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State database · ME · verified 2026-10-03

Sweepstakes laws in Maine

Since July 29, 2026, Maine law makes operating, promoting or supporting a dual-currency online sweepstakes game a civil violation (fines of $10,000 to $100,000) and unlawful gambling.

Disclosure: this site's publisher, Luck Incorporated LLC, operates Chance Infinite, one of the apps in these databases. Its entry is built from its own documents under the same rules as every other entry. This is reference information, not legal advice; official rules and statutes control.

Last verified October 3, 2026. On October 16, 2026 an automated check re-opened 14 of its 14 sources and changes since then are listed under Recent changes. Every line below cites a document; numbers in brackets point to the source list.

Status
Law in force
Sweepstakes-casino law
LD 2007, SP 825 (Public Law 2025, chapter 645), An Act Regarding the Prohibition of Online Sweepstakes Games, effective July 29, 2026
Enforcement actions on record
2
Ranked free apps open to residents
6 of 6
Sweepstakes-casino brands and Maine
13 exclude it, 4 limit it, of 18 tracked

Recent changes

  • October 14, 2026: The Revisor cites the sweepstakes law as PL 2025, c. 645, so this page now calls it Public Law 2025, chapter 645 (it said Public Law 2026, chapter 645). [S14]
  • October 14, 2026: The Revisor's page for 17-A M.R.S. section 954 now shows subsection 1-B, the online sweepstakes game offense added by chapter 645 (retrieved October 14, 2026). [S6]

The law

LD 2007, SP 825 (Public Law 2025, chapter 645), An Act Regarding the Prohibition of Online Sweepstakes Games

Cited as 8 M.R.S. sections 1351 and 1352 (new chapter 38); 17-A M.R.S. section 954, subsection 1-B; 5 M.R.S. section 20006-B; enacted April 6, 2026 (signed by the governor); effective July 29, 2026. [S1]

Defines an online sweepstakes game as a game, contest or promotion that is available on the internet, uses a dual-currency system of payment, and simulates casino-style gaming, including slot machines, poker and other table games, lottery games, bingo or sports wagering. A person that operates or promotes such a game, or supports its operation or promotion, commits a civil violation with a fine of $10,000 to $100,000, collected by the Gambling Control Unit and paid to the Gambling Addiction Prevention and Treatment Fund. A licensee convicted or found in violation loses its gambling license, and a violator is ineligible for the listed licenses. Section 3 adds the same conduct to the Criminal Code offense of unlawful gambling (17-A section 954, subsection 1-B). The chaptered text contains no emergency clause; the Legislature gives July 29, 2026 as the general effective date for nonemergency laws of the session, and the Gambling Control Unit announced the law became effective that day.

“A person that operates or promotes an online sweepstakes game or supports the operation or promotion of an online sweepstakes game commits a civil violation.”

Bills

  • LD 2007, SP 825 (132nd Legislature, Second Regular Session, 2026): enacted as Public Law 2025, chapter 645 (signed by the governor), April 6, 2026. [S2]
    What the bill does

    Submitted by the Department of Public Safety (S8) and sponsored by Senator Craig Hickman. The Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee reported it out on March 5, 2026 with a divided report (majority Ought to Pass as Amended, minority Ought Not to Pass) (S11); both chambers accepted the majority report and adopted Committee Amendment A (S-529), the House by roll call 87 to 55 on March 26, 2026 (S12). The House passed it to be enacted on March 30, 2026 and the Senate on April 2, 2026.

Enforcement

  • June 9, 2025, Maine Department of Public Safety, Gambling Control Unit: public warning against unlicensed iGaming websites and applications, including certain sweepstakes or social casino sites. Status: issued. [S5]
    What the record says

    The Executive Director warned residents and visitors about illegal iGaming sites, saying examples of unlicensed platforms may include certain “sweepstakes” or “social casino” sites offering real-money payouts, coin-titled substitutes, dual-currency systems, material prizes or gift cards. The release states that “no online casino, iGaming, or sweepstakes site is licensed by the Gambling Control Unit” and that the unit cannot help with disputes over winnings on such sites.

  • July 29, 2026, Maine Department of Public Safety, Gambling Control Unit: public advisory against illegal online sweepstakes operators. Status: issued. [S4]
    What the record says

    Issued the day LD 2007 took effect. The advisory states the law is codified at Title 8, Chapter 38, quotes the statutory definition of an online sweepstakes game, says only entities licensed under Title 8 chapters 33, 35 and 39 may offer online gambling to Maine residents, and asks the public to report illegal activity to the unit.

Rules for any sweepstakes in Maine

  • When a game is a contest of chance (17-A M.R.S. section 952, subsections 3 and 4): [S7]
    What the rule requires

    Maine's gambling chapter defines a contest of chance as a game, contest, scheme or device in which a person stakes or risks something of value for the opportunity to win something of value, the result is determined by chance outside the participant's control, and chance cannot be eliminated through skill. A person engages in gambling if he or she stakes or risks something of value upon the outcome of a contest of chance or a future contingent event.

Free sweepstakes apps open to Maine residents

Our ranked apps, by what each one's own official rules say about Maine. Chance Infinite is operated by this site's publisher.

AppOur rankMaine
Chance Infinite1, 81/100Open
Coinnect2, 71/100Open
Prizes by GAMEE3 (tied), 54/100Open
Winsome Rewards3 (tied), 54/100Open
PCH+5, 51/100Open (app listed unavailable)
PCH Lotto6, 48/100Open (app listed unavailable)

Sweepstakes casinos and Maine

What the 18 sweepstakes-casino brands in our database say about Maine in their own documents. These lists give no grade; some of these brands pay SweepstakeReport a commission through the links on their fact sheets. We do not judge whether any brand may operate in Maine, and documents change often.

