Australia’s ACT Tables Mandatory Cashless Gaming and Machine Reduction Bill
The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) has officially introduced the Gaming Machine (Harm Prevention and Reduction) Amendment Bill 2026 in the ACT Legislative Assembly, initiating one of the most comprehensive structural overhauls of land-based electronic gaming machines (EGMs) in Australian history. Tabled by Minister for Gaming Reform Marisa Paterson, the legislation seeks to fundamentally re-engineer venue operations by establishing mandatory cashless, account-based play, imposing strict limits on cash accessibility, and enforcing a statutory long-term reduction in total poker machine capacity across the territory.
Under the proposed legal framework, anonymous cash play will be entirely eliminated. Players will be required to register for identity-verified accounts and utilize physical player cards to operate EGMs. The system embeds mandatory pre-commitment controls, obligating players to set binding maximum loss limits prior to commencing play. To prevent impulsive behavior, requests to increase net loss limits will trigger a mandatory 48-hour cooling-off period. Operational safeguards also mandate a compulsory 15-minute break following every 60 minutes of continuous play, alongside strict liability penalties for operators who issue cards to minors or allow underage access to cashless gaming infrastructure.
Beyond machine-level controls, the bill targets venue liquidity and operating windows. It replaces the current $250 daily EFTPOS/ATM withdrawal limit with a total prohibition of ATMs within gaming premises, as well as any related facilities within 500 meters of an active gaming venue. Additionally, the territory will enforce extended machine shutdown periods mandating non-operational windows from 2:00 AM to 10:00 AM on weekdays starting July 2027 to curb early-morning play. Crucially, the bill outlines a 20-year structural reduction plan to cap total poker machine authorizations at 1,000 by 2045 via mandatory four-year surrender rounds of 500 authorizations, with the initial surrender phase launching in 2029.
The ACT Government cited findings from its 2024 Gambling Survey showing that one in six adults experiences gambling harm with poker machines driving one-third of the territory's total harm burden to justify the measure. To mitigate the economic impact on community venues, the government is establishing dedicated transition teams to assist clubs in diversifying revenue streams into property, housing, and non-gaming commercial operations.
