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New State Senate bill aims to legalize Virginia online casinos
Lawmakers in the commonwealth filed Senate Bill 118, which would create up to 15 online casinos in Virginia by as early as 2027.
Virginia is taking another crack at legalizing online casinos as Senate Bill 118 emerged to carve out up to 15 licenses for iGaming operators in the commonwealth. Pre-filed by Sen. Mamie Locke, whose online casino bill in 2025 was short-lived, the bill would allow for each of the state's five land-based casinos to have three online partners – creating an internet gaming landscape that could be filled with some of the most recognizable online casino brands.
Some of the top online casinos could launch in Virginia
As detailed in SB118, online casinos in Virginia would be taxed at a 15% rate, with platform fees running $2 million and operators also paying $500,000 for initial licenses. The Virginia Lottery Board would oversee the iGaming industry, which would complement a legal online sports betting market that launched in January 2021.
Should Virginia legalize casino apps, it could become the first state in the nation to do so since Rhode Island launched online casinos in spring 2024.
With 15 licenses potentially available, that certainly creates plenty of room for some of the biggest platforms that currently offer legal casino games online in the United States. The VA sports betting industry already boasts top-level brand names such as BetMGM, bet365 and FanDuel, among others.
With iGaming licenses tied to the brick-and-mortar facilities, though, there would certainly be a guarantee that those companies would roll out online casino skins, including Caesars Palace Online Casino (Caesars Virginia in Danville) and Hard Rock online casino (Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Bristol).
Tough road ahead for VA online casino legalization
Sen. Locke has previously attempted to push legislation to legalize online casinos in Virginia.
In December 2024, she introduced a bill ahead of the odd-year legislative session that lasts a mere 30 days. Not long after, Locke requested that the bill be put on hold, noting the need for further study on the issue.
Gambling expansion in Virginia – which has included the authorization of online sportsbooks and retail casinos in the state – has occurred in recent years, but it hasn't gotten there in the easiest or smoothest of fashions.
What's more, the trend of late in states has been pushback from land-based casinos and other gambling facilities, which have all cited fears that online casinos would cut into the bottom line of brick-and-mortar casinos and potentially result in thousands of lost jobs.
With a longer legislative session beginning in Virginia, though, perhaps Locke and other lawmakers can find a way to push online casino legislation across the finish line.
