STATE TRACKER · GA
Sweepstakes casinos in Georgia
Current status
No tracked explicit prohibition
We have found no state law that explicitly prohibits sweepstakes casinos here. That is an absence of a tracked prohibition, not an affirmative authorization.
There is no tracked prohibition here to act on. An operator's own terms still decide whether it will register you, and some exclude states that have taken no action at all, so read the terms we link on each review page. See the operators we track
- Sweeps Coins (SC) redemption
- No tracked prohibition
- Gold Coin (GC) free play
- Yes
- Minimum age
- 18+
- Age floor source
- O.C.G.A. § 39-1-1(a) (age of legal majority)
PRIMARY-SOURCE NOTE
Georgia's lottery definition has a clause about games others play for free
What the law does
O.C.G.A. section 16-12-20(4) defines a lottery as any scheme that hands out prizes by chance among people who paid or promised consideration for a chance to win1. The paragraph then widens it: a lottery also includes paying cash, or paying for merchandise or services, together with the option to play a no skill game on a computer or electronic device that can award a cash or noncash prize, "even if others can participate or play for free"1. Under section 16-12-22(a)(6), a person who sets up or promotes any lottery commits commercial gambling, a felony that subsection (b) punishes with one to five years in prison, a fine of up to $20,000, or both1. One exception covers national or regional sweepstakes run by a corporation registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that holds at least $100 million in total assets1.
What has happened since
Our copy of these sections is a Georgia Lottery compilation marked current as of September 24, 20211. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation says its Commercial Gambling Unit, formed in August 2013, enforces commercial gambling laws on store amusement machines, whose credits may be redeemed only for merchandise, fuel or lottery tickets, never cash2. The page says nothing about online play. SB 571, a Senate bill from the 2025-2026 regular session, would require age checks on websites where online gambling makes up a substantial portion of the material, and it defines online gambling to include casino style games using a currency a player can exchange for a prize or a cash equivalent3. Its last recorded step, when we read it, was referral to the Children and Families Committee on February 25, 20264. Our tracked event history for Georgia is empty and we hold no exit record here, while 9 tracked operators are recorded as not taking Georgia players.
What is still open
The widened lottery clause opens with the words "Except as otherwise provided in Code Section 16-12-35", the section holding the exceptions for coin operated amusement machines1. The record does not show how it reads against a remote site. When a player buys a Gold Coin package that comes with Sweeps Coins, is that the payment for merchandise plus the option to play that the paragraph describes, and does its phrase about others who play for free leave the free request route any weight? Our event history holds no Georgia court ruling, attorney general opinion or bureau action applying the clause online. Whether the currency wording in SB 571 would reach Sweeps Coins stays untested, because its history shows no committee action after referral4.
- Enforcement search
- The Georgia Bureau of Investigation describes its Commercial Gambling Unit as enforcing the gambling laws against cash payouts from coin operated amusement machines in stores, and its page names no online sweepstakes site. Nothing in our tracked Georgia history is an enforcement action or an operator exit.
- Question still open
- Whether buying a Gold Coin package that carries Sweeps Coins is the kind of paid option to play that Georgia's lottery definition describes, given its words about others playing for free, has no Georgia court, attorney general or bureau reading in our record.
Sources for this note
- O.C.G.A. Title 16, Chapter 12, Article 2, gambling and related offenses, compilation current as of 09/24/21 (Georgia Lottery COAM) accessed Sep 28, 2026
- Commercial Gambling Unit (Georgia Bureau of Investigation) accessed Sep 28, 2026
- SB 571 (2025-2026 Regular Session), LC 56 0614, bill text (Georgia General Assembly) accessed Sep 28, 2026
- SB 571 (2025-2026 Regular Session) status history (Georgia General Assembly) accessed Sep 28, 2026
Sources rechecked 2026-09-28. Next scheduled review 2026-12-28.
What the law says
Commercial gambling: including setting up or promoting any lottery: is a felony punishable by 1 to 5 years imprisonment and/or a fine up to $20,000 (O.C.G.A. § 16-12-22(b)). Slot machines and video card-game simulations are per se prohibited gambling devices under § 16-12-20(2)(B)-(D).
Operators and Georgia
112 of the 121 operators we track are recorded as accepting Georgia players, and 13 of those are rated trusted.
9 of the 121 operators we track are recorded as not accepting Georgia players, and 4 of those records cite the operator's own terms.
Highest Trust Scores among the operators recorded as accepting Georgia:
How this classification was reached
Show the record, the citation and the method
What the Georgia classification rests on
- Source date
- Not recorded
- Last human review
- June 11, 2026
- Effective date
- Not recorded
- Basis of classification
- statutory
Where the operator counts come from
Of the 112 acceptance records, 34 cite the operator's own terms or rules, 10 come from a backfill of the operator's terms, 1 comes from the operator's site configuration, 13 are inferred because the terms do not list Georgia, 51 come from our bulk backfill without a terms citation and 3 reflect site availability with no observed Sweeps Coins program. Of the 9 exclusion records, 4 cite the operator's own terms or rules and 5 come from our bulk backfill without a terms citation.
Citation as stored
O.C.G.A. §§ 16-12-20 (definitions, incl. 'lottery'), 16-12-22 (commercial gambling).
Primary sources on file
Method
Methodology · Corrections · Changelog · How to read a state page
Georgia questions
Are sweepstakes casinos legal in Georgia?
We have found no state law that explicitly prohibits sweepstakes casinos here. That is an absence of a tracked prohibition, not an affirmative authorization. Authority: O.C.G.A. §§ 16-12-20.
Does Georgia's lottery definition mention games that some people play for free?
Yes. After the basic prize, chance and consideration test, O.C.G.A. section 16-12-20(4) adds that a lottery also includes paying for merchandise or services along with the option to play a no skill game on a computer or electronic device for a prize, "even if others can participate or play for free". No Georgia ruling in our record applies that clause to an online Sweeps Coin site.
Which operators accept Georgia players?
112 of the 121 operators we track are recorded as accepting Georgia players, and 13 of those are rated trusted. 9 of the 121 operators we track are recorded as not accepting Georgia players, and 4 of those records cite the operator's own terms. The leaderboard filtered to Georgia lists every one. Leaderboard filtered to Georgia →
This page is information, not legal advice. Laws and thresholds change quickly, so confirm with the operator and your state attorney general before depositing, or consult a lawyer. Last verified June 11, 2026. Send a correction.