Research and Articles

• New online gaming law brought into force on May 01, 2026.

• ‘Online money games’ (RMGs) are prohibited. Criminal penalties prescribed for offering, advertising, and facilitating payment transactions pertaining to online money games.

• Online social games’ and ‘e-sports’ are permitted with the latter requiring mandatory registration.

• New business opportunities in online social gaming. Select games to be registered which gives it a legally compliant status.

• New Online Gaming Authority of India set up to regulate the online gaming ecosystem and enforce the Online Gaming Act.

• Additional compliances for online game service providers with respect to user safety features, data retention and user grievance redressal.

Introduction 

The Indian Government passed the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 (“Online Gaming Act”)on August 22^nd, 2025, which bans ‘online money games’¹ (irrespective of whether they are based on skill or chance) and regulates online social games² and e-sports³. Several prominent online game platforms operating in India halted all cash-based gaming even before the Online Gaming Act was brought into force.⁴

The Indian Government released the draft Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules (“Draft Rules”) which were open for public consultation until 31^st October 2025.⁵  Despite a pending the judicial challenge to the Online Gaming Act⁶, the Indian Government notified the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules, 2026 (“Online Gaming Rules”)on April 22^nd, 2026⁷, which operationalized the provisions of the Online Gaming Act, and both the Online Gaming Act and the Online Gaming Rules came into force on May 1^st, 2026.⁸

The Online Gaming Act and the Online Gaming Rules extend to the whole of India and to online money gaming services offered within India or operated from outside India.⁹ Accordingly, the Online Gaming Act applies to e-sports, online money games and online social games offered by Indian operators to users in India, as well as to non-Indian operators that may offer or make available online money games to users in India.

The Online Gaming Rules prescribe obligations for online game service providers, which means ‘any person who alone or jointly, offers, operates, organises, manages or makes available one or more online games’.¹⁰

The definition of “online game service providers” appears wide enough to capture not only primary game developers, but also platform aggregators, app stores hosting such games. However, on reading the Online Gaming Act and the Online Gaming Rules harmoniously, it appears that the intent is for the obligations and compliances to be discharged by the persons who are offering the Online Games and not platform aggregators and app stores per se.

Classification of Online Games 

The Online Gaming Act categorises online games¹¹ into three buckets: (1) online money games (2) e-sports; and (3) online social games. 

I. Online Money Games 

An “online money game” is a game (irrespective of whether a game of skill or chance or both) played by paying fees or other stakes in expectation of winning monetary and other enrichment in return of money or other stakes^12.13 Online money games are prohibited and facilitating access to, advertising or facilitating transactions for an online money game attracts criminal penalties under the Online Gaming Act.¹⁴  

The Online Gaming Act prohibits:

1. Any person from offering, aiding, abetting, inducing or indulging or engaging in offering of an online money game or online money gaming service¹⁵

2. Any person from making, or aiding, abetting, inducing or otherwise be involved in making or causing to be made any advertisement which directly or indirectly promotes or induces a person to play online money games¹⁶

3. Banks, financial institutions, or any other person facilitating financial transactions or authorisation of funds from engaging in, aiding, abetting, inducing or otherwise facilitating any transaction or authorising funds towards payment for any online money gaming service¹⁷

The Online Gaming Act also defines “other stakes” as anything recognised as equivalent, or convertible to money and may include credits, coins, tokens etc. in real or virtual form purchased by paying money directly or indirectly as a part of an online game.¹⁸ 

There are certain gaming models where winnings in form of tokens, which are not redeemable for real money, but may be used to play other games, or purchase in-game items, which would otherwise be available for purchase using real money, may constitute other stakes. Accordingly, such games may be considered online money games.

II. E-Sports 

An “e-sport”¹⁹ is played as part of a multi-sport event²⁰, involving organised competitive events in multiplayer formats with predefined rules.²¹ An e-sport can only be legally offered if it meets the aforementioned criteria, and has been recognised under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025 and is registered with theOnline Gaming Authority of India (“Authority”). It may include registration fees only for the purpose of entering the competition or administrative costs and may include performance-based prize money^22, though placing of bets, wagers and other stakes²³ including winnings is not permitted. The outcome in an e-sport must be determined solely by factors such as physical dexterity, mental agility, strategic thinking or other similar skills.²⁴

Games like multiplayer online battle arena, first-person shooter, and football simulation, when played in organised multi-sport competitive events in accordance with the prescribed criteria with due recognition under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, should qualify as e-sports.

