Pennsylvania

The Gaming Expansion Act of 2017 (Act 42) authorised interactive gaming (iGaming) in Pennsylvania, and the first online casinos launched in July 2019. The PGCB regulates the market through 'interactive gaming certificates' held by the state's licensed Category 1, 2 and 3 casinos, each covering up to three verticals (slots, table games and poker); certificate holders may run the games themselves or contract with a licensed Interactive Gaming Operator (Qualified Gaming Entity). Pennsylvania's tax on online slots is among the highest applied to iGaming anywhere in the US.

Certificate and tether model

Interactive gaming in Pennsylvania is built on the land-based licence. Only the state's Category 1, 2 and 3 casinos may hold interactive gaming certificates, and each certificate authorises a defined vertical set, so slots, table games and peer-to-peer poker are licensed separately rather than as a single product. A certificate holder can run the games itself or contract the work to a licensed operator, a Qualified Gaming Entity, which supplies the platform and brand. This keeps every online skin anchored to an existing land-based licensee, and concentrates initial market access among incumbent casino operators.

Why 54 per cent matters

The headline distinction is fiscal. Online slots are taxed at 54 per cent of gross gaming revenue, while online table games and peer-to-peer poker sit at 16 per cent. The slots figure combines a 34 per cent state tax with a 20 per cent local share assessment, and ranks among the highest interactive rates in the United States. Because slots generate the largest online volumes, the gap shapes product economics: the margin retained on a slot spin is far thinner than on a table hand, which in turn influences game mix, promotional budgets and how heavily operators lean on the slots vertical.

Servers in state, geolocated play

Two location requirements sit at the core of enforcement. Interactive gaming servers and associated equipment must be physically sited within Pennsylvania, keeping the regulated infrastructure inside the Board's jurisdiction. Play itself is confined to persons physically present in the state, verified through geolocation technology at log-in and during a session. Alongside these controls, the framework carries age verification, a state self-exclusion list and responsible-gambling obligations. Wagers attempted from outside Pennsylvania are blocked rather than accepted, which is why geolocation accuracy and server siting are recurring points in compliance review.

Cost of entry

Access carries a defined price. Each interactive gaming certificate costs 4 million dollars, is valid for five years, and renews at 250,000 dollars; the 2018 launch window bundled all three verticals for 10 million dollars. Combined with the requirement to partner with a Pennsylvania land-based casino, this raises the threshold for entry well above an ordinary licence application. The practical effect is that online brands reach players through a finite set of casino certificate holders, and the fixed outlay applies regardless of the revenue a certificate later produces, weighting the model towards well-capitalised entrants.

Read against New Jersey

Pennsylvania is frequently compared with New Jersey, the older large eastern market. The structures rhyme: both tether online operators to land-based casino licences and permit third-party operator brands to reach players through them. The sharpest divergence is tax. New Jersey applies a markedly lower headline rate to online gaming revenue, whereas Pennsylvania's 54 per cent on slots is far heavier, with table games and poker closer at 16 per cent. For diligence, the comparison matters because broadly similar operational rules can still produce different margins, and the tax line is the single largest driver of that gap.

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