Online casinos offer bonuses usually in the form of free casino money or free spins to lure new customers and retain existing ones. Bonuses give players the chance to play online casino games without wagering their own hard-earned money.

While signing up at online casinos, new customers often make the mistake of thinking that casino bonuses are free money that can be withdrawn at will. Nothing can be farther than the truth. Online casinos give away bonuses not only to entice new customers, but also to encourage them to play at the casino. New players, therefore, are expected to use the bonus on gambling activities at the online casino.

Although they can keep winnings if any, they need to satisfy wagering requirements before they can be allowed to request a payout. "Wagering requirements" is a term that players must understand before claiming a bonus.

 

Wagering Terms Explained

Although online casinos like labeling their bonuses as "free", everybody associated with the online casino industry is aware that these bonuses are hardly free. They do have their advantages in that they help players get started at the casino without spending their own money, build an online casino bankroll, and make a profit. However, they are associated with wagering requirements that prevent players from withdrawing either the bonuses or the prizes won using those bonuses until and unless they satisfy those wagering requirements.

Wagering requirements, also known as play through requirements, state that players need to play through or wager their bonus amounts or their deposit plus bonus amounts a certain number of times within the specified deadline to become eligible to request a payout. If players try withdrawing their online casino winnings before this, they will forfeit their bonus.

 

Why Wagering Requirements?

Online casinos in the past were rarely bothered about wagering requirements, as a result of which players began taking advantage of these bonuses by registering several accounts at the same casino and withdrawing the bonuses without actually spending much time at the casinos. When online casinos began running into heavy financial loss owing to this "bonus abuse" on the part of players, they devised wagering requirements.
Wagering requirements actually protect online casinos from bonus abuse by forcing the player to do what the bonus is supposed to do—gamble at the online casino. Wagering requirements vary from online casino to online casino. Players should, therefore, claim bonuses only after studying the wagering requirements and ensuring that they can definitely meet the wagering requirements within the given deadline.

 

Illustration of Wagering Requirements

If an online casino offers a bonus of 100 percent up to R100 and sets a wagering requirement of x10, it means that players initial deposit amounts will be doubled, but they will have to wager their bonus amounts 10 times before withdrawing their deposit amount or winnings. For instance, if players made an initial deposit of R10, they will receive a bonus of R10, making a total of R20 in their accounts. Now, they need to wager R100 at the casino before they can request a withdrawal/cashin. Some casinos apply the wagering requirement to the deposit amount and the bonus recieved. Using the example above, you will then need to wager R200 before requesting a withdrawal

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