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Measures to legalize online casinos in the Commonwealth of Virginia fell flat this year. The legislative period for 2026 came to an abrupt end on Monday.
Both Senate Bill 118 and House Bill 161 passed the state Senate and House of Delegates but failed to progress after each chamber rejected the other’s version.
Those in Virginia can still play at various sweepstakes casinos and offshore sites licensed at global gaming hubs.
Senate Bill 118 would have authorized internet gaming in the Commonwealth to be regulated by the Virginia Lottery Board. The bill permits the Board to issue an internet gaming operator license to a casino gaming operator that submits an application on forms approved by the Board, meets certain qualifications, and pays an initial licensing fee of $500,000. The tax rate is set at 20 percent of an internet gaming operator's adjusted gross internet gaming revenue with three percent allocated to the Gaming Regulatory Fund, two percent allocated to the Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund, and 95 percent allocated to the Modern Public Education Fund.
HB 161 in the 2026 Virginia Regular Session, introduced by Delegate Marcus B. Simon, proposed to authorize and regulate internet gaming (iGaming) in the Commonwealth. The Virginia Lottery Board would oversee these operations, requiring casinos to submit separate notices of intent for online platforms, aiming to legalize and tax currently unregulated online betting.
- GIlbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com
