The Interactive Gambling Amendment (Gambling Reform) Bill 2026 (Bill) was passed in Parliament in August 2026, and comes into effect on 1 January 2027.
As well as extensive reforms targeting advertising and aimed at tackling gambling-related harm, the Bill creates further limitations on the operation of ‘trade promotion gambling services’, ostensibly to target ‘fake’ or illegitimate lottery schemes that may mislead consumers and undermine legitimate lottery operators.
Legislative amendments
Under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (IGA), a lottery is unlawful unless it falls within the definition of a ‘trade promotion gambling service’.
The Bill substitutes a new definition of ‘trade promotion gambling service’ – creating additional conditions, all of which must be met for the trade promotion gambling service exclusion to apply. Those new conditions are set out below:
(1) For the purposes of this Act, a trade promotion gambling service is a service for the conduct of a lottery, or game of chance or of mixed chance and skill, if:
(a) all of the following apply:
(i) the sole or primary purpose of the lottery or game is the promotion of trade;
(ii) the lottery or game is incidental to the supply of goods or services by the provider of the service, or the person for whom the service is provided;
(iii) entry into the lottery or game does not require the payment of any fee, other than a fee for goods or services at fair market value;
(iv) participation in the lottery or game is not provided on an ongoing or recurring basis as part of a system of continuous or repeated draws…
The Bill also empowers the Minister to determine whether services are or are not to be considered a trade promotion gambling service – that is, the Minister may, by legislative instrument, determine whether specific operations are or are not covered by the exemption.
Furthermore, the Bill provides that a person commits an offence if they provide a lottery that does not meet the above definition – even where they hold a state or territory-issued licence for that trade promotion gambling service. This means that businesses must comply with this stricter definition in the IGA as well as the existing conditions of state and territory legislation.
Effect of amendment
The most substantial amendments are the introduction of sections which require that “the lottery or game is incidental to the supply of goods or services” and that “participation in the lottery or game is not provided on an ongoing or recurring basis as part of a system of continuous or repeated draws.”
These requirements combined create a much stricter framework for trade promotion lotteries than presently exists.
If a business seems to be predominantly based around a cycle of draws or giveaways, including in the manner it is advertised or promoted, these promotions may no longer be lawful.
The terms ‘ongoing’, ‘recurring’, ‘continuous’ and ‘repeated’ are not defined in the Bill or the IGA, and we understand that there is not expected to be any publication of specific material around these terms. As such, there is currently no indication as to how frequently a promotion could take place for the business to still be conducted lawfully.
The policy-basis for this condition is that ‘legitimate’ trade promotions are generally time-limited, and centred around a campaign, and do not use automatic, subscription-based, or escalating draw systems, particularly where entry into the draws is directly referrable to recurring payments or membership. A commonly cited example of a conventional trade promotion lottery is the ‘McDonalds Monopoly’ campaign – which is time-limited and is not automated or subscription based.
The key government incentive behind the amendments appears to be the reduction of exploitation by businesses operating models with minimal transparency for consumers, and which may even fail to distribute prizes as promised. But it appears that even legitimate operators will be ‘caught in the net’ where their models are based on a recurring system of draws, or if the promotions are seen to be too ‘dominant’ in terms of the overall enterprise.
If you conduct an enterprise that uses or relies on the provision of trade promotion lotteries as part of your service, please reach out to our office for guidance on whether your model is likely to be compliant with the new provisions of the IGA from 1 January 2027.
This update does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. It is intended only to provide a summary and general overview on matters of interest and it is not intended to be comprehensive. You should seek legal or other professional advice before acting or relying on any of the content.
