
Crown Melbourne Censured for Breaches of Mandatory Pre-Commitment System
The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) has issued a formal reprimand to Crown Melbourne after an investigation uncovered multiple
Part of Australia
Victoria licenses and taxes gambling under state law, inside a federal framework that decides what may be offered online. The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC), which took over from the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation on 1 July 2022, regulates poker machine venues, the Melbourne casino, wagering, keno and lotteries, and reports to Parliament through the Minister for Casino, Gaming and Liquor Regulation. The federal Interactive Gambling Act 2001 bans online casino, slots and poker for everyone in Australia and confines in-play sports betting to venues. Online betting on racing, and on sport before it starts, is legal for Australian-licensed operators, and Victoria licenses more of them than any other jurisdiction: the ACMA register lists 76 wagering services licensed by the VGCCC, mostly registered bookmakers, alongside Tabcorp, which holds the 20-year state wagering and betting licence that took effect in August 2024. Victorian bookmakers may bet only on approved events and need an integrity agreement with any approved sports controlling body. Every operator pays wagering and betting tax of 15% on net wagering revenue, including GST, from customers in Victoria above A$1 million a year, wherever it is licensed. Crown Melbourne holds the only casino licence, to November 2050, under a regime rebuilt after the 2021 Royal Commission, with fines of up to A$100 million and a transformation plan running to the end of 2026. Victorians lost A$7.64 billion on gambling in 2025-26, including A$3.32 billion on poker machines in hotels and clubs and A$2.50 billion on wagering. Poker machines in venues must close from 4am to 10am, and machine types approved from 1 December 2025 must spin no faster than once every 3 seconds. The federal Gambling Reform Act 2026 adds advertising, inducement and affiliate commission rules from 1 January 2027.
Assuming a Northern Territory or New South Wales licence puts an operator outside Victorian rules: the Harm Minimisation Directions apply to any wagering service provider betting with Victorian residents, and wagering and betting tax applies to every bet placed by a customer located in Victoria. Leaving free bets out of the tax base or computing it net of GST: the face value of free bets counts as a bet, and the base includes GST. Offering markets on an event with an approved sports controlling body before an integrity agreement is signed: lodging a determination application does not by itself permit betting. Placing static betting advertising near a school or on public transport or roads, which is banned even though the same advertising online is allowed.
The regulator is the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC).
We record 7 licence types for Victoria.
For the Venue operator's licence (club or hotel), the application fee is A$3,172.8 (as of 1 Jul 2026).
| Licence type | Application fee | Annual fee | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venue operator's licence (club or hotel)Renewal fee $1,503.90 and approval of premises $11,018.30 from 1 July 2026; annual supervision charge; gaming machine tax per entitlement | A$3,172.8 (as of 1 Jul 2026) | Not yet verified | 10 years |
Built from the record on this page, last verified 21 Oct 2026. The Licensing and Taxation sections carry the full detail and sources.
Gambling Regulation Act 2003 (Vic)
Gambling Taxation Act 2023 (Vic)
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission Act 2011 (Vic)
Casino (Management Agreement) Act 1993 (Vic)
Racing Act 1958 (Vic)
Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (Cth)
Harm Minimisation Direction for wagering service providers (July 2022)
Harm Minimisation Direction on gambling advertising messaging (March 2023)
Ministerial Direction: Responsible Gambling Codes of Conduct (17 September 2018)
Gambling Regulations 2026 (Vic), Casino Control Regulations 2023 (Vic) and Gambling Regulation (Pre-commitment and Loyalty Scheme) Regulations 2025 (Vic)
Ministerial direction for harm minimisation: keno (13 April 2022)
Wagering and betting licence (Gambling Regulation Act 2003, Part 3A of Chapter 4)
Bookmaker registration (Gambling Regulation Act 2003, Part 5A of Chapter 4)
Casino licence (Casino Control Act 1991)
Keno licence (Gambling Regulation Act 2003, Chapter 6A)
Public lottery licence (Gambling Regulation Act 2003, Chapter 5)
Venue operator's licence (club or hotel)
Monitoring licence
Fined for failing to implement mandatory multi-factor authentication controls required by the Wagering and Betting Technical Standards between 30 January 2025 and 23 June 2025, despite several dispensations; the Commission found some customer accounts were compromised
Fine: A$350,000 as of 24 Sept 2026
VGCCC letter of censure for offering betting on an approved event without a required sports controlling body integrity agreement
Licence cancelled for failing to pay gaming tax and supervision charges and entering liquidation
Fined for breaching technical standards, which let a self-excluded person open a second online account and gamble
Fine: A$75,000 as of 15 Jul 2026
Fined for multiple breaches of the Gambling Regulation Act 2003 and its Responsible Gambling Code of Conduct
Fine: A$150,000 as of 9 Feb 2026
Fined for failing to prevent an excluded person from gambling at the casino in October 2024
Fine: A$100,000 as of 24 Nov 2025
Fined for continuing to accept bets from a customer showing observable signs of gambling-related distress; under review at VCAT
Fine: A$80,000 as of 1 Aug 2025
Fined for allowing 242 self-excluded persons to gamble between October 2023 and May 2024
Fine: A$2,000,000 as of 14 Oct 2024
Fined for offering credit to members of local sporting clubs as an inducement to open betting accounts, and censured for marketing to self-excluded people; under review at VCAT
Fine: A$100,000 as of 12 Sept 2024
Fined for repeated breaches of its Responsible Gambling Code of Conduct and condition 5.4 of the wagering and betting licence
Fine: A$4,600,000 as of 6 Aug 2024
Fined over unpaid casino tax and ordered to pay the Commission's costs
Fine: A$20,000,000 as of 14 Jun 2023
ACMA remedial direction for opening an account for, and providing services to, a BetStop registrant (2026 outcomes)
Figures on this record are drawn from official regulator data.