III.  Online Social Games 

An “online social game”²⁵ is any game which does not involve staking of money or “other stakes” or participation with an expectation of winning of money or “other stakes”.²⁶ It may work on a subscription model or one-time access fee model, provided that such payment is not in the nature of a stake or wager.²⁷ An online social game may solely be offered for the purpose of entertainment, recreation or skill development.²⁸  

With respect to a game offering in-game purchases such as skins, add-ons, features, map packs etc., it may likely be classified as an online social game since the payment for purchases of such digital goods or services within the game is not with the expectation of winning monetary returns, if there is no link between winning, and the money paid. However, in-game assets, benefits, rewards which may be monetised, redeemed or transferred outside the game environment will constitute a factor affecting the determination of an online game.²⁹

It also appears that educational games such as quizzes, polls (e.g., Kahoot), coding hackathons and other immersive, interactive, and gamified learning exercises, and experiences and courses offered on edtech platforms should operate as online social games.

The Central Government is also empowered to take steps to recognise, categorise and register online social games with the Authority and facilitate their development and availability.³⁰ An online social game does not need to be mandatorily determined or registered neither does an online game service provider need to voluntarily apply for such determination or registration. Determination or registration for online social games may be initiated (i) by the Authority, or (ii) by the Central Government requiring a game or a category of games to undergo the process based on certain additional factors.  

Determination of an Online Game 

The Online Gaming Act empowers the Authority with powers to inquire and determine whether an online game is an ‘online money game’.³¹ Determination is specific to an online game (offered by a specific online game service provider) and does not extend to online games of similar kind.

This clarifies the ambiguity raised in relation to the Online Gaming Act and Online Gaming Rules as to whether the determination or registration requirements would apply to individual games or whether the determination or registration of a specific game format would allow for other persons to offer such determined or registered online games. If two different online game service providers are offering games in the same category which is required to undergo determination (as notified by the Government), each online game service provider shall be required to apply for such determination.

The Online Gaming Rules clarify that such determination (whether an online game is an online money game) shall not be necessary for online games except for the following three situations: (i)  the online game is to be registered as an e-sport; (ii) the Authority (voluntarily and on its own motion) issues notice and directs an ‘online game service provider’ to have one or more of its online games determined by the Authority; and (iii) the Central Government notifies a category of ‘online social games’ which are mandatorily required to be determined, based on the nature of the online game, or volume of financial transactions or funds required for participating in or accessing such online game.³²

The online game service provider offering an e-sport or an online social game falling into the categories requiring determination (as notified by the Government) are required to apply with the Authority in the digital form published on their mobile application / website.³³

If an online social game does not fall into the three situations above, it should be permitted to be offered without undergoing such determination. Accordingly, the default position for online social games is that they may be offered without undergoing any determination unless specifically notified by the Government. However, the absence of an avenue to seek voluntary determination or registration may restrict online social game service providers from being able to proactively show that their games are deemed legally compliant.

Given that the Government will notify ‘online social games’ required to undergo such determination based on the nature and volume of the transactions or funds necessary for participation or access to the online social game, it appears that games with a higher subscription fee/one-time fee may be more likely to be required to undergo determination by the Authority.

Factors for Determination of Online Games 

The Authority shall take any or all of the following factors into consideration while determining whether an online game is ‘online money game’.

