Version No. 086
Lotteries Gaming and Betting Act 1966
Act No. 7429/1966
Version incorporating amendments as at 3 December 2003
table of provisions
Section Page
iv
Section Page
1. Short title and commencement 1
2. Repeal, savings and references 1
3. Definitions 2
4. Definitions 12
4A. Repealed 12
PartS I, IA—Repealed 12
5–10U. Repealed 12
Part II—Unlawful Games and Gaming 14
11. Unlawful games 14
11A. Two-up may be played on ANZAC Day 15
12. Common gaming houses 16
13. Gaming in public places 17
14. Cheating at play 17
Part III—Contracts by Way of Gaming or
Wagering 19
15. Wagers not recoverable by law 19
16. Non-application of section 15 19
Part IV—Betting 21
Division 1—Betting Houses and Places 21
17. No place to be kept for purpose of betting 21
18. Penalty on owner or occupier of betting house 22
19. Money so received may be recovered from persons receiving thesame 24
20. Division not to extend to stakeholder or to owner of horse in anyrace 25
21. Penalty on persons exhibiting placards or advertising betting houses 25
22. Penalty on persons advertising as to betting 25
Division 2—Street Betting 26
23. Penalty on betting in street etc. 26
24. Money received may be recovered from persons receiving same 28
25. Definitions 28
Division 3—Betting with Minors 29
26. Making bet with or inviting minor to bet an offence 29
27. Person named in gaming circular to be deemed the sender 30
28. Knowledge of minority presumed where circular sent to minor atschool 30
29. Person betting with apparent minors to be deemed to have knowledge of minority 31
29A. Definition 31
Division 4—Sports Betting Definitions 31
30. Definitions 31
31. Occupier or promoter may prohibit wagering or betting 32
32. Notices to be advertised 33
33. Notices to be posted on ground and at gateways 33
34. Penalty for wagering or betting at sports 34
35. Removal of offender 34
36. Person removed from land not to re-enter on same day 34
37. Penalty for removing notices 35
38. Betting on certain contingencies on certain sports grounds not necessarily unlawful 35
38A. Repealed 37
Division 5—Totalizators 37
39. Offences in respect of totalizators 37
Division 6—Advertisements, Communications, etc., about Betting 38
40. Restrictions on publication etc. of information concerning bettingetc. 38
41. Betting placards and notices not to be posted up anywhere 42
42. Penalty for communicating certain racing information while
race-meeting is being held 43
42A. Certain communications etc. exempted 44
Division 7—Common Gaming Houses 45
43. Common gaming houses 45
44. Repealed 46
45. Warrant to enter common gaming house and search and seize onpremises 46
46. Penalty on persons obstructing the entry of authorized members of police force 48
47. Obstructing entry to be evidence of house being a common gaming house 48
48. Penalty for permitting premises to be used as or as access to a common gaming house 49
49. Power of owner to evict occupier of house used as a common gaming house 50
50. Cancellation of notice to quit 50
51. Declaration of common gaming house 51
52. Application for rescission by owner etc. 52
53. Application for rescission by police 53
54. Notice in the Government Gazette 53
55. Other notices of declaration 53
56. Persons found etc. in declared common gaming house 55
57. Convicted persons found in declared common gaming house 56
58. No business to be carried on in declared common gaming house 56
58A. Liability of owner 56
58B. Liability of occupier 57
58C. Continuing offences 58
59. Entry by police 58
60. Repealed 59
61. Special warrant to enter premises suspected to be used as accessory to a common gaming house 59
62. Procedure where house or place is entered by virtue of a specialwarrant etc. 61
63. Persons required to be examined as witnesses making a full discovery to receive a certificate 63
64. Indemnity of witnesses 64
65. Persons found in gaming house 65
66. Being disguised in common gaming house 65
Division 8—Services relating to betting 66
66A. Offence to promote or advertise betting or offer or provide services relating to betting 66
Part V—Supplementary 68
66B. Possession of instrument of betting 68
66C. Search and seizure of instruments of betting 69
67. Money stolen and paid away in bets is recoverable by person from whom stolen 69
