Why Can’t You Play Pub Pokies in WA? The Strange Reality of Australian Gaming Borders

Summary

Western Australia does not permit pokies in pubs or clubs. Approved electronic gaming machines are confined to Crown Perth, reflecting a longstanding state policy rather than a choice by individual venues.

• Different states, different rules: Australia has no single national licensing system for land-based pokies. NSW allows eligible hotels and clubs to operate machines; WA does not.
• WA is not gambling-free: The restriction concerns particular machines and where they can operate – not every form of gambling.
• Casino machines have specific requirements: WA distinguishes prohibited “poker machines” from approved electronic gaming machines, with rules covering displays, player interaction and autoplay.
• Clubs have no fundraising exemption: Using profits for sport or charity does not authorise gaming machines.
• Approval does not mean safety: Casino EGMs can still cause substantial losses. Return-to-player percentages describe long-term averages, not guaranteed session returns.

For interstate visitors, the practical takeaway is simple: do not expect a gaming room at a WA pub, and do not assume familiar interstate gambling rules apply.

Why WA Pubs Have No Pokies: Western Australia’s Gaming Rules Explained

You cannot play pokies in Western Australian pubs because WA does not permit electronic gaming machines in hotels or clubs. Approved electronic gaming machines are confined to the state’s licensed casino, Crown Perth.

That makes a familiar Australian experience surprisingly unfamiliar after a flight west. A traveller accustomed to a gaming room beside the bistro in New South Wales will not find the same arrangement in a Perth suburban pub.

The difference is not a missing business opportunity or a decision by individual publicans. It is a longstanding state policy.

However, the explanation comes with a complication. WA prohibits “poker machines” while allowing certain other electronic gaming machines at its casino. Those approved machines can still look and feel like pokies to an interstate visitor.

Understanding that distinction explains both the empty space where a pub gaming room might otherwise be and the electronic machines operating at Crown Perth.

The Short Answer: WA Chose a Different Gambling Model

Western Australia separates ordinary hospitality venues from casino-style electronic gaming.

A pub liquor licence does not provide permission to install a bank of gambling machines. A sporting club cannot introduce them simply because its members support the idea or the proceeds would fund community facilities.

WA’s approach keeps approved casino electronic gaming machines out of suburban and regional hotels and clubs.

New South Wales follows a different model. Eligible hotels and registered clubs can operate approved gaming machines, subject to licensing, machine entitlements, venue thresholds and other restrictions.

The important comparison is therefore not “gambling versus no gambling”.

It is “casino-confined electronic gaming versus electronic gaming distributed through community venues”.

WA permits several forms of gambling. What it has consistently resisted is the expansion of electronic gaming machines into everyday pubs and clubs.

Why Australian State Borders Change the Rules

Australia does not have one national licensing system for land-based pokies.

States and territories regulate the gambling activities and venues within their jurisdictions. Commonwealth laws also affect areas such as online gambling and financial crime, but they do not create a single national entitlement to operate a pub gaming room.

That means a machine approved for a hotel in one state cannot simply be installed in a WA hotel under the same permission.

The venue, machine, game and operating arrangements must satisfy the law where the activity occurs.

This is why crossing a state border can change:

• Which venues may offer electronic gaming.

• Which machines and games are permitted.

• How machines are approved.

• Which player-protection requirements apply.

• Whether a local club can earn gaming-machine revenue.

For travellers, these differences can seem inconsistent. Legally, they reflect separate decisions by different governments rather than an exemption from one uniform Australian rule.

How WA Reached Its Position

WA’s resistance to poker machines predates today’s digital casino floors.

The 1974 Royal Commission into Gambling considered how the state should handle gambling, including the possibility of a casino. It recommended against legalising poker machines.

A Government Casino Advisory Committee revisited casino policy in 1983. Opposition to poker machines remained an important part of the discussion.

The casino framework that followed allowed authorised casino games while excluding games played with poker machines.

That historical compromise matters. WA did not approve a casino and automatically approve every type of machine commonly associated with casinos elsewhere.

Instead, it developed a distinction between prohibited poker machines and other electronic games that could be authorised.

WA did not remove a mature pub-pokie industry

It is misleading to imagine that WA once had the same widespread hotel gaming-room network as NSW and later closed it.

The more useful explanation is that WA did not adopt that model.

NSW legalised poker machines in registered clubs in 1956. Its club and hotel gaming industry subsequently developed through its own legislation and commercial history.

WA maintained a different boundary. As a result, its hospitality sector developed without the same legal access to pub and club gaming-machine revenue.

Are Pokies Completely Illegal in WA?

Not in the broad everyday sense in which Australians use the word.

“Pokies” is a colloquial label. People often use it for almost any electronic gambling machine with a screen, credits, buttons and prizes.

WA’s regulatory terminology is narrower.

Its policy distinguishes between:

• Prohibited poker machines, including fruit machines or similar machines.

• Approved electronic gaming machines that are not classified as poker machines.

• Other authorised casino games.

That distinction explains an apparent contradiction: someone can correctly say WA prohibits poker machines while another person correctly observes electronic gambling machines operating in Perth.

