Can't deposit (or withdraw?) from Netherlands or Switzerland

The goverments in these countries have forbidden their banks to do tranactions with overseas betting companies. The American goverment is also doing the same thing.

In the Nederlands its not illegal for a Dutch citizen to hold a Betfair account but just forbidden to use it from the Nederlands :^0

Betfair claims its illegal what the Dutch goverments is doing under EU competition law. As they claim once they have a licence to bet in the EU that is all that is required under EU law to bet in another EU state.

The Dutch goverment claim under some EU rule that a country has a right to protect its citizen against something harmful to its society, so they can ignore the EU law on gambling that Betfair is claiming to uphold.

Betfair also claims this law is only been used by the Dutch as a protection measure for its own gambling industry. Sadly one of the Nordic countrys I think Norway also used the law the Dutch are using and won their case in the EU courts.

I believe both the Dutch case and the Norway ruling have now gone back to the EU courts but a verdict is unlikely before sometime in 2011.......Cheers

Thanks Blessington, I assume it's something pretty similar with Switzerland to what it is with the Netherlands.

I'm not clear if the Netherlands/ Switzerland have made it illegal for their residents to use Betfair, but these other deposit methods suggested by Betfair provide a way to circumvent the basic controls the countries have imposed- and whether by using one of these workarounds, one would still be breaking the local laws (either explicitly, orcommiting some sort of 'technical' infrigement of the law).

But thanks very much once again for your info.

I work in the betting industry.

FYI

99.9% of Swiss business is fraudulent. X-(

LOH...I believe it is illegal for dutch residents to use Betfair in the Nederlands according to their local law but legal for them from outside the country.

Why Betfair still allow Dutch citizens to bet from the Nederlands is because Betfair reckons the Dutch haven't got the powers to enforce that law as they reckon the EU Competition law over rides the local law.

Switzerland like Norway possibly could be a little different as am I right to say neither are part of the EU?

Likewise America where Betfair accepts they have the right to ban betting from their country if they want to.So you can't place a bet at the moment on Betfair from there.

Happily anyway as far as I know nobody anywhere has been prosecuted for betting in the Nederlands and Switzerland. While I believe in America only the Betting companies.

Either way in the Nederlands and Switzerland its not regarded as a criminal offence to bet so it doesn't go on anybodys record if they ever did decide to start prosecuting people......Cheers

Also with that I read recently a Dutch politican wants to tax any gambling winnings won from overseas. Whether that proposal is for real or just some polictian playing poltics, I don't know.

Taxing gambling winnings from punters has always been a tricky thing to do and I don't believe any country in the world has managed to do it as its simply not worthwhile for what it would cost to operate and what they would collect out of it.......Cheers

Thanks once again Blessington.

I'm going to try to dig out some more information as to this recent enforcement of no use of Swiss or Netherlands registered credit cards: with a view to finding out whether there are more legal or enforcement consequences coming over the horizon.

I'd also welcome anyone elses views on this.

Incidentally (as an aside), it's more likely to be Sweden or Finland than Norway. Norway is not part of the EU and is therefore probably not subject to EU competition law. The other reason it's more likely to be Sweden or Finland is that their political class tend to be a lot more paternalistic than Norway. I might be wrong though.

History Maker...Yeah I think your right its one of the Nordic countrys thats in the EU and Norway isn't in the EU.

I just remember reading something about it in the Racing Post back in the Spring and how it was a knock back for UK bookmakers plans for EU expansion.

For anyone else who may be interested in this recent restriction from Betfair, the following webpages may be interesting:

Netherlands: http://www.worldgamblingreview.com/gambling/netherlands/
"In 2005, the Dutch Supreme Court ruled that foreign online bookmaking companies like Ladbrokes would need to stop taking online betting from citizens of the Netherlands. The Dutch court ruled that the local laws were in compliance with traditional European and EU standards."

Switzerland: http://www.worldgamblingreview.com/gambling/switzerland/
"Internet gambling is illegal in Switzerland, although there are no models for prosecution."

At least now we have some sort of context for the email quoted at the top- not quite sure where it leaves the individual who deposits funds through any of the three methods proposed by Betfair in their email: Click and Buy, Neteller and moneybookers.com