Are Sweepstakes Casinos Legal in California?

The law: AB 831

California's Assembly Bill 831 takes two separate legislative approaches to shut the model down. First, it amended Business & Professions Code §17539.1 - the state's existing sweepstakes-promotion law - to explicitly cover web and app-based platforms that simulate casino gambling using a dual-currency (Gold Coin / Sweeps Coin) structure. Second, and more significantly, it created a brand-new criminal prohibition under Penal Code §337o, making it a crime to operate a platform that uses a dual-currency system as a form of consideration, simulates gambling, and awards cash or cash-equivalent prizes.

Notably, the law preserves ordinary promotional sweepstakes tied to an actual product purchase (think: a cereal box code-entry giveaway) - it's specifically targeted at the casino-style, dual-currency structure our guide to how the model works describes, not sweepstakes promotions in general.

It doesn't stop at the operator

AB 831 extends liability to anyone who "knowingly and willfully" supports a banned platform - by name, that includes payment processors, geolocation providers, gaming-content suppliers, platform/software vendors, and media affiliates (i.e. advertisers and referral sites). That's a deliberately wide net meant to make the whole ecosystem, not just the casino brand itself, unwilling to touch California traffic.

Penalties

Violations are criminal misdemeanors, carrying up to a year in jail and $25,000 per violation, with additional civil enforcement available under the Business & Professions Code. This is meaningfully harsher than a simple cease-and-desist letter - it's why essentially every sweepstakes casino operator now blocks California players outright rather than risk it.

What this means for you

If you're a California resident, you should expect every legitimate sweepstakes casino to geo-block you at sign-up, regardless of what any particular referral link promises. A site that doesn't block California access after January 1, 2026 is a red flag, not a loophole worth taking advantage of.

Compiled from public reporting on AB 831 as of September 2026. Laws and their enforcement can change - this is general information, not legal advice. If you have questions about how this applies to your own situation, consult a licensed attorney.