Can I use a VPN with Bovada? What the terms say

ByCrown Wagers Editorial Team Updated Bovada Help

No. Bovada’s terms of service treat using a VPN, proxy or anything else that hides your real location as fraud. If Bovada decides you’ve done it, it can close your account on the spot and keep the whole balance, deposits and winnings included.

What Bovada’s terms say

Section 6.2 of the terms covers fraudulent activity. It names “the usage of a VPN, proxy or similar service that masks or manipulates the identification of your real location” as an example, alongside giving false information and betting on someone else’s behalf.

The same section sets the penalty. If Bovada decides, “in our reasonable discretion,” that a player has done this, it can “immediately terminate or deny a player access to their Account,” and “all Account balances (including both deposits and any winnings) shall be forfeited.”

The bonus rules say the same thing

Bovada’s bonus terms list “Masking IP address or using a VPN” as bonus abuse. When Bovada suspects abuse, it can cancel bonuses and bonus winnings, stop you from getting future bonuses, withhold your remaining balance and close the account.

Bonuses are also limited to one per individual, household, address, email, payment method, phone number, device and IP address.

Why Bovada cares where you are

Bovada holds no US state license. It claims licensing from the Union of the Comoros, and state regulators name its operator as Harp Media B.V. of Curaçao. Most of the states on its restricted list were added from mid-2024 onward, usually after the state’s regulator sent a cease-and-desist letter.

Bovada no longer accepts players who live in Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, West Virginia or Washington, DC. Our page on where Bovada is available has the dates each state was added.

If you read the terms of service PDF itself, note that it was last updated on January 3, 2024 and names only five restricted states. The help center’s list is the current one.

If you moved to a restricted state with money in your account

Bovada’s help center covers this directly. If you live in a restricted state and still have a balance, contact customer service “for more information or to arrange a cryptocurrency withdrawal.”

A crypto payout needs a wallet for the coin you’re withdrawing. Bovada lists different minimums for each coin, from $10 for Litecoin up to $75 for Bitcoin. If you’ve ever deposited by credit card, Bovada wants a Credit Card Verification Form for each card before it processes any withdrawal, so send that in early.

Don’t leave it too long. Bovada zeroes the balance of any account with no deposit, withdrawal or bet for 18 months, after an email warning at 17 months. Our guide to contacting Bovada lists the support channels.

If Bovada closed your account over a VPN

Contact customer service first and ask what the closure was based on. If you disagree with the answer, ask in writing at service@bovada.lv for a supervisor review. After that, you can email disputeresolution@bovada.lv between 7 days and 6 months after the issue arose.

The terms leave the decision to Bovada, and there’s no US state regulator to appeal to. Opening a second account afterward breaks the one-account rule too. Our article on why Bovada disables accounts goes through the other reasons and the dispute steps.

If you live in a state Bovada blocks

Every one of the 19 states and DC that Bovada blocks has legal online sports betting through state-licensed sportsbooks, though some of Nevada’s apps make you register in person first. Our guide to what to use if Bovada isn’t available in your state covers the legal options, and our Bovada review has more on how Bovada operates.

Only bet what you’ve set aside to lose. If gambling has stopped being fun, call or text 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738) for free, confidential help, 24/7, or chat online with the National Problem Gambling Helpline.

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