“…(a) whether the online game involves payment of fees, deposit of money or other stakes, by whatever name called, at any stage of participation in the online game;

(b) whether users have an expectation of winning monetary or other enrichment in return for such money or other stakes deposited by them;

(c) whether the payment of fees or deposits is used,

1. in such manner that the online social game appears to be part of a competitive event between individuals or teams, conducted in multiplayer formats governed by predefined rules, or as payment of registration or participation fees solely for the purpose of entering the competition, or covering administrative costs for the event or as reward for performance-based prize money;

2. in all other cases, as payment for accessing the online game as subscription fee or one-time access fee; or

3. as a bet, wager or any other stake in expectation of winning monetary or other stakes, including any winning out of such bets, wagers or any other stakes;

(d) the structure and operation of the revenue model of the online game;

(e) the manner in which rewards, benefits or in-game assets may be transferred, redeemed, monetised or used outside the game environment…”³⁴

Pertinently, the Authority will take into consideration any or all of these factors, and each such factor may individually, or a combination of factors may collectively, tip the needle for an online game to be determined as an online money game.

The Online Gaming Rules specifically include monetization of in-game assets outside of the game environment as a factor for determination, which was not present in the Draft Rules. This appears to target items such as digital collectibles, or NFT assets which can be obtained in games and traded on secondary markets outside of the game. This may also impact any online social games that have tie ups with real world brands, and which allow for use of in game assets / tokens etc. to be redeemed for real world assets (such as discount coupons or physical goods).

During determination, the Authority will examine the technical architecture, gameplay mechanics, revenue model, user interface and other such details as may be necessary, and seek appropriate technical or expert valuation, where appropriate.³⁵

Determination Order 

If the Authority determines that that an online game is an online money game, it shall issue a determination order conveying its decision and may initiate actions under the Online Gaming Act and issue such order as may be necessary in relation to such online money game.³⁶ If the Authority determines that an online game is not an online money game, the outcomes differ as below:

1. If such determination is pursuant to the Authority receiving an application for determination of an e-sport, the Authority will inform the applicant accordingly and proceed to process the application for recognition of such online game as an e-sport³⁷;

2. If such determination is of an online social game, the Authority shall: (i) issue a determination conveying its decision³⁸; and (ii) direct the online game service provider to inform the Authority (through its mobile application or website) of any changes in the facilitation of payments of its online game prior to making the online social game available with such changes.³⁹

The Online Gaming Rules clarify that the e-sport will proceed for registration after the determination, but do not stipulate the same for online social games, it appears that there may be certain online social games which may be required to undergo determination but may not be required to be registered.

Validity of the Determination Order 

The determination order of the Online Gaming Authority shall be valid till such time there are no changes to the online game which affect the facilitation of payments or authorization of funds for participating/ accessing such online game.⁴⁰

While the Draft Rules included a requirement for the online game service providers to inform the Authority regarding ‘material changes’ to online games after registration was accorded, the Online Gaming Rules have deleted the reference to ‘material changes’ but have retained the principle that requires for online game service providers to inform the Authority regarding any changes to its payment facilitation mechanism prior to implementing such changes. This requirement appears to apply to all payment related changes within the ecosystem, regardless of whether it has any bearing on the classification of the game as an online social game tipping towards an online money game due to the specific changes or not.

Registration of Online Games 

Online games shall only be registered if: (i) the online game is to be offered as an e-sport⁴¹; (ii) if the online game / category of online games has been notified by the Government as online games that require registration.  The notification of online games that require registration shall be done on the basis of:

1. Risk of harm to users including children;

2. The nature of the outcome or potential risks of injury or detrimental impact on the public due to such online game;

3. Scale of user participation in such online game;

4. Nature, volume, or value of financial transactions or authorization of funds permitted in such online game;

5. The country of origin or the head office of the online game service provider offering or making available such online game; and

6. Any other factors that the Authority deems necessary in public interest.⁴²

The Online Gaming Rules empower the Central Government to make two types of notifications in relation to online social games i.e., the power to notify: (i) online social games that are required to undergo determination; and (ii) online social games to undergo registration. The Online Gaming Rules appear to provide wider discretion for the government to notify online social games that will be required to be registered based on the content of the games, the country of origin or head office of the online game service provider offering the game, the potential risk of injury to users etc.

Accordingly, the Government has the power to notify games which have themes of violence, foul language, lewd and lascivious content, peer to peer interactions which are not moderated etc. to require for registration. Inclusion of ‘country’ of origin or head office factor signals that online games offered by non-Indian online game service providers may be required to undergo registration depending on the prevailing geopolitical climate.

