Online betting in New Zealand in 2026: the market as it actually stands, and what every other option on a Kiwi’s screen really is

Updated October 2026

Licensed

Available in US

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18+ Only

Data current as of 30 October 2026. Licensing claims were verified against the Racing Industry Act 2020 (as amended in 2025), the Department of Internal Affairs’ public statements on the betting prohibition, and TAB NZ’s own published terms.

A punter in Auckland, Hamilton or Invercargill who opens a phone and types “online betting” into a search bar sees the same list of names a punter in Auckland, Lisbon or Manila sees. Betcha, TAB, 22Bet, Roobet, Baji, Sportaza, Thunderpick. The list is long; the line that runs through it is short. Since an amendment to the Racing Industry Act 2020 took effect on 28 June 2025, only one operator group may lawfully take online sports and racing bets from people in New Zealand: TAB NZ, which runs two brands, TAB and Betcha. Every other name on the screen is, in the words of the Department of Internal Affairs, an operator that has been told to withdraw. That is not a marketing claim. It is the closing line of a section of New Zealand statute.

This page is about what that actually costs a punter — the price the law has placed on the choice, the price the market has placed on a bet, and the price a player pays when they ignore the distinction.

How the New Zealand online betting market is actually shaped

The shape of the market is small. Two brands, one operator group, one regulator. There is no licence register for bookmakers in New Zealand, because there is no licence to apply for: section 74AAA of the Racing Industry Act 2020, inserted by the Racing Industry Amendment Act 2025 and in force since 28 June 2025, prohibits any person other than TAB NZ from offering racing betting, sports betting, or other racing or sports betting to a person in New Zealand, regardless of where that person is resident or incorporated. The Department of Internal Affairs confirmed the position publicly and told providers serving New Zealand to withdraw with immediate effect.

TAB NZ itself runs the betting business under a 25-year agreement signed with Entain in 2023. Entain operates the platform and the betting products; gross profits are split 50/50 between the two partners, with a floor of $150m a year flowing to TAB NZ for the first five years. Entain also paid a one-off $100m to the racing sector at the start of the partnership. The point for a punter is not the partnership but what it produces: TAB NZ runs the wagering, the racing and sports distribution, the digital products and the in-store network, and the same operator group publishes Betcha, the consumer-facing online brand.

That is the entire legal New Zealand market. The wider list of betting brands a Kiwi sees on a search page is a different object — an offshore market with no New Zealand licence, no New Zealand complaints route and no local harm-minimisation framework. They are rated and described in the sections that follow, but they are not “the New Zealand market” in any legal sense, and never will be: a duty on offshore operators is payable, but a duty being payable does not make an offer lawful. The lawful market is what it is.

How legality actually works under the Racing Industry Act 2020

The statutory position, in plain language

Section 74AAA does not regulate bookmakers; it removes them. The Racing Industry Act 2020 establishes TAB NZ as the racing and sports betting provider; the 2025 amendment closes the door. The change took effect on 28 June 2025 and the Department of Internal Affairs told providers serving New Zealand to withdraw with immediate effect. New Zealand does not geo-block offshore websites; the prohibition puts liability on the offshore operator, not on the network.

For the player, section 19(4) of the Gambling Act 2003, inserted in 2025, says an individual may not be convicted for placing a bet with an offshore betting operator in breach of section 74AAA. No published penalty for a player has been found. The framing that fits the evidence: New Zealand law targets the operator; the Department of Internal Affairs warns players of the risks, including that overseas operators may be in jurisdictions with minimal consumer safeguards, may not return unspent credits, and may not pay out large wins; no published penalty for a player was found. That is what the statute does, and what it does not.

The greyhound close-out and what it changes

Greyhound racing is closing in stages from 1 August 2026, and from that date offshore operators may not take bets on greyhound races either. The sport’s exit changes what is on the menu in a way the everyday punter may not notice until they look for it. A bet that was there last spring will not be there next spring, and the price on the remaining racing menu (thoroughbred, harness / trots) carries whatever weight an already-thin menu concentrates.

What the 2026 casino law changes, and what it does not

The Online Casino Gambling Act 2026 licenses online casino gambling. TAB NZ holds the right to apply for a casino licence. That licence does not extend the betting monopoly, and the law does not introduce a second sports-betting provider. For a punter comparing the two products, casino and sports betting sit in separate permits with separate rules, and a casino law is not a betting law.