68. Repealed 70
69. Acting as keeper of gaming houses etc. 70
70. Evidence as to offences 70
71. Repealed 73
72. Instruments of gaming on vessels 73
73. Forfeiture of instruments of gaming 73
74. Punishment of offences 73
75. Body corporate 74
76. Liability of masters and employers 74
77. Charges 75
78. Neglect to prosecute 75
79. Proceeding by presentment 75
80. Accomplice 75
81. Appropriation of penalties 76
82. Property and money forfeited to Her Majesty 76
83. Entry of police to public place or street 76
84. Tender of amends 77
85. Search warrant 77
86. Regulations 77
______
SCHEDULES 79
SCHEDULE 1—Form of Notice 79
SCHEDULE 2—Form of Special Warrant 80
SCHEDULE 3—Repealed 80
SCHEDULE 4—Form of Special Warrant 81
SCHEDULE 5—Form of Warrant to Imprison 82
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endNOTES 83
1. General Information 83
2. Table of Amendments 84
3. Explanatory Details 92
iv
Version No. 086
Lotteries Gaming and Betting Act 1966
Act No. 7429/1966
Version incorporating amendments as at 3 December 2003
15
Part II—Unlawful Games and Gaming
Lotteries Gaming and Betting Act 1966
Act No. 7429/1966
BE IT ENACTED by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly of Victoria in this present Parliament assembled and by the authority of the same as follows (that is to say):
S. 1 amendedby Nos 8162 s.2(a), 8988 s.2(a), 9075 s.5(1), 9427 s.6(1)(Sch. 5 item 87), 9715 s.19, 9814 s.2(2), 19/1986 s.17(1).
1. Short title and commencement
This Act may be cited as the Lotteries Gaming and Betting Act 1966 and shall come into operation on a day to be fixed by proclamation of the Governor in Council published in the Government Gazette.
2. Repeal, savings and references
(1) Part IV of the Police Offences Act 1958 is hereby repealed.
(2) Except as in this Act expressly or by necessary implication provided—
(a) all persons things and circumstances appointed or created by or under the repealed provisions or existing or continuing under the repealed provisions immediately before the commencement of this Act shall under and subject to this Act continue to have the same status operation and effect as they respectively would have had if the said provisions had not been so repealed;
(b) in particular and without affecting the generality of the foregoing paragraph, such repeal shall not disturb the continuity of status operation or effect of any proclamation regulation rule order application determination consent authority direction complaint information warrant commitment recognizance appointment condition notice liability limitation saving or right made effected issued granted given fixed accrued incurred or acquired or existing or continuing by or under the repealed provisions before the commencement of this Act.
(3) Any reference in any Act or in any regulation rule by-law or order made under any Act to any of the provisions of Part IV of the Police Offences Act 1958 shall be read and construed as a reference to the corresponding provisions of this Act.
No. 6337 s.85.
3. Definitions
s. 3
In this Act unless inconsistent with the context or subject-matter—
"acknowledgment" includes receipt note security or draft;
S. 3 def. of "amend" inserted by No. 19/1986 s.6(1).
"amend", in relation to a permit, consent or licence includes amend, substitute or impose a condition of the permit, consent or licence;
S. 3 def. of "approved bookmaking company" inserted by No. 19/2002 s.20.
"approved bookmaking company" has the same meaning as it has in Part IV of the Racing Act 1958;
S. 3 def. of "authorized officer" inserted by No. 9880 s.2(a).
"authorized officer" means the person for the time being holding the office prescribed by the regulations as being the person who is the authorized officer for the purposes of this Act;
"bet" includes wager and "betting" includes wagering and "the betting" includes the betting odds;
S. 3 def. of "bingo" inserted by No. 8988 s.2(b)(i), repealed by No. 16/1997 s.112(a).
* * * * *
S. 3 def. of "bingo permit" inserted by No. 8988 s.2(b)(i), repealed by No. 16/1997 s.112(a).
* * * * *
s. 3
S. 3 def. of "Board" inserted by No. 8988 s.2(b)(i), substituted by Nos 53/1991 s.161(2), 37/1994 s.233(a), repealed by No. 16/1997 s.112(a).