Applications for registration should contain details of user safety features.⁴³

Inclusion of user safety measures in the registration form signal that the Online Gaming Act and the Online Gaming have an increased focus on the importance for online games being registered to have adequate measures in place to ensure that consumer interests are protected, and that such consumers are not detrimentally impacted by online games.  The presence or lack of such safety features may tip the needle as to whether an online game service provider is actually accorded registration for the online game.

Further, since the framework for recognition of e-sports under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025 is yet to be prescribed, it is unlikely that e-sports can be offered presently, especially the ones which includes an element of (i) input of money in the nature of participation or registration fees and; (ii) output of money in the nature of performance-based prize money.

Certificate of Registration 

After registration of an online game as an e-sport or online social game, the Authority shall issue a digital ‘certificate of registration’ which shall be valid for a period of up to 10 years as mentioned by the applicant at the time of making an application.⁴⁴ The certificate may be surrendered, suspended, or cancelled earlier after providing the online game service provider an opportunity of being heard on any of the following grounds:

1. The online game has changed in a manner that it is likely to be determined as an online money game;

2. The online game service provider has, on more than one instance, failed to comply with a direction, order, code of practice or guideline issued under the Online Gaming Act or under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025;

3. In case of an e-sport, the validity of recognition under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025 has expired, or such recognition has been withdrawn;

4. The online gamer service provider has furnished false or incorrect statements in the application for determination or registration;

5. Failure by the online game service provider to pay penalty imposed under the Online Gaming Act;

6. Violation of the Online Gaming Act or Rules or any other law applicable to such online game.⁴⁵

An online game service provider shall ensure that they prominently display details of determination or registration on their website or application where such game has been determined or registered by the Authority.⁴⁶

This obligation may also apply to platforms which enable access to such games, i.e., app stores, game aggregators etc. and the user interface, to the extent in the control of the platform, must be updated to display the correct representation in the event the determination order or the certificate of registration has been cancelled or withdrawn.

Grievance Redressal 

Online game service providers engaged in offering an online social game or e-sport shall establish and maintain a grievance redressal mechanism for redressal of grievances from any user in relation to such online social game or e-sport.⁴⁷ Where a user is aggrieved with the decision of the online game service provider (or the non-redressal of the grievance), such user may approach the Authority within a period of 30 days and the Authority shall endeavour to dispose of the appeal within 30 days from the receipt of the appeal from the user.⁴⁸

The Authority shall issue appropriate orders, including corrective or remedial measures in relation to the grievance after giving the parties a reasonable opportunity of being heard.⁴⁹ Any user that is dissatisfied with the resolution of the appeal of the Authority may file an appeal before the Secretary to the Government of India in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (“MeitY”) within 30 days.

Administrative Role of the Authority 

The Online Gaming Rules empowers the Authority to issue directions, orders, guidelines, codes of practices for the following matters, and the entities as detailed below must comply with such directions, orders, guidelines, code of practices, once issued:

Data Retention 

The obligations pertaining to the retention and storage of data in India are in addition to and not in supersession of the requirements under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and other sector specific regulations on retention and storage. Notably, the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025 mandate (i) a three-year period for retention of user’s personal data from the user’s last interaction, for gaming intermediaries with over 5 million registered users in Inda,⁵⁴ and (ii) a minimum one-year retention of personal data, traffic data, and processing logs for all online game service providers.⁵⁵ Accordingly, online game service providers should ensure they have adequate mechanisms in place to ensure that they are compliant with the multiple data retention and storage requirements.

This retention obligation, whenever notified, may require non-Indian online game service providers to use servers in India for storage of data. However, this may raise certain concerns including (i) high operational costs; and (ii) potential ‘permanent establishment’ risks and associated tax implications for foreign online game service providers. 

