Criminal Code Section 207 and Bill C-218
The federal framework that lets provinces conduct and manage gambling, and the 2021 sports-betting amendment
Last verified: 2026-10-01
Section 207 of the Criminal Code lets provinces conduct and manage lottery schemes; the Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act (Bill C-218), in force from 27 August 2021, removed the federal bar on single-event sports betting.
Criminal Code section 207 and Bill C-218
Overview
All gambling in Canada is prohibited under the Criminal Code unless it falls within a specific exemption. Section 207 creates the main one: a province may conduct and manage a “lottery scheme” within its own borders. Narrower exemptions cover limited private betting among individuals and pari-mutuel (pooled) horse-race betting, which stays under the federal Canadian Pari-Mutuel Agency rather than provincial control. Before 2021, paragraph 207(4)(b) specifically excluded betting on the outcome of a single race, fight, sport event or athletic contest from what a province could lawfully offer, limiting legal sports wagers to multi-game parlay bets.
The Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act (Bill C-218), a private member’s bill introduced by MP Kevin Waugh, removed that single-event exclusion. It received royal assent on 29 June 2021 and came into force on 27 August 2021 by order of the Governor in Council, leaving each province and territory free to decide whether, and how, to conduct and manage single-event sports betting; horse racing remained the one carve-out kept under federal pari-mutuel rules.
The Criminal Code’s lottery-scheme exemption and the pre-2021 single-event exclusion. [1]
Royal assent, the in-force date, and the retained horse-racing exclusion. [2]
Bill C-218’s origin as a private member’s bill from MP Kevin Waugh. [3]
Key facts
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Section 207 of the Criminal Code is the core exemption that makes provincially regulated gambling possible in Canada, letting a province conduct and manage a “lottery scheme” within its own borders; without it, gambling would fall under the Code’s general prohibition.
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Before 27 August 2021, paragraph 207(4)(b) of the Criminal Code excluded betting on the outcome of a single race, fight, sport event or athletic contest from what a province could lawfully conduct as a lottery scheme.
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The Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act (Bill C-218), a private member’s bill introduced by MP Kevin Waugh, removed the s.207(4)(b) single-event exclusion, received royal assent on 29 June 2021, and was brought into force on 27 August 2021 by order of the Governor in Council (SI/2021-56), while keeping horse-race pari-mutuel betting under separate federal rules.
Canada Gazette (Department of Justice / PSPC), Bennett Jones (via Mondaq)
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The Senate completed third reading of Bill C-218 on 22 June 2021, passing it without amendment, a week ahead of royal assent.
Sources
- Department of Justice CanadaPrimary source — Proposed changes to Canada’s Criminal Code relating to sports betting — https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/pl/sb-ps/index.html
- Canada Gazette (Department of Justice / PSPC)Primary source — Order Fixing August 27, 2021 as the Day on Which that Act Comes into Force: SI/2021-56 — https://gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/p2/2021/2021-09-01/html/si-tr56-eng.html
- Bennett Jones (via Mondaq) — Senate Passes Bill C-218 Legalizing Single-Event Sports Betting In Canada — https://www.mondaq.com/canada/gaming/1083854/senate-passes-bill-c218-legalizing-singleevent-sports-betting-in-canada