use official state resources or a qualified attorney for a product-specific legal question.
Bottom line
California and New York now expressly prohibit the mainstream dual-currency online sweepstakes-casino model. The major operators audited here have updated their rules accordingly, and neither state should appear on a current “available sweepstakes casinos” list.
Entertainment-only social casino games without redeemable prizes can be distinct, but the operator must actually permit access. Do not treat a GC-only legacy account, privacy-policy reference, app download, or VPN connection as permission to use promotional SC mode.
Sources
- California Legislature: AB 831, Chapter 623
- California Penal Code section 337o
- New York Senate: S.5935 status, signed as Chapter 605
- New York Senate: enacted S.5935A text
- New York Attorney General: 2025 sweepstakes-casino enforcement
- Stake US: Terms and Conditions version 18.0
- RealPrize: Promotional Play Rules version 3.0
- McLuck: July 2026 service-area list
- Chumba Casino: Terms and Conditions version 25.0
- Zula Casino: Terms and Conditions version 2.3
- Sportzino: Participant Eligibility Requirements version 1.3
- Sportzino: California legacy-account transition notice
