How To Play Legal Blackjack In Arizona

Is Blackjack Legal in Arizona”

Blackjack is legal in Arizona at tribal casinos and internationally-licensed online casinos. Home blackjack games are also legal in the Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.), specifically A.R.S. 13-3301, but we’ve included all of the key Arizona blackjack laws below.

Summary Of Relevant Legal Arizona Blackjack Statutes And Bills

• Arizona Tribal-State Gaming Compact: Amended in 2021, this compact allows blackjack and other forms of Class III gaming at Arizona’s tribal casinos. It applies to all 22 federally recognized tribes in the state.
• Appendix F of the Compact: Primary document that governs legal Arizona blackjack rules and explicitly authorizes blackjack and its variations at tribal casinos.
• A.R.S. § 5-601: Authorizes the governor to enter into tribal-state gaming compacts and sets the minimum age for Arizona blackjack at tribal casinos to 21.
• A.R.S. § 5-601.02: Specifically includes blackjack as an authorized form of gambling at tribal casinos and gives regulatory authority to the Arizona Department of Gaming.
• Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA): Federal law allowing Arizona to negotiate gaming compacts with tribes, making tribal blackjack legal under state and federal law.
• A.R.S. § 13-3301: Defines “regulated gambling” and excludes tribal blackjack from criminal gambling laws. Also legalizes social blackjack under specific conditions.
• A.R.S. § 13-3302: Reaffirms that blackjack played at authorized tribal casinos is exempt from Arizona’s gambling prohibitions.

Arizona Tribal-State Gaming Compact

Tribal casinos can legally offer Arizona blackjack through tribal-state gaming compacts. Under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), the state of Arizona can negotiate and engage in compacts with federally recognized tribes to offer casino blackjack on tribal grounds.

While the IGRA provides the federal framework, the Arizona governor is specifically authorized to create gaming compacts with tribes through Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S) 5-601. The next statute, A.R.S. 5-601.02, lays out regulation of these gaming compacts and explicitly authorizes blackjack as a permitted form of gambling.

“Notwithstanding any other law, an Indian tribe may conduct the following forms of gambling as regulated gambling, as defined in section 13-3301, if the gambling is conducted in accordance with the terms of a tribal-state gaming compact: gaming devices, keno, offtrack pari-mutuel wagering, pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing, pari-mutuel wagering on dog racing, blackjack, poker (including jackpot poker), and lottery.”

Social Blackjack In Arizona

Home games and social blackjack in Arizona are legal under A.R.S 13-3301 and A.R.S. 13-3302. The first statute provides a definition of social gambling, while the next statute includes “social gambling” in the list of gambling exclusions from unlawful conduct.

Per A.R.S. 13-3301, “"Social gambling" means gambling that is not conducted as a business and that involves players who compete on equal terms with each other in a gamble if all of the following apply:

1. No player receives, or becomes entitled to receive, any benefit, directly or indirectly, other than the player's winnings from the gamble.
2. No other person receives or becomes entitled to receive any benefit, directly or indirectly, from the gambling activity, including benefits of proprietorship, management or unequal advantage or odds in a series of gambles.
3.  None of the players is under twenty-one years of age.
4. Players "compete on equal terms with each other in a gamble" when no player enjoys an advantage over any other player in the gamble under the conditions or rules of the game or contest.”

A home blackjack game between people that are all 21+ and the host doesn’t make a profit is legal in Arizona. A.R.S. 13-3302 states that “The following conduct is not unlawful under this chapter: 1. Amusement gambling. 2. Social gambling…”