What may be bet on, and where the law stops

Racing and sports betting from TAB NZ only. TAB NZ takes fixed-odds and tote (pool) bets; the published betting rules cover Win, Place, Each Way, Quinella, Exacta, Trifecta, First Four, Double, Treble, Daily Double, Running Double, Quaddie and Big6, plus Multis and Same Game Multis whose legs come from one event. Live betting is listed in the TAB NZ apps; any statutory restriction on in-play markets is not established. No lawful New Zealand betting exchange exists and spread betting sits outside TAB NZ’s sports-betting definition, so there is nothing to write about a New Zealand exchange. Bets on politics and novelty markets are not established under the law. There is no statutory per-bet cap; limits are TAB NZ’s own terms. Virtual (computer-simulated) sport is treated by the 2026 online casino law as casino gambling; whether esports betting counts as “sports betting” under the Racing Industry Act is not established.

The ban covers events held inside and outside New Zealand. A bet on the Melbourne Cup, on the All Blacks in Tokyo, or on the Black Caps at Lord’s, taken through any operator other than TAB or Betcha, falls on the same side of the line.

What safer gambling looks like under the TAB NZ monopoly

The age line, the identity check and what the operator must do

The age for TAB NZ betting is 18; betting under 18 is an offence under section 89 of the Racing Industry Act 2020. Land-based casinos in New Zealand are 20, and the two ages are not interchangeable. TAB NZ accounts require a verified New Zealand address and ID, which is what the prohibition looks like at the point of account opening: a real address and a real identity before a bet can be placed.

The tools the TAB NZ apps carry

TAB NZ publishes its apps with the safer-gambling tools the regulator expects: deposit limits, time-outs and self-exclusion. An exclusion applies across both TAB NZ brands, so a self-exclusion from TAB carries across to Betcha and back. The free New Zealand gambling helpline, 0800 654 655, and the text line 8006, sit inside the app alongside those tools. Outside the operator, Safer Gambling Aotearoa is the harm-minimisation body, and TAB NZ pays a Problem Gambling Levy of 0.74%, in force from 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2028, funding the public-health response to gambling harm.

What offshore brands do not carry

The offshore market a punter sees on a phone has none of this. No New Zealand complaints route reaches an offshore brand. Safer gambling tools are absent, and the Department of Internal Affairs’ stated risks — minimal consumer safeguards, possible refusal to return unspent credits, possible refusal to pay out large wins — are the kinds of risk a domestic regulator exists to manage, and an offshore licence from Anjouan, Curaçao, Tobique or the Union of the Comoros does not replicate them.

Crypto, anonymity and what TAB NZ does not allow

What an account at TAB NZ requires

Account opening at TAB NZ requires a verified New Zealand address and ID. A cryptocurrency wallet, a pseudonym and a VPN do not pass that gate. Crypto is not a TAB NZ deposit method by default, and the published payments page belongs to TAB NZ’s own terms.

What the offshore crypto bookmakers offer, and at what cost

Telbet, Thunderpick, Roobet, Baji, SpinBetter and Sportaza take a different position. They describe themselves as crypto sportsbooks or crypto casinos with sportsbooks, accept Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies at the cashier, and run an account model that does not require a New Zealand address. The licence each of them names sits in Anjouan, Curaçao, Tobique or the Union of the Comoros. None of these licences confers legal authority for betting operations within New Zealand. The customer gets faster account opening, smaller identity checks and an open crypto cashier; the customer also gets no New Zealand complaints route, no New Zealand harm-minimisation framework and an operator that the Department of Internal Affairs has told to withdraw.

Crypto sportsbooks run inside the same offshore perimeter that section 74AAA addresses. The “anonymity” the marketing page describes is anonymity from the New Zealand regulator, not from the operator. Nothing in New Zealand law regulates the use of a VPN to reach an offshore bookmaker; nothing regulates the holding of a crypto balance at one. The point is what sits underneath: an unlicensed operator that cannot be compelled by the New Zealand regulator to pay out, cannot be referred to a New Zealand dispute resolution service, and fails to provide local support tools.

