The last hope for a somewhat permissive framework for real-money gaming was dashed on Wednesday, with the Centre notifying rules to operationalise the Online Gaming Act, 2025 and making it clear that platforms involving monetary stakes remain barred in the country from May 1.
The rules draw a sharp line between games that involve money and those that do not, with the former explicitly excluded from registration or recognition under the law. “It is very clear that online money gaming is banned and they cannot be registered or determined under the Act,” electronics and IT ministry Secretary S Krishnan said at a press conference.
Non-money gaming platforms, including casual and social games, will be allowed to operate without mandatory registration unless specifically required by the designated authority. Krishnan described the approach as light-touch, adding that certain segments such as e-sports could still be subject to classification or determination.
Consultations with more than 2,500 stakeholders
The government’s stance follows months of consultations in which more than 2,500 stakeholders, including industry players and experts, had argued for a broader definition of online gaming that could accommodate real-money formats. The final rules, however, retain a restrictive position, effectively closing that window.
The framework also gives the government enabling powers to direct gaming companies to store traffic data, metadata and related information on servers located within India in specific cases. “There is no specific requirement under this Act but there could be in certain cases if there is a need then a direction can be given by the authority,” Krishnan said.
Notified nearly a year after the passage of the Act, the rules establish an institutional mechanism through an Online Gaming Authority of India under the IT ministry. The six-member body will include a chairperson and joint secretaries from the ministries of home affairs, finance, information and broadcasting, sports, and law and justice.
3 possible routes of classification of games
Classification of games will take place through three routes: suo motu determination by the authority, applications from e-sports bodies, or notification by the Central government for specific categories such as social games. The assessment will examine whether a game involves payment of fees, deposits or stakes, and whether users participate with an expectation of monetary or equivalent gain.
“Most games which are not money games should be able to operate with no obligation to necessarily either be determined or registered,” Krishnan said. A 90-day timeline has been prescribed for such determinations, and mandatory classification of all games has been avoided.
The rules also set out user protection requirements, including age verification or gating mechanisms, parental controls and time restrictions to mitigate financial and psychological risks.
For games that do undergo registration, the validity of certificates has been extended to 10 years from five years proposed in the draft rules issued last October, aimed at providing longer-term regulatory certainty for developers and e-sports organisers.
Enforcement will largely be routed through the financial system. Banks, payment gateways and financial institutions are required to verify a game’s registration status before facilitating transactions, and must suspend or block payment flows if a platform is identified as an illegal real-money gaming service.
“The enforcement will largely be through the banking and the financial system,” Krishnan said, adding that this reduces the need for continuous monitoring of platforms and transactions by the government.