There are some great sweepstakes casinos out there today. However, one of the most popular and valuable social casinos you’ll find anywhere is Stake.us. Stake.us is a great platform, but the question on many consumers’ minds are: is stake.us legal in the US?
Well, that depends on many different factors. Sweepstake casinos operate on different state, and federal laws than regular gambling platforms do, so it’s entirely a separate issue for many different states. We’re going to delve into the legality, and the conditions behind playing on a sweepstakes casino, particularly Stake.us.
Understanding the Sweepstakes Model
Before we proceed, we need to make a clear distinction between online casino and sweepstakes casinos. The primary difference between the two is the currency used. To simplify:
- Sweepstakes casinos use a virtual currency, that is only playable on the platform, and in some cases, has no real money valuem and in other cases, offer prizes that can be traded for real money.
- Online casinos use real currency, so you are wagering your real money when you play on online casinos
The sweepstakes model means that the element of risk, which is always present when gambling with real money. Using social casinos, or sweepstakes casinos with a virtual currency, under federal law, is perfectly legal, as long as it falls under the ‘no purchase necessary’ rule in order to play. Essentially, spending, or depositing money, is not necessary to win.
In the case of Stake.us, there are two virtual currencies that are important to make a distinction of.
- Gold Coins – The Gold Coin currency is completely virtual, and is a currency solely designed for in game play. You can win and lose it in on the Stakes platform, but it does not have any real world value.
- Sweepstakes Coin – The sweepstakes coins are a little different. These coins are more difficult to earn, and once you reach a certain minimum threshold, they can be withdrawn for real money. For example, 55 Sweep Coins are worth $55 in real money, and that is a withdrawable amount. You can get a signup bonus of some Stake.us sweep coins with our Stake.us login bonus.
The introduction of Sweepstake coins on these platforms, like Stake.us, is what makes it a gray era on a regional level. Federally, as long as no purchase is necessary, it is completely legal. However, on a state-wide level: where is Stake.us legal in the US?
Federal vs State Laws: Key Distinctions
We’ve covered that federal law is quite lenient when it comes to sweepstakes casino. As long as it is clear that the sweepstakes casino operates under the no purchase necessary rule, and they do not fall under the legal definition of gambling under US law. However, on a state level, some states take a different approach, which can slightly complicate the implementation of this law.
While most states are lenient when it comes to sweepstake casinos, there are some states that implement strict laws on any kind of sweepstakes casinos. The first example that comes to mind is Washington. Washington maintains that when you purchase a virtual currency in a sweepstakes casino, that counts as gambling, which makes it illegal within state lines. There are other states that have banned Stake.us, which we cover in our Stake casino review.
Common Legal questions
You may still have some questions regarding specific laws, or conditions that may exist on a state wide or federal level. We’ve decided to simply the answers to these questions by providing a bullet point list below.
- Is playing with Sweep Coins, and withdrawing them gambling? – No. Not on a federal level, nor on a statewide level. Washington is the only state that considers the official deposit or withdrawal of money from a sweepstakes casino, no matter how it is attained, to be gambling.
- Why can’t I play Stake.us in certain states? – This is again due to statewide laws that restrict certain factors about Stake.us as a platform. For example, Nevada and New York are normally lenient when it comes to sweepstake casinos, however the huge Sweep Coin rewards available on Stake.us (which can go over $10,000 in rare cases) means the states no longer consider it a sweepstakes casino. We discuss all the states Stake.us are available in.
- Are there any more federal laws I need to be aware of while playing at a sweepstakes casino? – The only other major federal law you need to take into account is the taxable income of sweepstakes winnings. All sweepstakes winnings are taxed at 24%, with taxing coming in at a threshold of $5,000.
Stake.us Specific State Legal Challenges
We mentioned a few times before that Washington is the only state that has completely outlawed all Sweepstakes casinos. However, there are more statutes that states have in play in regards to Sweepstakes casinos, that it’s important to keep in mind when you’re playing on Sweepstakes casinos.
- Florida and New York has a cap of sweepstakes winnings at $5,000. That means you cannot win more than $5,000 coins in any one sitting.
- Michigan requires all sweepstakes casinos to be regulated under their own Michigan state iGaming law. This law requires the sweepstake casino to not require a player to make a bet or wager, and to offer an alternative, free form of playing on the casino
- Idaho bars any kind of cash prize to be won on a sweepstakes casino, meaning that Stake.us is illegal in the state. Idaho does have social casinos that offer virtual currencies, but all avenues to win free cash prizes are barred.
- Nevada is selective about the sweepstakes casinos available in the state, and only allows sweepstakes casinos that limit cash prizes to under $10,000, and require players to be 21 and over, as opposed to 18 and over.
Stake.us takes all measures to ensure it is available to 43 different states in the country. You have to be aged 21 and over to play at the sweepstakes casino, as well as limiting deposits and withdrawals to purely cryptocurrency. This cryptocurrency deposit and withdrawal method does not only act as a method of convenience, but a measure to ensure no US dollars or any kind of tenable currency is available to withdraw from the casino.
If you’re within any of these 43 states, this Stake.us promo code should be fully available to you.
Staying Informed and Safe
- There are a few tips you can keep in mind, to make sure you, and your finances are always safe when playing at a sweepstakes casino.
- A sweepstakes casino should never require any kind of initial deposit. The choice should be yours if you wish to deposit your own money
- Try choose sweepstakes casinos that are legislated and regulated. It’s not necessary, but platforms such as Stake.us are registered by the Curacao social casino regulatory board, so it adds a layer of legitimacy to them as a business
- Remember that state laws are slowly changing and evolving. Two years ago, betting with any kind of sweepstake casino in Michigan was illegal, and it was only recently legalised. Make sure you keep up to date with your state laws, because you never know what will change!
Conclusion
To summarise, Stake.us is one of the more secure sweepstakes casinos out there. Keeping in mind the laws and the regulations we have covered, there should be no doubt in anyones mind that Stake.us is a secure platform. But, to answer the question: is Stake.us legal in the US?
For the majority of the country, yes. There are only seven states where Stake.us is not legal, but these states that have stringent anti-gambling, and some anti-sweepstakes laws already in place. We believe it is important to remember that you should always play sweepstakes casinos for fun. They are designed to be a full alternative to real online casinos, so remember to make sure that they remain that way!