133 casinos' terms exclude Maine: see which.

Regulator

Maine Department of Public Safety, Gambling Control Unit

Notes

Read the 4 research notes
  • Timeline check: our crackdown timeline gives April 6, 2026 as the signing date, which agrees with the Legislature's record (S2), and leaves the effective date unstated. The Legislature's home page states that the Second Regular Session adjourned April 29, 2026 and that the general effective date for nonemergency laws of that session is July 29, 2026 (S3); the chaptered law has no emergency clause (S1); and the Gambling Control Unit's July 29, 2026 advisory says the law “became effective” that day (S4). The primary record supports July 29, 2026 as the effective date.
  • Penalty classification is not stated in the new law itself. Section 3 adds the conduct to the Criminal Code gambling offense as 17-A section 954, subsection 1-B (S1), and the Revisor's page for section 954, retrieved October 14, 2026, shows subsection 1-B in the same section whose subsection 2 makes the offense a Class D crime (S6). Read together, these texts suggest the new subsection is classed with the existing offense; we have not seen a court or agency statement on the point.
  • Committee Amendment A (S-529) replaced the bill so the language sits in a new chapter 38, to avoid a conflict with Public Law 2025, chapter 538 (the Internet gaming licensing law), and added an Internet gaming license to the definition of licensee (S9; filing number from the docket, S12). The bill as introduced was submitted by the Department of Public Safety (S8).
  • Codification: when retrieved on October 14, 2026 (data extracted October 5, 2026), the Revisor's pages showed the new Title 8, chapter 38, including section 1352 (S14), and subsection 1-B of 17-A section 954 (S6), each citing PL 2025, c. 645. On October 3, 2026 the page for 8 M.R.S. section 1352 returned HTTP 404 and the section 954 page did not yet show subsection 1-B. The chaptered law prints its label as Chapter 645, Public Law, approved April 6, 2026, with no year in the label (S1); we use the Revisor's form, Public Law 2025, chapter 645.

What we could not establish

  • We could not run a keyword search for 2025 Maine bills on the subject: the LawMakerWeb advanced search rejected our requests. The Gambling Control Unit's list of gaming bills for the 132nd Legislature, covering the First Regular, First Special and Second Regular Sessions, names 17 bills, and LD 2007 is the only one about sweepstakes (S13). We found no 2025 sweepstakes-casino bill in the sources we opened; that list is the unit's own selection, not a complete search of every session.
  • We found no cease-and-desist letter, lawsuit or fine against a named sweepstakes operator on the Gambling Control Unit pages we opened on October 3, 2026 (its home page, S10, and the two releases cited, S4 and S5).

Common questions

Does Maine have a law on online sweepstakes casinos?

Yes. LD 2007, SP 825 (Public Law 2025, chapter 645), An Act Regarding the Prohibition of Online Sweepstakes Games, cited as 8 M.R.S. sections 1351 and 1352 (new chapter 38); 17-A M.R.S. section 954, subsection 1-B; 5 M.R.S. section 20006-B, took effect July 29, 2026. This page quotes the text and links the statute.

Which ranked free sweepstakes apps accept Maine residents?

Per their own official rules, Chance Infinite, Coinnect, Prizes by GAMEE, Winsome Rewards, PCH+ and PCH Lotto accept residents of Maine. Chance Infinite is operated by the publisher of this site.

Do sweepstakes casinos accept players in Maine?

Of the 18 sweepstakes casino brands in our database, 13 exclude Maine and 4 limit it in their own documents, last verified October 3, 2026. Documents change often, so read the current terms first.

Sources

  1. S1 Maine Legislature, S.P. 825, L.D. 2007, An Act Regarding the Prohibition of Online Sweepstakes Games, chaptered law (chapter 645, approved April 6, 2026; the Revisor cites it as PL 2025, c. 645), retrieved October 3, 2026
  2. S2 Maine Legislature, LawMakerWeb, Summary of LD 2007 (SP 825), 132nd Legislature, retrieved October 3, 2026
  3. S3 Maine Legislature, Maine State Legislature home page (session adjournment and general effective dates), retrieved October 3, 2026
  4. S4 Maine Department of Public Safety, Gambling Control Unit, Gambling Control Unit press release, July 29, 2026 (sweepstakes and online gambling), retrieved October 3, 2026
  5. S5 Maine Department of Public Safety, Gambling Control Unit, Gambling Control Unit press release, June 9, 2025 (illegal iGaming websites), retrieved October 3, 2026
  6. S6 Maine Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes, Title 17-A, section 954: Unlawful gambling, retrieved October 14, 2026
  7. S7 Maine Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes, Title 17-A, section 952: Definitions, retrieved October 3, 2026
  8. S8 Maine Legislature, LD 2007 as printed (In Senate, December 5, 2025), retrieved October 3, 2026
  9. S9 Maine Legislature, Committee Amendment to L.D. 2007 (132LR2873(02)), retrieved October 3, 2026
  10. S10 Maine Department of Public Safety, Maine Gambling Control Unit home page, retrieved October 3, 2026
  11. S11 Maine Legislature, LD 2007 (SP 825) bill status, committee information and divided report, retrieved October 3, 2026
  12. S12 Maine Legislature, LawMakerWeb, Actions for LD 2007 (docket), retrieved October 3, 2026
  13. S13 Maine Department of Public Safety, Gambling Control Unit, Gaming LDs / Bills for the 132nd Legislative Session, retrieved October 3, 2026
  14. S14 Maine Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes, Title 8, section 1352: Online sweepstakes games prohibited; fines; other penalties, retrieved October 14, 2026

Related: All 50 states and DC · The crackdown timeline · The app database