Banks and Payment Service Providers 

Upon receipt of any direction of the Authority, any bank, financial institution or any other person facilitating financial transactions or authorization of funds for an online game determined to be an online money game under the Online Gaming Rules shall comply with such direction to: (i) suspend, restrict, or discontinue facilitation of financial transactions or authorization of funds in relation to such online money game⁵⁶; and (ii) furnish information or provide assistance to the Authority as may be required for the purposes of the Online Gaming Act.⁵⁷

Given that the intent of the Online Gaming Act and the Online Gaming Rules appear to have banks, financial institutions and other persons facilitating financial transactions towards online money games as an additional pillar for enforcement, such entities must develop internal codes of practises in the interim, which may include (i) due diligence conducted on the online game (including questionnaires to understand how money is routed); (ii) due representation, warranties and indemnities in case of any possible enforcement, or (iii) obtaining a legal opinion on specific games which may not be required to undergo determination or be registered. Banks and financial institutions should also ensure they are ready to implement the manner of validation of certificates of registration once the directions / guidelines are issued by the Authority.

Online Gaming Authority of India 

Composition and Structure 

The Authority is constituted as an attached office to MeitY, chaired by an Additional Secretary (or such other office not below the rank of Joint Secretary) of MeitY,⁵⁸ with ex-officio members from the Ministries of

1.  Ministry of Home Affairs,

2. Ministry of Finance

3. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting,

4. Ministry Youth Affairs and Sports, and

5. Ministry of Law and Justice⁵⁹

The Authority shall primarily function as a digital office attached with MeitY⁶⁰ and its head office shall be in New Delhi.⁶¹

The inter-ministerial composition of the Authority reflects the intention to holistically address the issues within the online gaming ecosystem in India, as reflected in the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Online Gaming Act. By way of an example, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting will bring sectoral expertise in adjudicating cases where celebrities and influencer endorsements lead to contravention of the Online Gaming Act, as they have done before.⁶² Similarly, Ministry of Finance may bring expertise in cases of suspected money laundering via online games, cross border payments and revenue models which may include new-age payment methods like use of cryptocurrency, stablecoins (like USDC, USDT), taxation etc. 

Powers and Functions

The Authority shall exercise and perform the following functions in addition to the functions conferred under the Online Gaming Act: (i) maintain and publish a list of  online games determined to be online money games, and online games determined or registered by it; (ii) inquire into any complaint in relation to an online game; (iii) issue directions to persons offering, organizing, or facilitating any online games, advertisements relating to online games, and financial transactions or authorization of funds for any online game; (iv) issue guidelines / code of practices in relation to offering online games in consultation with the Government; (v) entertain appeals from the decisions of online game service providers in relation to grievances; (vi) coordinate with financial institutions, law enforcement agencies, and other agencies of the government, authorities or regulators for enforcement; (vii) assist the Central Government in exercise of its powers under the Online Gaming Act; and (vii) issue advisories to further the objectives of the Online Gaming Act.⁶³

The Authority’s power to issue directions to persons offering, organizing, or facilitating any online games, advertisements relating to online games, and financial transactions or authorization of funds for any online game implies that such directions can be issued to cloud hosting services or advertising platforms. The Online Gaming Act provides that any information in relation to an online money gaming service in violation of the provisions of the Online Gaming Act shall be liable to be blocked under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000.⁶⁴

The Authority may issue directions, orders, guidelines or codes of practices in relation to online social games and e-sports including in relation to (i) procedure for registration, cancellation, suspension or surrender of certificates of registration, (ii) user verification, (iii) payment facilitation and routing, (iv) fair play standards, (v) cyber security, (vi) user safety, (vii) data retention, (viii) compliance reporting, (ix) and verification of determination orders and certificates of registration.⁶⁵ The Authority also has the power to require any persons providing services to online game service providers to furnish additional information as required.

The Authority and the Appellate Authorities shall be bound by the principles of natural justice, and for the purpose of discharging their functions under the Online Gaming Act, shall have the power to: (i) summon and examine any person; and (ii) inspect any data, book, document, register, books of account, or any other document.

This provides broad powers for the Authority to seek information from all persons / entities providing services to the online game service providers including global capability centres of global online game service providers, technical support and infrastructure services providers (such as cloud infrastructure providers, content delivery networks), R&D service providers, cyber security consultants, quality assurance service providers, payment aggregators and gateways, KYC service providers etc.

