ADVOKS GLOBAL · KENYA
Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act
21. Offences relating to pool betting schemes
Edition: 2025-06-20 · Repealed
21. Offences relating to pool betting schemes
(1)A person who—(a)promotes a pool betting scheme within Kenya otherwise than under and in accordance with the terms of a licence issued under section 22; or(b)in furtherance of a pool betting scheme or on behalf of a promoter of such a scheme or his agent, receives or negotiates bets or otherwise acts as an agent of a promoter otherwise than under and in accordance with the terms of a principal agent’s or agent’s licence issued under section 22,shall, without prejudice to his liability, if any, to be proceeded against under section 14, be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding ten thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both; but notwithstanding the provisions of any other written law, where a person is charged with an offence under this subsection, and the Court is of opinion that he is not guilty of that offence but that he is guilty of another offence under this subsection, he may be convicted of that other offence although he was not charged with it.(2)A person who, in connection with an unauthorized pool betting scheme—(a)prints a coupon for use in such a scheme; or(b)sells or distributes or offers or advertises for sale or distribution, or has in his possession for the purpose of sale or distribution, a coupon relating to such a scheme; or(c)distributes, or has in his possession for the purpose of distribution—(i)an advertisement of the scheme; or(ii)a list (whether complete or not) of prize winners or winning coupons in the scheme; or(iii)any such matter descriptive of the determination or intended determination of prize winners, or otherwise relating to the scheme, as is calculated to act as an inducement to persons to participate in that scheme; or(d)brings, or invites any person to send, into Kenya for the purpose of sale of distribution a coupon relating to, or advertisement of, the scheme; or(e)sends or attempts to send out of Kenya any money or valuable thing received in respect of the sale or distribution, or any document recording the sale or distribution, or the identity of the holder of a coupon in the scheme; or(f)prints or publishes, or causes to be printed or published, an advertisement or other notice of or relating to the scheme or of relating to the issue of a coupon or of a dividend connected with the scheme, shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding ten thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both.(2A)Any person, other than the holder of valid principal agent’s licence, who takes or sends out of Kenya (whether by post or otherwise) money or money’s worth or any coupon, in connection with any pool betting scheme authorized under section 22 shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding three thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or to both.(3)For the purposes of subsection (2)(f), the publication of an advertisement or notice in a newspaper printed outside Kenya and normally circulating within Kenya shall not be an offence if the scheme to which the advertisement or notice refers is promoted outside Kenya.(4)A person, other than the holder of valid principal agent’s licence, who takes or sends out of Kenya (whether by post or otherwise) money or money’s worth or a coupon, in connection with a pool betting scheme authorized under section 22 shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding three thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or to both.(5)In this section—(a)"agent" means a person who acts in furtherance of the promotion of a pool betting scheme;(b)"unauthorized pool betting scheme" means—(i)where a pool betting scheme is promoted or proposed to be promoted in Kenya, a scheme promoted by a person who is not the holder of a promoter’s licence issued under section 22;(ii)where a pool betting scheme is promoted or proposed to be promoted outside Kenya, a scheme promoted by a person who has not within Kenya an agent or representative holding a principal agent’s licence issued under section 22;(c)reference to printing shall be construed as including references to writing and other modes of representing or reproducing words in a visible form.