Bonuses, free bets and what they actually cost

What TAB NZ offers, in the language a punter sees

TAB NZ runs “bonus bets” promotions. New TAB NZ customers can receive Bonus Cash that can be split across multiple bets. The TAB NZ app lists a Mega Multi bonus of up to $50 in Bonus Cash when a multi of four or more legs falls short by a set number of legs; terms and conditions apply. That is the shape of the New Zealand lawful offer: a credit on the TAB NZ wallet, applied to a bet on the TAB NZ platform, against a sportsbook that the regulator oversees and a customer fund the operator can be required to honour.

What the offshore welcome offers look like

The offshore welcome offer is a different animal. Telbet’s Russian-language site lists 200% up to 1 BTC plus 50 free spins and a 5 USDT free bet on sign-up. Golden Panda’s bonus terms, last updated 31 August 2026, say that bonus funds cannot be used while the player has open casino or sports bets. The headline number is large; the small print binds the bonus to a sequence of bets and a set of restrictions the player has to read.

What the marketing word actually hides

A “200% bonus” is a marketing word sitting on top of a turnover requirement. A “free bet” is a stake that is usually not paid back with a win. A “boosted odds” line is a single price larger than the regular book on a market the operator has chosen to advertise. None of those offers come with a New Zealand complaints route; the same restriction that closes the operator out of the lawful New Zealand market also closes the reader out of the New Zealand dispute resolution service. The cost is the offer’s terms, plus the absence of the framework that a New Zealand regulator requires.

Mobile apps, the App Store and what a Kiwi actually downloads

The TAB NZ app, on the New Zealand App Store

TAB NZ publishes its betting app on the New Zealand App Store under the seller name New Zealand Racing Board; the app was first released on 8 September 2014 and carries a 17+ App Store age rating while stating that customers must be 18 or over to bet. The app covers horse and harness racing, rugby union and rugby league and other sports, pre-match and in-play. New Zealand spelling applies: the app description says “authorise” and “programme” rather than the American forms.

Betcha is a separate New Zealand sports and racing betting app published on the New Zealand App Store by Entain New Zealand Limited, first released on 6 August 2024. Betcha is the consumer-facing brand; TAB is the racing-and-sports brand; both are TAB NZ.

What the TAB NZ app offers inside the bet slip

The TAB NZ app carries Same Race Multis, Same Game Multis, one-tap Popular Multis, and a Place Extra option that lets punters back runners to finish up to 10th in selected races. The Trackside feature streams live races inside the app, with in-app betting on the same race. Racing form, Blackbook and Jockey Challenge tools sit alongside a simplified wallet for deposits and withdrawals. The product is a racing-first sportsbook with multis and live betting built around it.

What the offshore apps and mobile sites do differently

The offshore brands — Glorion, RoyalistPlay, Sportaza, Alawin, FunBet, BetNinja, 22Bet — are typically reached through a mobile browser rather than a New Zealand App Store download. None of them appears on the New Zealand App Store as a TAB NZ counterpart, and the New Zealand identity check at the door does not apply. The mobile experience is faster at account opening; the regulator behind the app is not a New Zealand authority.

Live betting, cash out and the shape of in-play on TAB NZ

What live betting looks like on the lawful app

Live betting is listed in the TAB NZ apps, and the same Trackside live stream that runs inside the app carries in-play markets on the race being shown. The product is racing-heavy by design: the streams are the live streams of the races, and the in-play markets follow. Other sports on the TAB NZ app have their own live markets where the operator lists them; the in-play menu is whatever the operator publishes on the day.

What an offshore live-betting product adds — and what it does not

The offshore live product is broader: football, basketball, tennis, ice hockey, volleyball, American football, baseball, rugby, esports, with a 24/7 sportsbook in some cases. The price the punter pays is the legal status of the operator, the lack of a New Zealand complaints route, and the absence of the harm-minimisation framework that a New Zealand regulator might compel.

A punter who chooses an offshore live product is choosing a wider menu and a thinner framework. A punter who chooses TAB NZ is choosing a narrower menu and a domestic regulator. The product breadth is real; the framework gap is also real, and it is the gap the section 74AAA prohibition was written to close.

Bet types, odds and what they cost

What TAB NZ prices on the menu

TAB NZ prices fixed-odds and tote (pool) bets. Fixed odds are the kind of price a punter reads as $2.10 against a runner; the tote is the pool bet, with a dividend the operator pays out of the pool after the race. The bet types — Win, Place, Each Way, Quinella, Exacta, Trifecta, First Four, Double, Treble, Daily Double, Running Double, Quaddie, Big6, Multi, Same Game Multi — are listed in the published betting rules, and the bet slip on the app is built around them.