19 Nov 1993
Casino licence granted to Crown Melbourne Limited, the only casino licence ever issued in Victoria
1 Dec 2015
YourPlay pre-commitment available on all Victorian poker machines
1 Jan 2019
Wagering and betting tax starts at 8% of net wagering revenue above $500,000
1 Jul 2021
Wagering and betting tax rises to 10%
15 Apr 2022
Twenty-year keno licences begin for Keno (VIC) and Lottoland Australia, now KenoGo
1 Jul 2022
The VGCCC replaces the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation
30 Mar 2023
National gambling advertising taglines become mandatory for wagering advertising
14 Jun 2023
Crown Melbourne fined $20 million over unpaid casino tax
1 Jul 2024
Wagering and betting tax rises to 15%
6 Aug 2024
Tabcorp Wagering (Vic) fined $4.6 million for Responsible Gambling Code of Conduct and licence breaches
30 Aug 2024
Mandatory 4am to 10am closure of gaming machine areas in hotels and clubs takes effect
14 Oct 2024
Crown Melbourne fined $2 million after 242 self-excluded people gambled at the casino
3 Jun 2025
Pre-commitment and Carded Play Act 2025 receives Royal Assent
21 Oct 2025
Casino and Gambling Legislation Amendment Act 2025 receives Royal Assent
1 Dec 2025
Minimum 3-second spin rate applies to newly approved poker machine types
15 Jul 2026
Keno (VIC) fined $75,000 after a self-excluded person opened a second account
18 Aug 2026
VGCCC releases Strategy 2029
19 Aug 2026
Federal Parliament passes the Interactive Gambling Amendment (Gambling Reform) Bill 2026
3 Sept 2026
VGCCC publishes 2025-26 data: Victorians lost A$7.64 billion on gambling
16 Sept 2026
Jimmy Bet censured for betting on an event without an integrity agreement
24 Sept 2026
VGCCC fines Tabcorp VIC Pty Ltd $350,000 for failing to implement mandatory multi-factor authentication controls between January and June 2025
31 Dec 2026
Scheduled end of Crown's three-year Melbourne Transformation Plan
1 Jan 2027
Federal advertising, inducement and commission reforms commence
The federal Gambling Reform Act 2026 takes effect on 1 January 2027, adding advertising, inducement and affiliate commission rules on top of the Victorian offences and harm minimisation directions. Crown's Melbourne Transformation Plan runs to 31 December 2026, and the VGCCC's next periodic investigation of the casino operator, due in 2027, will test its suitability again. The Pre-commitment and Carded Play Act 2025 lets the Minister require a player account for all poker machine play in venues, by region or venue. The published 15% wagering and betting tax rate covers the period to 30 June 2027. The VGCCC's Strategy 2029, released in August 2026, prioritises technology and data to detect harm earlier, and several of its disciplinary decisions against bookmakers await review at VCAT.

The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) has issued a formal reprimand to Crown Melbourne after an investigation uncovered multiple
Source tiers. Tier 1: the law, official gazette, licence register or regulator itself. Tier 2: other official sources such as ministries, parliaments, courts and statistics agencies. Only tier 1 and tier 2 sources can support a fact on their own.
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission
State Revenue Office Victoria
State Revenue Office Victoria
State Revenue Office Victoria
State Revenue Office Victoria
State Revenue Office Victoria
State Revenue Office Victoria
Victorian Legislation (Office of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel)
Victorian Legislation (Office of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel)
Victorian Legislation (Office of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel)
Victorian Legislation (Office of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel)
Victorian Legislation (Office of the Chief Parliamentary Counsel)
Department of Treasury and Finance, Victoria
Federal Register of Legislation (Australian Government)
The previous record linked C2004A00885, which is the General Insurance Reform Act 2001; the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 is C2004A00851.
Federal Register of Legislation (Australian Government)
Australian Communications and Media Authority
Australian Communications and Media Authority
Australian Communications and Media Authority
Australian Communications and Media Authority
Australian Communications and Media Authority
Australian Communications and Media Authority
AUSTRAC