Gambling

Gambling is legal in Puerto Rico when expressly authorized by law. Children under eighteen years of age may not engage in gambling activities and may not attend casinos.

Casinos - Casinos are legal within various tourist hotels and resorts. Casinos operate slot machines ("one-armed bandits") and also offer baccarat, mini-baccarat, blackjack, roulette and craps. Casinos are open daily from about noon to 4:00 A.M. Both hotel guests and non-guests may enter the Casinos. Dress is informal.

Other legal gambling activities include:

Horse racing - Camarero Race Track - (formerly: El Comandante Race Track) at Canóvanas, some 45 minutes away from Metropolitan San Juan, holds horse races beginning at 2:00 P.M. Wednesdays, Fridays, Sundays and on certain holidays. Betting may be done at the race track or at betting agencies (Agencias Hípicas) throughout Puerto Rico. Prizes are not subject to Puerto Rico Income taxes. Some betting agencies are linked to the main computer at the Race Track and permit more sophisticated betting. Law 139 of June 7, 2004, approves the addition of "Video Lottery Terminals" (VLT) in approximately 700 pari-mutuel wagering locations making up the El Camarero Off-Track-Betting (OTB) Agency system.

Camarero Race Track has a well-rated restaurant. Reservations are advisable. Telephone (787) 724-6060.

Cockfighting - Numerous cockfight rings (Galleras, in Spanish) operate throughout Puerto Rico. Betting is legal within the confines of the cockfight ring. For fight dates and other information, look them up in your telephone directory under Galleras. Winnings are taxable, though difficult to trace as transactions are usually in cash between individuals.

Lottery - Lottery tickets are sold throughout Puerto Rico. Drawings are held weekly, usually on Wednesdays except when a holiday falls on Wednesday, in which case the drawing is moved to the next working day. Winning number lists are published in daily newspapers the day following each drawing. Lottery prizes are exempt from Puerto Rico Income taxes. A single ticket costs fifty cents. First prize would pay $750.00 to a single ticket. There are also numerous additional prizes. Lottery tickets are sold through authorized agents. Widows, the handicapped and underprivileged groups are usually accorded priority when recruiting new agents.

Check your own lottery tickets , or loto, pega dos, pega tres and pega cuatro online

Lotto - Electronic lottery is based upon selecting six out of forty-two possible numbers. Drawings for Lotto are held bi-weekly, normally on Wednesdays and Fridays, with winning numbers published in daily newspapers the next day. Lotto tickets are sold for one dollar and the minimum grand prize is around one million dollars to be shared by all winners. Second and third prizes, for five and four winning numbers, are around five hundred dollars and twenty-five dollars, respectively. Three winning numbers gets a refund of the ticket purchase price.

Pega-Tres and Pega-Cuatro are simpler versions, based upon selecting the winning three-digit and four-digit numbers, respectively, in separate drawings for each digit. Lotto, Pega-Tres and Pega-Cuatro tickets are sold from vending machines at authorized establishments which include many service stations, drugstores, supermarkets and many others.

Lotto and Pega-Tres prizes are not tax-exempt. Winners of the grand prize for lotto may opt to receive the full prize over the next twenty years or to take a single payment of around 40 percent of the total. Taxes would be levied over the amount actually collected each year.

Illegal gambling - The following activities are illegal and the newcomer is advised to stay away from them:

Bolita or bolipul - An illegal lottery based upon the weekly drawings for the regular legal lottery. It is conducted mostly by individuals on a personal basis. Even so, it is estimated to move millions of dollars in the underground economy.

Illegal betting on horse races - Based upon the results of the actual legal races and also conducted mostly by individuals on a personal basis.

Pyramid-type financial schemes, el pescaíto, where very high returns are offered on extremely risky gambling ventures, arise occasionally. These are usually easier to locate by government authorities than other types of illegal betting. The risk of being apprehended by authorities should be added to the inherent risk of losing your money in this type of activity.

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