How a return is worked out from the stake and the odds

A bet at decimal odds is paid as stake × odds at the top of the slip. A $10 stake at odds of $3.50 returns $35; the net profit is $25. A combination bet multiplies the legs into one price: three legs at $1.80, $2.10 and $2.50 become a combined price of $9.45, and a $10 stake returns $94.50 if all three legs win. The calculation is the same on every legal bookmaker; the difference is in the margin the operator builds into each leg, and the dividend the tote pays out of the pool.

What the bookmaker’s margin looks like in the odds

A bookmaker’s margin is the share of every dollar bet on a market that the bookmaker keeps. A market with a 5% margin returns 95c in payout share for every $1 wagered. The margin sits inside the odds, and a punter reading $1.85 / $3.40 / $4.50 on a 1X2 football match is reading the margin twice — once in each price. The arithmetic is straightforward: payout share equals 1 divided by the sum of the reciprocals of all the outcomes of one market, and margin is 1 minus that payout share. A three-outcome market with prices $1.85, $3.40 and $4.50 has a payout share of about 94.5% and a margin of about 5.5%. A two-outcome market with prices $1.91 and $1.91 has a payout share of about 95.5% and a margin of about 4.5%. The market the punter chooses is the market whose margin they pay.

What sports and tournaments the legal market covers

Racing codes

Thoroughbred racing, harness racing (trots) and greyhound racing are the three racing codes. Greyhound racing is closing in stages from 1 August 2026, and from that date offshore operators may not take bets on greyhound races either. The remaining racing menu is thoroughbred and harness, with the Melbourne Cup, the New Zealand Cup, and the national and regional meetings sitting at the centre of the calendar. The racing codes are the heart of the TAB NZ product, and the bet types — Quinella, Exacta, Trifecta, First Four, Quaddie, Big6 — are the racing bet types the operator publishes.

New Zealand and Australian sport

Rugby union and rugby league — All Blacks, Super Rugby Pacific, NRL — sit at the centre of the New Zealand sporting menu. Rugby union and rugby league are both listed in the TAB NZ app. Cricket (Black Caps), rugby league (Warriors, NRL), basketball, football, tennis and other sports sit alongside. The New Zealand punter’s calendar follows the calendar of those competitions, with the Melbourne Cup and Cup Day in November the racing peak and the All Blacks tests through the rugby calendar the rugby peak.

What the offshore menu adds

The offshore menu is broader and thinner. FunBet’s sportsbook offers odds on football, ice hockey, American football, basketball, volleyball, tennis, rugby and baseball, with live betting and a 24/7 bookmaker. The breadth is real: a punt on a South American league, on an esports tournament, on a UFC card, on a baseball series, is a punt the offshore book will often take where the TAB NZ menu will not. The breadth is the marketing pitch; the legal status, the absence of a New Zealand complaints route, and the Department of Internal Affairs’ stated risks remain unavoidable.

New bookmakers and what a “new” site actually means in New Zealand

What a new bookmaker means under section 74AAA

A “new online betting site” is a marketing phrase in any market, but in New Zealand it is also a legal impossibility. There is no licence to apply for. The Racing Industry Act 2020 makes TAB NZ the only lawful provider; no new entrant can lawfully offer racing or sports betting to a person in New Zealand. A site that calls itself new and holds no New Zealand status is not a New Zealand betting site in any legal sense. The phrase “best online betting sites new zealand” describes a search query, not a market.

What Kiwi punters actually meet

The brands a Kiwi punter meets on a search page are not new; they are long-running offshore operators with current marketing pushes. Roobet, Baji, Thunderpick, Sportaza, FunBet, 22Bet have been on the offshore market for years; the “new” tag is a search-engine phenomenon rather than a launch. A punter who reads “new online betting site” as a New Zealand launch is reading a phrase the search results have attached to a brand that has been live for years outside the lawful New Zealand perimeter.

How online betting actually works, in sequence

Opening an account at TAB NZ

A new TAB NZ account requires a verified New Zealand address and ID. The age is 18. The customer fund is a TAB NZ wallet; deposits and withdrawals go through the methods TAB NZ lists in its payments page. The TAB NZ app is the main consumer entry point, and the same wallet backs the TAB and Betcha brands.