The legal classification and the casual description are not necessarily the same.

For visitors, the clearest wording is this: WA has approved electronic gaming machines at Crown Perth, but not in pubs and clubs.

Why Crown Perth’s Machines Are Different

WA’s electronic gaming machine policy sets requirements used to distinguish approved casino machines from prohibited poker machines.

These requirements address appearance, player interaction, speed of play and other features.

They do not use a spinning-reel display

The policy specifies that approved games do not use a spinning-reel display or a handle. It also describes symbols rotating in their own plane.

A machine can therefore present its outcomes differently from the familiar reel-based games seen interstate.

This is not simply a rule against old mechanical equipment. Modern video displays can simulate spinning reels, so the presentation of the game matters too.

They require player interaction

Approved machines must involve a player choosing a strategy, with game initiation occurring through a separate button press.

That does not mean players can reliably overcome the game’s mathematical advantage.

A required interaction is an approval characteristic. It is not evidence that the game provides a dependable skill-based income.

Autoplay is not permitted

WA policy prohibits autoplay features.

The policy also sets minimum game-duration requirements, with different thresholds depending on whether the game includes an unpaid feature, such as a qualifying bonus feature.

These requirements form part of the state’s distinct approval framework.

They do not make repeated gambling risk-free.

Does “Not a Poker Machine” Mean “Not Harmful”?

No.

An approved electronic gaming machine can still accept repeated bets, produce unpredictable outcomes and cause substantial losses.

Changes to symbols, animation or required button presses do not remove the financial risks associated with electronic gambling.

The Perth Casino Royal Commission examined the distinction between poker machines and other electronic gaming machines. Expert material submitted to the inquiry also questioned how meaningful some differences were from a gambling-harm perspective.

Two separate questions should therefore remain separate:

1. Does a machine satisfy WA’s legal and technical approval requirements?

2. Can playing it cause gambling-related harm?

A machine can meet the approval requirements while still presenting risks.

Describing Crown Perth’s machines as approved EGMs is accurate. Describing them as harmless alternatives to pokies is not.

WA Versus NSW: The Practical Difference

NSW provides a useful comparison because its hotel and club gaming model is clearly established.

NSW hotels can have up to 30 gaming machines, but that is a legal maximum, not an automatic allocation.

Venues need the relevant entitlements or permits and must operate within their approved threshold.

The NSW Audit Office reported 87,749 gaming machines across more than 2,000 clubs and hotels in 2023–24. That historical figure illustrates the scale of the distributed venue model.

WA’s difference is therefore structural, not cosmetic.

Why “The Eastern States” Is an Oversimplification

It is convenient to contrast WA with “the eastern states”, but that phrase can hide important differences.

There is no single eastern-state rulebook.

NSW’s hotel limits, club arrangements and approval processes should not be treated as national defaults. Other jurisdictions have their own legislation and operating conditions.

A traveller should not assume that a familiar machine, membership card or venue layout means the surrounding rules are identical.

WA stands out because it excludes electronic gaming machines from pubs and clubs. That does not make every jurisdiction outside WA interchangeable.

The useful question is always specific: what may this type of venue legally offer in this state or territory?

What This Means for a Night at the Pub

For someone travelling west, the immediate consequence is straightforward.

Do not expect to find a lawful pokie room in a WA pub, whether the venue is suburban or regional.

A large hotel, a busy sports bar or a members’ club does not acquire a gaming-machine exemption because it resembles an interstate venue.

A betting terminal also does not change that conclusion.

Wagering on racing or sport and playing a casino electronic gaming machine are different activities governed through different permissions.

Likewise, a raffle or permitted community gaming event does not turn a club into a gaming-machine venue.

The absence of pokies should not be read as evidence that a venue has overlooked a popular attraction. In WA, that particular attraction is not an available pub business option.

Why Community Fundraising Does Not Create an Exception

Interstate visitors may associate club pokies with sporting facilities, member benefits and community grants.

That can lead to an understandable question: why not allow a small number of machines in WA clubs if the proceeds support local activities?

The answer is that a proposed use of revenue does not itself authorise the gambling activity.

WA’s community gaming framework is separate from its casino electronic gaming framework.

An organisation may qualify to conduct certain fundraising activities without qualifying to operate casino-style machines.

This distinction is central to the state’s policy. The prohibition would have little practical meaning if any club could bypass it by promising to spend the profits locally.

Arguments about community benefits are policy arguments. They are not existing permissions.

What WA’s Model Changes – and What It Does Not

Keeping electronic gaming machines out of pubs and clubs changes where people encounter them.

Someone visiting a local venue for a meal, social event or sporting activity does not also encounter a lawful bank of casino EGMs there.

That is a meaningful difference in availability.

However, it does not prove that every WA resident faces less gambling risk in every situation.

People can experience harm through casino gambling, wagering and other gambling activities. Individuals also differ in financial circumstances, behaviour and vulnerability.

The defensible conclusion is narrower: WA limits the distribution of casino electronic gaming machines by keeping them out of ordinary community hospitality venues.