Offenses and Penalties 

Judicial Position on Online Gaming 

Since the passing of the Online Gaming Act, it has been subject to numerous challenges on constitutional grounds in multiple state High Courts. In September, the Supreme Court of India directed consolidation of such cases to be heard by the Supreme Court.⁷⁶

For the past few decades, India’s online gaming ecosystem has been flourishing under the blessing of the courts who have blessed certain game formats and differentiated between games of chance and games of skill, ruling the latter to be a protected constitutional activity under Article 19 (1) (g) of the Indian Constitution.⁷⁷ Any restrictions on the right to practise any profession or carry on any trade or business must be justified on grounds of public order, public health, morality, or must otherwise satisfy the test of proportionality.⁷⁸ Treating skill-based gaming at par with gambling activities essentially reverses the judicial position which has emerged over the last seventy decades, in absence of a lesser restrictive measure to address the potential concerns arising out of online skill-based gaming.

Further, betting and gambling is a state subject under the seventh schedule of the Indian Constitution, which empowers state governments to legislative on the subject. In furtherance to this, most states adopted the Public Gambling Act, 1867 or enacted their own legislations to regulate gaming activities, including online gaming. The Online Gaming Act and the Online Gaming Rules, which appear to be overarching legislations enacted by the Union prohibiting a judicially protected activity⁷⁹ will have to pass judicial scrutiny on legislative competence, potential overreach and encroachment.

While the challenge is presently still pending adjudication, it is left to be seen whether provisions of the Online Gaming Act are struck down by the Supreme Court of India as unconstitutional or whether it passes the test of judicial scrutiny.

Impact and Takeaways 

Providers of Online Money Games

Such operators should (i) immediately stop offering online money games; (ii) consider providing the games on a free to play basis, or alternative games that do not involve the input of money in expectation of winning; (iii) consult with a lawyer to determine whether the game format they are offering is permissible under the Online Gaming Act and the Online Gaming Rules.

Providers of Online Social Games

Such operators may continue to offer such games but should (i) closely monitor any government notifications regarding whether such online games would require determination and, or registration; (ii) be in a position to demonstrate that their games do not fall under the category of online money games; (iii) monitor any guidelines, directions, codes of practices as may be implemented by the government pertaining to matters such as data retention, designation of the point of contact etc; (iv)  seek an opinion from a lawyer in event of ambiguity regarding their game format. This opinion may also be useful for onboarding with banks and payment service providers, and even advertisers who will be more comfortable partnering with such online game service providers.

Providers of E-Sports

Since the process for recognition of e-sports is presently unclear, such operators must presently wait for the recognition of a ‘national sports federation’ for e-sports by the National Sports Board under the National Sports Governance Act, 2005. Once the procedure for recognition of e-sports is clear, such operators must ensure that (i) their game format qualifies as an e-sport as recognized by such national sports federation and make an application to the Authority for registration; (ii) they do not offer any game where there is any input of money from users and corresponding prize money as there may be a risk that such games are penalized as online money games; (iii) they monitor any guidelines, directions, codes of practices as may be implemented by the government pertaining to matters such as data retention, designation of the point of contact etc.

Banks and Payment Service Providers Facilitating Online Money Game Transactions

While the Draft Rules had transitional provisions for entities offering online money games to return funds to users, these provisions have not been retained in the Online Gaming Rules. This may lead to operational difficulties for entities that were previously offering online money games.

Banks and payment service providers are positioned as gatekeepers at the ground level to ensure that no online money games are being offered. They should monitor and comply with any directions, orders or guidelines issued by the Online Gaming Authority regarding: (i) the verification of certificates of registration of E-Sports and online social games; (ii) the facilitation of financial transactions and authorization of funds, including directions relating to facilitation, routing, and settlement of user payments.