* * * * *
S. 3 def. of "community purpose" inserted by No. 8988 s.2(b)(i), repealed by No. 16/1997 s.112(a).
* * * * *
S. 3 def. of "club" amended by No. 8988 s.2(b)(ii).
"club" includes club society or other association of persons by whatever name called and whether incorporated or unincorporated;
S. 3 def. of "community or charitable organisation" inserted by No. 100/1994 s.4(a), repealed by No. 16/1997 s.112(a).
* * * * *
S. 3 def. of "Director" inserted by No. 100/1994 s.4(a), repealed by No. 16/1997 s.112(a).
* * * * *
s. 3
S. 3 def. of "document" repealed by No. 19/1986 s.12(1)(a).
* * * * *
"gaming" includes playing games for any wager or stake of money or any valuable thing and also betting on the sides or hands of those who play at games;
S. 3 def. of "gaming investigator" inserted by No. 125/1986 s.8(a), repealed by No. 16/1997 s.112(a).
* * * * *
S. 3 def. of "gross receipts" inserted by No. 8988 s.2(b)(iii), repealed by No. 16/1997 s.112(a).
* * * * *
S. 3 def. of "house or place" amended by No. 19/1986 s.13(1)(a).
"house or place" includes house office shop room premises vessel, vehicle or place;
s. 3
S. 3 def. of "incentive prize" insertedby No. 8988 s.2(b)(iv), repealed by No. 100/1994 s.4(b).
* * * * *
S. 3 def. of "instrument of betting" inserted by No. 19/1986 s.12(1)(b).
"instrument of betting" includes—
(a) any document;
(b) any card, list, money, paper, record, sheet, table, ticket or other writing;
(c) any mechanical, electrical, telephonic, electronic or other equipment or device or any access to such equipment or device;
(d) any board, chart or screen; or
(e) any form or means of recording, storing or transmitting information or data—
used, apparently used or capable of being used in carrying on or in connexion with betting on any sporting contingency;
S. 3 def. of "Instrument of gaming" substituted by No. 19/1986 s.12(1)(b).
"instrument of gaming" includes any instrument of betting and—
(a) any document;
(b) any playing cards, dice, balls, coins, tokens or counters;
(c) any card, list, money, paper, record, sheet, table, ticket or other writing;
(d) any mechanical, electrical, telephonic, electronic or other equipment or device or any access to any such equipment or device;
(e) any board, chart or screen; or
(f) any form or means of recording, storing or transmitting information or data—
used, apparently used or capable of being used in carrying on or in connexion with betting or gaming;
s. 3
S. 3 def. of "licensed premises" inserted by No. 8988 s.2(b)(v), substituted by No. 97/1987 s.181(8)(a), amended by No. 74/2000 s.3 (Sch. 1 item 74.1).
"licensed premises" has the same meaning as in the Liquor Control Reform Act 1998;
S. 3 def. of "lottery" amended by No. 16/1997 s.112(b).
"lottery" includes—
(a) any scheme by which prizes of money or of any other property matter or thing are or are proposed to be drawn or won by lot dice or any other mode of chance or by reference to any event or contingency dependent upon chance; or
(b) any scheme in which any such prizes are or are proposed to be given and in which at any stage the persons eligible to receive the prizes or to participate further in the scheme are or are to be determined by lot dice or any other mode of chance or by reference to any event or contingency dependent on chance notwithstanding that at an earlier or later stage a test of knowledge or skill is or may be required to be passed by any person in order to qualify him to receive a prize or to participate further in the scheme—
whether the scheme is real or pretended or is established or conducted or intended or proposed to be established or conducted and in any case whether wholly or partly in Victoria or elsewhere, but does not include or extend to any distribution of property or money or raffle such as is referred to in section 5 of the Gaming No. 2 Act 1997;
s. 3
S. 3 def. of "money" amended by No. 11/2001 s.3(Sch. item43).
"money" includes bank notes, cheques, drafts provided by an authorised deposit-taking institution within the meaning of the Banking Act 1959 of the Commonwealth and any order warrant authority or request for the payment collection or receipt of money;
S. 3 def. of "multiple coin machine" inserted by No. 8755 s.2(a), repealed by No. 16/1997 s.112(a).
* * * * *
"newspaper" includes any newspaper printed in any part of the Commonwealth of Australia and any newspaper included in the meaning of the word "newspaper" as used in any Act or law relating to the printing publishing or registration of newspapers or relating to the post office;
"notice" includes advertisement, sign and notification;
"occupier" of a house or place or of any land or building or premises includes the lessee or sub-lessee who is not the owner as hereinafter in this section defined;
S. 3 def. of "officer of police" amended by No. 9427 s.6(1)(Sch. 5 item 88).
"officer of police" means the Chief Commissioner of Police a deputy commissioner of police an assistant commissioner of police or any superintendent or inspector of police;
"owner" of a house or place or of any land or building or premises includes every person or body of persons whether corporate or unincorporate who is whether at law or in equity—