Placing a bet

A punter reads the menu — racing first, sport alongside — picks a market, picks a price, sets a stake, and confirms on the bet slip. A win at fixed odds is paid as stake × odds. A tote dividend is paid after the pool closes. A Same Game Multi multiplies the legs into one price and pays the combined stake × combined odds on a successful multi. A Mega Multi bonus pays up to $50 in Bonus Cash when a four-leg or longer multi falls short by a set number of legs; terms and conditions apply.

Withdrawing

A withdrawal is paid back to the same method that funded the wallet, with the limits TAB NZ sets in its terms. The TAB NZ app describes the wallet as simplified: deposits and withdrawals sit on the same screen, and the funds do not leave the TAB NZ perimeter.

What the same sequence looks like offshore

A new offshore account is opened with an email address and a password, and a deposit in Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT or a bank card. The bet is placed on the menu the offshore brand publishes, on the markets it lists, with the odds it prices. The withdrawal is paid back in the same crypto, or in a bank transfer, subject to the operator’s own terms and the operator’s own interpretation of them. The pace is faster; the framework is thinner.

The ten operators in this comparison

The set below is the comparison a Kiwi punter actually sees on a phone. TAB and Betcha come first because they are the lawful New Zealand option; the eight that follow are offshore brands with no New Zealand licence, listed because New Zealand players meet them, rated by the same criteria and never merged into a ranking that places them on the same side of the line as TAB NZ.

TAB

TAB is one of the two online brands of TAB NZ (holder TAB New Zealand), the only provider lawfully offering racing and sports betting to people in New Zealand under section 74AAA of the Racing Industry Act 2020. There is no licence register for bookmakers in New Zealand because there is only this one lawful provider. The TAB NZ app covers horse and harness racing, rugby union and rugby league and other sports, pre-match and live, with Trackside live race streaming inside the app and a Mega Multi bonus of up to $50 in Bonus Cash when a four-leg or longer multi falls short by a set number of legs. New TAB NZ customers can receive Bonus Cash that can be split across multiple bets, and the app lists Same Race Multis, Same Game Multis, one-tap Popular Multis and a Place Extra option for runners to finish up to 10th in selected races. Safer-gambling tools — deposit limits, time-outs and self-exclusion — sit alongside the helpline 0800 654 655 and the text line 8006. Account opening requires a verified New Zealand address and ID.

For a Kiwi punter who bets on the Melbourne Cup, the All Blacks, the NRL or the Black Caps, TAB is the only operator whose product is enforced by the Department of Internal Affairs, whose complaints route runs through a New Zealand framework, and whose harm-minimisation tools are wired into the app. The product is racing-first, narrower than the offshore menu, and the price is what every other option on this page costs.

Betcha

Betcha is the second of the two online brands of TAB NZ, the consumer-facing brand built around a New Zealand sports and racing betting app first released on 6 August 2024 and published on the New Zealand App Store by Entain New Zealand Limited. Betcha sits inside the TAB NZ perimeter: section 74AAA makes TAB NZ the only lawful provider, and a self-exclusion from TAB carries across to Betcha. The product, the wallet, the safer-gambling tools and the regulator are the same.

Betcha is the consumer face of the TAB NZ product. A Kiwi punter who finds TAB’s racing-first layout old-fashioned finds Betcha’s mobile-first layout on the same wallet, the same markets, the same regulator. The two brands are one operator group, and the only question between them is which app the punter prefers to bet through.

Glorion

Glorion is an offshore brand with no New Zealand licence. Glorion support is available by Live Chat or by email, and the site accepts customers aged 18 and over only. The brand names no licence that applies in New Zealand, the local complaints route is unavailable, and local support tools are absent. The Department of Internal Affairs has told providers serving New Zealand to withdraw with immediate effect.

For a Kiwi punter who bets through an offshore brand, Glorion is a typical example: a chat-based support channel, an 18+ gate, an offshore licence that does not apply in New Zealand, and a position on the wrong side of section 74AAA. The product is whatever Glorion publishes; the framework is whatever the regulator of Glorion’s licence enforces.

