Gambling in New Zealand

Gambling in New Zealand is controlled by the Department of Internal Affairs. All public gambling is expected to return a portion of profits to the community. The largest proportion of the gambling industry is operated by state-owned institutions. Expenditure on gambling (losses experienced by players) was $NZ 2.034 billion in 2008 ($NZ 480 per capita), a tenfold increase over 1985 figures.

Bookmaking was declared illegal in New Zealand in 1920. From then until the introduction of the Totalizator Agency Board (TAB) in 1961, betting on racing was only available on-course.

The first "Art Union" was conducted in New Zealand by the Otago Art Society in December 1877, Both individuals and organizations subsequently used them as a way of raising funds. The first national lotteries were established in 1933. They were known as "Art Unions". Prizes were relatively small, and in the early Art Unions the prizes were quantities of alluvial gold. As an example, the "Golden Treasure" Art Union of 1935 had 200,000 tickets with a top prize of £2000 ranging down to an 11th prize of £20 plus 400 prizes of £2. The low returns tempted many people to (illegally) purchase tickets in overseas lotteries such as the Australian Tattersall's lottery. With Art Union sales declining, a review of lotteries was undertaken by the Second Labour Government in the late 1950s, and in 1961 the National Government introduced the Golden Kiwi lottery.

The New Zealand Lotteries Commission was established in 1987. Its original product, Lotto, has since been supplemented by Instant Kiwi scratch cards, daily Keno and a Lotto variant named Big Wednesday. Lotto tickets became available online in 2008.

The Totalizator Agency Board, commonly called the TAB, is a sports betting organisation run by the New Zealand Racing Board.

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