In the interim / in the absence of guidelines on the manner of verification of certificates of registration of e-sports and online social games, as well as in the case of any online social games that do not require determination or registration, banks and payment service providers should (i) implement internal protocols and SOPs for employees; (ii) conduct due diligence (iii) take legal opinions in case of any ambiguity on the nature of an online game from any existing / future clients; (iv) take representations and warranties from such clients pertaining to the game formats.

For online games offered by offshore online game service providers, remittances towards participation or subscription fees would be subject to foreign exchange control regulations, onus of compliance lies on the Indian users. Remittances towards online gaming/ gambling have been historically restricted by Authorised Dealer Category-I Banks under the Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) Rules 2000, it remains to be seen whether banks would now be comfortable facilitating transactions towards offshore operators offering online games i.e., online social games (whether determined, registered or otherwise) or e-sports.  

Advertisers and Endorses

Unlike banks and payment service providers, the Online Gaming Rules presently do not provide for any future guidelines issued for advertisers and endorsers to effect compliance with the Online Gaming Act. In absence of the same, advertisers and endorsers should conduct (i) due diligence on the legality of the products they are advertising, which may also include requiring the online game service provider to obtain a legal opinion with respect to the format of their game (ii) update their contracts to include representation, warranties and indemnities from the online game service provider (iii) wherever applicable, in their role as an intermediary, update their terms of service to cause the online game service providers to comply with the law. Failure of intermediary platforms to exercise due diligence obligations under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, with respect to non-compliant online games or gaming advertisements hosted on their platforms, may result in dilution of their safe harbour status. 

Advertisers and endorsers may also use the online list of online money games, and determined/ registered games available on the website/ application of the Authority to verify the status of the online game they are advertising in case the online game service provider has represented the game as determined or registered.

Tanishq Gupta, Sanjana Shrivastav, Shashank Venkat and Aaron Kamath
You can direct your queries or comments to the authors.

¹Section 2(1)(g) of the Online Gaming Act. Online money games are any online games (irrespective of whether they are games of skill or chance or both) played by paying fees or other stakes in expectation of winning monetary and other enrichment in return of money or other stakes.

²Section 2(1)(i) of the Online Gaming Act. Online social games offered solely for entertainment, recreation or skill development, without any element of staking or expectation of winning.

³Section 2(c) of the Online Gaming Act. E-Sports are online games which are played as part of a multi-sport event, involve competitive events between individuals and teams conducted in multiplayer formats governed by pre-defined rules, duly recognized under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, the outcome of which is determined by factors such as skill and dexterity, may involve a participation fee and prize money, but shall not involve placing of bets or wagers.

⁴Our analysis of the Online Gaming Act is available here: Proposed Ban on India's Multi-Billion Dollar Gaming Industry . (last accessed 05.05.2026 at 01:43 AM)

⁵Our analysis of the Draft Rules is available here:

⁶Head Digital Works Private Limited and Anr. v. Union of India and Anr (T.C. 133/ 2025)

⁷Read: https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2254606&reg=3&lang=1 (last accessed 05.05.2026 at 01:43 AM)

⁸The Online Gaming Rules has some deviations from the Draft Rules and was not issued verbatim.

⁹Section 1 (2), Online Gaming Act

¹⁰Rule 2(h), Online Gaming Rules

¹¹Section 2 (f), Online Gaming Act. “Online game” means any game, which is played on an electronic or a digital device and is managed and operated as a software through the internet or any other kind of technology facilitating electronic communication.

¹²Section 2 (g), Online Gaming Act

¹³Since this definition encompasses both games of skill and games of chance, it goes against the established jurisprudence which tests the legality of online games based on whether the game preponderantly involved skill or chance, and clarified that games of skill are protected under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution i.e., the fundamental right to practice any profession or carry out any occupation.

¹⁴Section 5,6,7 read with Section 9 of the Online Gaming Act.