RoyalistPlay

RoyalistPlay is owned and operated by Novatrix SRL, a Costa Rica company with registration number 3-102-893958, and states that it holds e-gaming licence No. 0000002 from the Tobique Gaming Commission. This permit offers no valid pathway for betting in New Zealand. Access to local complaints is blocked, and it lacks standard local harm-minimisation measures.

For a Kiwi punter, RoyalistPlay mimics other international operators: it is a Costa Rica business with a Tobique licence, operating with no local presence. Choosing it means accepting the loss of New Zealand regulator oversight and the established complaints process.

Sportaza

Sportaza’s footer states it is licensed and regulated by the Government of the Autonomous Island of Anjouan, Union of Comoros, under licence No. ALSI-202606064-FI2, while its terms (section 1.4) cite licence No. 0000067 issued by Tobique. Neither licence authorises betting services for New Zealand residents. Access to local complaints is blocked, and it lacks standard local harm-minimisation measures.

For a Kiwi punter, Sportaza reflects the common international approach: an Anjouan licence footer, a secondary Tobique licence, and no domestic footprint. Comparing this against the lawful alternatives highlights the distinction in consumer protection.

Telbet

Telbet describes itself as a crypto casino and sportsbook. Its Russian-language site lists a welcome offer of 200% up to 1 BTC plus 50 free spins and a 5 USDT free bet. Telbet names no licence that applies in New Zealand. Access to local complaints is blocked, and it lacks local harm-minimisation pages.

For a Kiwi punter who bets through an offshore crypto sportsbook, Telbet is a typical example: a Bitcoin balance at the cashier, a Russian-language welcome offer, an offshore licence that does not apply in New Zealand. The product is a crypto sportsbook; the price is the loss of the regulator and the complaints route.

Alawin

Alawin accepts customers aged 18 and over only. The brand names no licence that applies in New Zealand.

For a Kiwi punter, Alawin represents the standard offshore model: an 18+ entry requirement, a foreign licence without local validity, and a total absence of a domestic presence. Its operational framework sits entirely outside the national regulatory system.

FunBet

FunBet’s sportsbook offers odds on football, ice hockey, American football, basketball, volleyball, tennis, rugby and baseball, with live betting and a 24/7 bookmaker. FunBet names no licence that applies in New Zealand. No New Zealand complaints route reaches FunBet, and it lacks local harm-minimisation pages.

FunBet offers a broad sportsbook, live betting, 24/7 access, and is licensed abroad rather than in New Zealand. This diversity of markets is the attraction, but the legal status and the absence of a New Zealand complaints route remain significant factors.

BetNinja

BetNinja states that it is licensed to conduct online gaming operations by the Union of the Comoros. This licence confers no authority to accept bets within New Zealand. No New Zealand complaints route reaches BetNinja, and it relies on international rather than local support protocols.

For a Kiwi punter, BetNinja reflects the standard international model: a Comoros-based licence, no domestic footprint, and no authorisation to operate within New Zealand borders.

22Bet

22Bet’s address 22bet redirects to 22bet4u.com, and the site shows copyright for 2017–2026 and a 21+ age notice. The brand names a Curaçao licence (8048/JAZ) held by TechSolutions Group N.V., which gives no right to take bets from people in New Zealand. No New Zealand complaints route reaches 22Bet, and no New Zealand harm-minimisation framework is wired into its safer-gambling page.

For a Kiwi punter, 22Bet is the longest-running of the offshore brands in this comparison: a Curaçao licence that has been in the market since 2017, a 21+ age notice rather than the 18+ the New Zealand lawful operator uses, no New Zealand presence. The price of choosing 22Bet over TAB NZ is the loss of the regulator, the complaints route and the harm-minimisation framework that the Department of Internal Affairs exists to uphold.

How the ten operators stack up

The table below shows the brand, its New Zealand status, and what its own terms state on the key subject. The “key subject” here is the product shape and the licence position a Kiwi punter needs to make a decision. The columns are the matters a reader comparing the options actually weighs; nothing else.

The shape of the table is what the law makes it: two lawful rows, eight not-licensed-in-New-Zealand rows. The “key subject” column is the only one a reader comparing the options needs, because every other column must repeat the legal status or repeat a marketing claim a Kiwi cannot act on. This division is absolute.

