Online in Ontario
Cascades Casino Chatham and Ontario iGaming
The online gambling market that Ontario regulates opened on April 4, 2022, and an official directory names each site in it. Here the Daylight Desk walks through how that system works, how a reader can test a site, and how this Chatham guide handles the paid links on its front page.
By the Daylight DeskChecked October 4, 2026
What the rules say
April 4, 2022 marked the opening of Ontario's regulated online gambling market, and two bodies split the job. Online games from private operators fall to iGaming Ontario, which conducts and manages them. Regulation is the task of the AGCO, Ontario's Alcohol and Gaming Commission.
The Daylight Desk checks a private online casino against a short test. It is lawful in Ontario only once two pieces are in place: the AGCO has registered it, and its operating agreement with iGaming Ontario has been signed. Having one piece without the other fails the Desk's test.
OLG.ca works on a different footing. It is Ontario's government-run online casino, conducted and managed by OLG itself. On land, OLG also conducts and manages casino gaming, including at Cascades Casino Chatham on Richmond Street.
How to check a site
The website igamingontario.ca hosts the iGaming Ontario directory, the official record of regulated online gambling sites. Any site not found there is outside the regulated market. Those listed sites are 19+, and a player may use them only when located within Ontario's borders.
BetGuard, found at betguard.ca, is an iGaming Ontario service. With one registration, anyone aged 19 or older can cut off their own access to online gambling on every Ontario-regulated site, OLG.ca included. The lockout lasts 6 months, 5 years, 1 year or a custom length the person sets. Land-based casinos are not covered, so the Richmond Street casino in Chatham stays outside it.
How this guide's paid links work
Only the home page of this Chatham guide holds paid links, and Ad is printed beside each. Every such link heads to an online casino from a private partner. The Daylight Desk leaves that partner unnamed, and another may replace it later.
The Daylight Desk offers no guarantee about that partner. Before signing up, search for it, or for any online casino, in the directory iGaming Ontario keeps. The partner is not connected to the Richmond Street casino, Gateway, OLG or iGaming Ontario. No one pays this guide for its links to help services, the province, OLG or the casino.
Anyone in Ontario, Chatham included, can bring questions about gambling, addiction or mental health to ConnexOntario. The service is confidential, carries no cost and answers 24/7. Chatham readers can dial 1-866-531-2600, message 247247 with the word CONNEX, or start a chat through connexontario.ca.
Questions people ask
How do I know an online casino is regulated in Ontario?
The directory kept by iGaming Ontario at igamingontario.ca settles the question. It is the province's official record of which online gambling sites are regulated.
Can I play online from across the border?
On Ontario's regulated sites, the answer is no. Anyone playing there must be 19 or older and remain inside Ontario for the full length of each session.
Are there paid links on the inner pages?
Paid links on this guide live on the home page only, where the Daylight Desk marks every one Ad. Pages deeper in the guide have none at all.