Claims about the exact amount of harm prevented require research. They cannot be established simply by counting how many pubs lack a gaming room.

Understanding the 90% Return-to-Player Rule

WA’s published return-to-player policy states that electronic gaming machines at Crown Perth must be tested and certified to provide a minimum RTP of 90%.

That figure is frequently misunderstood.

A 90% RTP does not mean a person who arrives with A$100 must leave with at least A$90.

RTP describes a theoretical long-term average across a very large number of wagers. It does not guarantee an individual session result.

Consider an illustrative game with exactly 90% RTP. Across A$1,000 in total turnover, its theoretical average return is A$900.

That implies a theoretical loss of A$100 across that turnover.

But turnover is not the same as the amount initially deposited. A player can repeatedly wager returned credits, producing turnover well above their starting balance.

Individual outcomes can differ sharply from the average.

The minimum approval standard is therefore not a spending safeguard or a promise of value.

What Interstate Visitors Should Know About Carded Play

WA’s casino rules involve more than the appearance of machines.

The state government announced mandatory carded play for Crown Perth electronic gaming machines from 1 December 2025.

The system requires a personalised membership card linked to the player’s account, with time and loss limits.

The announced framework includes:

• A maximum of 12 hours of play per day.

• A maximum of 28 hours per week.

• Mandatory breaks every three hours.

• A seven-day cooling-off period for increases to player-set limits.

• On-screen tracking and monthly activity statements.

These are regulatory safeguards, not recommended session lengths.

An interstate visitor should not assume they can use an EGM exactly as they would in a familiar pub. Registration, identification and limit-setting arrangements may differ.

Current entry and participation requirements should be confirmed before visiting.

Will WA Allow Pub Pokies in the Future?

Existing government material does not support treating pub pokies as an imminent change.

The WA Government’s 2025 consultation paper on gambling-law reform expressly preserved the boundary against electronic gaming machines outside an appropriately authorised licensed casino.

It also stated that modernising the law was not intended to weaken that prohibition.

A consultation paper is not the same as enacted legislation. It should not be presented as though every proposed reform has already become law.

However, it provides clear evidence of the direction described in that review: modernise regulation while maintaining the exclusion of casino EGMs from pubs and clubs.

A broader legislative review does not automatically mean a proposal to introduce local pokie rooms.

Five Common Myths About WA Pokies

“Every Australian pub can apply for pokies”

No. WA does not provide the ordinary pub-and-club gaming-machine pathway available in jurisdictions such as NSW.

“Crown Perth has no electronic gaming machines”

Incorrect. Approved electronic gaming machines operate at the casino under WA’s specific framework.

“The machines are legal because players can beat them with skill”

The policy requires interaction and strategy selection. That does not establish that players can overcome the house advantage.

“A club can install pokies if the money goes to charity”

A charitable purpose does not replace the required legal authority.

“WA bans all gambling”

No. The restriction discussed here concerns poker machines and the location of approved casino electronic gaming machines, not every form of gambling.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are there no pokies in Perth pubs?

WA does not permit electronic gaming machines in pubs or clubs. Perth hotels operate under that state framework.

Are regional WA pubs treated differently?

There is no general regional-pub exemption. A venue’s distance from Perth does not create permission to operate casino EGMs.

Can an interstate visitor use approved casino machines?

Being from interstate does not create a separate exemption or entitlement. Visitors must meet the casino’s applicable eligibility, identification and participation requirements.

Are WA casino games identical to interstate pokies?

Not necessarily. WA imposes its own approval requirements, including restrictions on spinning-reel displays and autoplay.

Does a higher minimum RTP guarantee a better visit?

No. RTP is a long-term mathematical measure. It cannot predict what one person will win or lose.

The Bottom Line

You cannot play pub pokies in WA because the state chose not to build its electronic gaming industry around hotels and clubs.

Instead, approved casino electronic gaming machines remain confined to the licensed casino, with specific rules distinguishing them from prohibited poker machines.

That is the real story behind Australia’s gaming borders. A familiar pub format does not bring familiar gambling permissions with it.

For travellers, the practical lesson is simple: understand the local venue rules rather than assuming the Australian gambling landscape is uniform.

For anyone concerned about gambling, support is available through Gambling Help on 1800 858 858. Regulatory limits reduce some risks, but no approved machine or venue can make gambling financially safe.

Sources

• WA Government: Electronic gaming machines policy, including prohibited poker machines and casino approval requirements
• Perth Casino Royal Commission: Discussion paper on poker machines, electronic gaming machines and WA’s legislative history
• WA Government: Gambling-law reform consultation paper and the continuing prohibition on community electronic gaming machines
• WA Government: Electronic gaming machine return-to-player policy
• WA Government: Mandatory casino carded play, time limits and loss-limit arrangements
• NSW Government: Hotel and club gaming-machine entitlements, permits and thresholds
• Audit Office of NSW: Gaming-machine regulation and 2023–24 venue and machine figures
• NSW Parliamentary Library: Historical background to the legalisation of club poker machines in 1956