¹⁵Section 5, Online Gaming Act

¹⁶Section 6, Online Gaming Act

¹⁷Section 7, Online Gaming Act

¹⁸Section 2 (j), Online Gaming Act

¹⁹Section 2 (c), Online Gaming Act

²⁰Section 2 (c) (i), Online Gaming Act

²¹Section 2 (c) (ii), Online Gaming Act

²²Section 2 (c) (v), Online Gaming Act

²³Section 2 (c) (vi), Online Gaming Act

²⁴Section 2 (c) (iv), Online Gaming Act

²⁵Section 2 (i), Online Gaming Act

²⁶Section 2 (i) (i), Online Gaming Act

²⁷Section 2 (i) (ii), Online Gaming Act

²⁸Section 2 (i) (iii), Online Gaming Act

²⁹Rule 9 (v), Online Gaming Rules

³⁰Section 4 (1), Online Gaming Act

³¹Section 8(2) of the Online Gaming Act.

³²Rule 8(1) of the Online Gaming Rules

³³Rule 8(2) of the Online Gaming Rules

³⁴Rule 9 of the Online Gaming Rules

³⁵Rule 10(1)(c) and 10(1)(d) of the Online Gaming Rules

³⁶Rule 10(2)(a) of the Online Gaming Rules

³⁷Rule 10(2)(b)(i) of the Online Gaming Rules

³⁸Rule 10(2)(b)(ii) of the Online gaming Rules

³⁹Rule 10(2)(b)(iii) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁴⁰Rule 11(1) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁴¹Online money games shall not be eligible for registration as an E-Sport.

⁴²Rule 12(1) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁴³user safety features include technical, procedural, operational, behavioural, or system related safeguards provided in relation to an online social game or e-sport commensurate to the nature and risk associated with such game for: (i) the purpose of protecting users from financial, psychological, social, security related, or content related risks arising from the access or use of such online game; (ii) for promoting responsible online gaming, preventing injury, enhancing transparency, enabling informed user choices, and ensuring the integrity and safety of the gaming environment. These safeguards include age gating, age verification, parental controls, user reporting, grievance redressal, counselling support and fair play and integrity monitoring tools.

⁴⁴Rule 14(1) and Rule 14(2) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁴⁵Rule 14(3), Online Gaming Rules.

⁴⁶Rule 15(a) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁴⁷Rule 20(1) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁴⁸Rule 20(2) and 20(3) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁴⁹Rule 20(4) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁵⁰Rule 16 of the Online Gaming Rules

⁵¹Rule 17 of the Online Gaming Rules

⁵²Rule 18 of the Online Gaming Rules

⁵³Rule 19(1) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁵⁴Rule 8(1) read with Third Schedule, Digital Personal Data Protection Rules

⁵⁵Rules 8(3), Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025.

⁵⁶Rule 19(2)(a) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁵⁷Rule 19(2)(b) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁵⁸Amitesh Kumar Sinha should be current chairperson for the Online Gaming Authority.

⁵⁹Rule 3(1), Online Gaming Rules.

⁶⁰Rule 3(6), Online Gaming Rules.

⁶¹Rule 3(5), Online Gaming Rules.

⁶²Read: Ministry of I&B cautions social media influencers against endorsing offshore online betting and gambling platforms accessible here: https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2015952&reg=3&lang=2

⁶³Rule 6(1) of the Online Gaming Rules

⁶⁴Section 14, Online Gaming Act

⁶⁵Rule 6(4), Online Gaming Rules.

⁶⁶Section 5, Online Gaming Act

⁶⁷Section 9 (1), Online Gaming Act

⁶⁸Section 9 (4), Online Gaming Act

⁶⁹Section 6, Online Gaming Act

⁷⁰Section 9 (2), Online Gaming Act

⁷¹Section 9 (5), Online Gaming Act

⁷²Section 6, Online Gaming Act

⁷³Section 9 (3), Online Gaming Act

⁷⁴Section 9 (4), Online Gaming Act

⁷⁵Section 12, Online Gaming Act

⁷⁶Read: https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/supreme-court-transfers-to-itself-petitions-in-high-courts-challenging-online-gaming-act-2025-303184 (last accessed 05.05.2026 at 01:43 AM)

⁷⁷Article 19(1)(g): All citizens shall have the right to practise any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business.

⁷⁸Article 19 (6), Constitution of India

⁷⁹Play Games 24*7 Private Limited v. State of Tamil Nadu, W.P. No.6784 of 2025