Alberta is moving closer to launching a regulated online poker and igaming market, a shift that could significantly change how players in the province access real-money online poker.

The province has now opened registrations for private operators interested in entering the market, another concrete step toward regulation.

On January 13, the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission (AGLC) published its “Standards and Requirements for Internet Gaming,” a comprehensive framework outlining how online casino games, sports betting and peer-to-peer offerings such as poker will be offered in Alberta. While the iGaming Alberta Act was passed in May 2025, the release of these standards marks a key moment in turning legislation into a functioning, regulated market for online poker in Alberta.

At present, the Ontario online poker and online casino market is the only example of online casino games and online poker in Canada being offered legally through a regulated market, following the launch of the market in April 2022. Once Alberta goes live, it will become just the second province in Canada to adopt a similar model.

There is still no confirmed launch date, but the market is expected to open later this year. In a recent interview, Dale Nally, Alberta’s Minister of Service and Red Tape Reduction and the minister responsible for introducing the igaming legislation, said it would likely take “a few months” for interested operators to complete the onboarding process. He stopped short of offering a specific timeline.

What the New Rules Cover

The newly published standards are wide-ranging and cover everything from the registration and go-live process to enforcement measures and ongoing operator responsibilities. They include requirements related to game integrity, responsible gambling protections and anti-money laundering compliance.

Notably for poker players, the framework explicitly addresses peer-to-peer games such as online poker. Operators will be required to implement systems designed to deter, prevent and detect unfair practices, including collusion, cheating and the suspected use of bots.

The regulations also introduce a centralized self-exclusion system, allowing players to exclude themselves from all licensed igaming platforms in Alberta through a single request. Advertising rules are also laid out, including restrictions on targeting minors and high-risk individuals. Similar to Ontario, Alberta’s framework prohibits advertisements featuring current or former athletes.

Learning From Ontario’s Rollout

According to Covers, one notable difference between Alberta’s approach and Ontario’s initial rollout is the requirement that regulated operators “must cease all unregulated gaming activities” before launching. While Ontario ultimately imposed a similar rule, it allowed a months-long transition period after the market opened. During that time, operators that were licensed or in the process of becoming licensed were permitted to continue operating without regulatory penalties from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO).

As a result, operators such as GGPoker continued serving Ontario players under offshore licenses for several months after the regulated market went live, with PokerStars receiving similar treatment. This created an unusual two-tier system, where some operators entered the regulated market from day one, while others continued to operate outside it.

That situation led to further complications. Regulated operators were confined to a smaller, segregated player pool with limited growth opportunities, while offshore platforms continued offering access to global liquidity and much larger player bases.

Alberta appears intent on avoiding a repeat of that scenario, or at the very least significantly tightening the transition window between grey-market operations and fully regulated play.

Shared Liquidity and Which Online Poker Sites Could Launch in Alberta

The regulations themselves do not explicitly address multi-provincial online poker liquidity. However, the legislation does allow for it, and there is hope that Alberta will enter into an agreement with Ontario to enable shared player pools.

When the market does go live, players will be required to open new accounts on Alberta-licensed sites and complete identity and age verification. The legal gambling age in Alberta will be 18, which is lower than Ontario’s 19. Operators will also be required to shut down any unregulated offerings before launching under the new framework, a rule Alberta appears prepared to enforce more strictly than Ontario did during its early rollout.

Major poker brands already operating in Ontario are expected to seek licences in Alberta, including GGPoker, PokerStars, 888poker, PartyPoker and BetMGM Poker. However, most are likely to proceed only if a multi-provincial agreement is in place to allow for shared liquidity. There is also an outside possibility that BetRivers Poker could launch in Alberta and Ontario if those provinces eventually enter liquidity-sharing agreements with US states, though that remains a longer-term prospect.

There is also a slim chance that Alberta could retain access to international player pools, following a recent Ontario court ruling that found it lawful for Ontario to allow players in peer-to-peer games such as online poker to compete against players located outside Canada. That ruling has since been challenged at the Supreme Court level, adding uncertainty and legal complexity. For now, the most realistic path forward for Alberta online poker appears to be shared liquidity with Ontario.

While Alberta’s regulated online poker market is still months away from launching, the direction is clear. For players, regulation is expected to deliver safer games, clearer rules and, potentially, access to a shared Canadian player pool.