Where a Kiwi punter’s dollar actually lands

A punter’s dollar lands in three places. In the lawful market it lands with the TAB NZ operator group: a 50/50 profit share with Entain, at least $150m a year to TAB NZ for the first five years of the partnership, and a one-off $100m to the racing sector at the start. In the offshore market it lands with the operator’s holding company, in the jurisdiction that issued the licence, and out of reach of the Department of Internal Affairs. In the public-health response it lands with Safer Gambling Aotearoa through the Problem Gambling Levy, at 0.74% of TAB NZ’s revenue from 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2028.

The gambling duty on offshore operators supplying New Zealand residents has been at 12% of profits since 1 July 2024 and rises to 16% from 1 January 2027. A duty being payable does not make an offer lawful; the duty is a tax on an unlawful activity, and the point-of-consumption charge on offshore racing and sports bets ceased on 30 June 2026. The levy, the duty and the partnership profit share are three different flows; a Kiwi punter reading the headline numbers is reading a market that the law has closed, and a dollar that leaves the lawful market is a dollar the public-health response does not see.

What the reader takes away

Three things stay after the comparison. First, TAB NZ is the only lawful online bookmaker in New Zealand, and Betcha is the second brand in the same operator group; section 74AAA makes any other brand unlawful for the operator to serve, and the Department of Internal Affairs has told those operators to withdraw. Second, the offshore brands are not a parallel market; they are an unlawful market with a wider menu and a thinner framework, and the price of choosing one over TAB NZ is the loss of the New Zealand regulator, the New Zealand complaints framework and the New Zealand harm-minimisation tools. Third, the cost of a bet is the stake × odds the punter reads on the slip, the margin the operator builds into the market, and the framework the punter sits inside when the bet does not pay out — and that last cost is the one the offshore market does not price into the marketing page.

Frequently asked questions

How can I bet on the Melbourne Cup online?

The Melbourne Cup is a thoroughbred race, and TAB NZ’s practice is to take fixed-odds and tote (pool) bets on thoroughbred racing. The lawful path is a TAB NZ account, opened with a verified New Zealand address and ID, with the Melbourne Cup market on the TAB or Betcha app. Offshore brands list Melbourne Cup markets too, but the operator is on the wrong side of section 74AAA and the punter sits outside the New Zealand complaints framework.

How do I bet on horses online?

The TAB NZ app carries horse and harness racing on the home screen, with Win, Place, Each Way, Quinella, Exacta, Trifecta, First Four, Quaddie and Big6 listed in the published betting rules. A Same Race Multi is a multi whose legs come from the one race, and Place Extra backs runners to finish up to 10th in selected races. Account opening requires a verified New Zealand address and ID; the minimum age is 18.

How do I bet on Lotto online?

Lotto is run by Lotto NZ, separate from TAB NZ, and is not a TAB NZ product. The lawful path is through MyLotto, the Lotto NZ account. This page is about TAB NZ and the operators around it; the Lotto question sits outside that perimeter, and the rule on age is the same (18).

Which bookmaker may lawfully take sports and racing bets in New Zealand?

TAB NZ is the only provider lawfully offering racing and sports betting to people in New Zealand, under section 74AAA of the Racing Industry Act 2020, in force since 28 June 2025. TAB NZ runs two online brands, TAB and Betcha; every other brand a Kiwi punter meets on a search page is not licensed in New Zealand. There is no licence register for bookmakers because there is no licence to apply for.

How is the return on a bet worked out from the stake and the odds?

At decimal odds, a winning bet pays stake × odds: a $10 stake at odds of $3.50 returns $35, and the net profit is $25. A combination bet multiplies the legs into one price, so three legs at $1.80, $2.10 and $2.50 become a combined price of $9.45, and a $10 stake returns $94.50 if all three legs win. The calculation is the same on every bookmaker; the margin the operator builds into the legs is the difference between operators.

What is the bookmaker’s margin and how can it be seen in the odds?

The margin is the share of every dollar bet on a market that the bookmaker keeps. Payout share is 1 divided by the sum of the reciprocals of every outcome of one market, and margin is 1 minus that payout share. A three-outcome market with prices $1.85, $3.40 and $4.50 has a payout share of about 94.5% and a margin of about 5.5%; a two-outcome market with prices $1.91 and $1.91 has a payout share of about 95.3% and a margin of about 4.7%. The margin sits inside every price, and a sharper price is a price with a smaller margin.

Published by the Nzbettinglaw team.