Paying on the floor
What you can pay with on a British casino floor, what you cannot, and what happens when the sums get larger.
What is accepted
- Cash in pounds sterling, exchanged for chips at the table or at the cash desk.
- Debit cards at the cash desk. Your bank may treat the transaction as a cash withdrawal; check its terms.
- Slot machines and electronic terminals take notes and tickets printed by other machines; tickets are redeemed at the cash desk or at a kiosk.
What is not accepted
Credit cards cannot be used for gambling. Section 81 of the Gambling Act 2005 bars casino operators from giving credit in connection with gambling, and since April 2020 the Gambling Commission has barred credit-card payments for almost all gambling in Great Britain. This includes credit cards held inside a phone wallet. A venue’s bar or restaurant may take a credit card for food and drink, which is a separate sale.
Casinos do not cash personal cheques for walk-in guests, and foreign currency is handled, if at all, at the cash desk at the venue’s own rate.
Identity checks on larger sums
Casinos are covered by the Money Laundering Regulations. When you buy or cash in chips worth £2,000 or more, in one go or in linked transactions, the venue must verify your identity and may ask where the money comes from. Some venues set a lower house threshold: Bally’s Newcastle, for example, asks for membership with photo ID from £1,500. Carrying ID avoids an awkward pause at the desk.
Cash machines
The law allows a cash machine on casino premises, and many have one. Treat that as a warning sign, not a convenience: a second withdrawal is the moment most budgets fail.
Set the budget before you go
- Decide what the evening may cost, as you would for a concert or a dinner, and bring that amount.
- Decide when you will leave, and set an alarm.
- Money paid at the tables is the price of the entertainment. The house has a mathematical edge in every game, so over time the casino keeps a share of everything played.
- Never borrow to play, and never play to recover money already spent.
If sticking to a limit is difficult, read Safer gambling or call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133, free, at any hour.
Tipping
Tipping dealers is permitted in British casinos and entirely optional.