Disclaimer
Please read this disclaimer before you register with any operator or deposit money. It applies to vegastars-casinos.nz, where we publish a Vegastars casino summary for New Zealand readers, and sets out who runs the casino and how New Zealand’s 2026 law treats offshore operators like it.
General information only, not legal advice. Vegastars is operated from outside New Zealand and does not hold a New Zealand licence. The rules for online casinos here are changing during 2026 and 2027, so check dia.govt.nz for the current position. 18+.
This site is not a casino operator
Bets, deposits, player balances, withdrawals and identity checks are all handled by the operator, and this site plays no part in any of them. The site is not run by Vegastars or by Neptune Projects S.R.L. and cannot act on their behalf, decide anything about your account or change the operator’s terms. When you sign up at Vegastars, your agreement is with the operator alone. Your use of this site is covered separately by the site terms.
Who runs Vegastars
According to the operator’s terms and website footer, Vegastars is run by Neptune Projects S.R.L., registered in Costa Rica under company number 3-102-900308.
| Operator | Neptune Projects S.R.L. (Costa Rica) |
| Register listing | Tobique Gaming Commission, B2C, valid to 22 August 2027 |
| New Zealand licence | None held (no online casino holds one yet) |
| NZ regulator | Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) |
| Minimum age | 18+ |
Tobique Gaming Commission listing
The Tobique Gaming Commission public register lists Neptune Projects S.R.L. as a B2C licence holder, meaning it deals with players directly. The listing expires on 22 August 2027 (checked 2 October 2026). Licences are issued under the Tobique Gaming Act 2023 by the commission, a Tobique First Nation (Neqotkuk) body in New Brunswick, Canada. It is not a provincial or federal Canadian regulator. Licence no. 0000020 appears in the operator’s footer, but the public register does not show licence numbers, so we cannot confirm that figure. Our separate page covers the Vegastars TGC licence in full.
No New Zealand licence
Vegastars does not hold a New Zealand licence. No online casino holds one yet: under the Online Casino Gambling Act 2026, the DIA expects to begin issuing up to 15 licences from early 2027.
Complaints and disputes
The operator’s published terms (checked October 2026) are governed by the law of Costa Rica. A complaint goes to the operator first; for alternative dispute resolution, the terms point to EGIS FZCO, based in the United Arab Emirates. To complain to the Tobique Gaming Commission, start through the licence seal on the operator’s website. Clause 16.4 of the terms gives you three days after a bet is settled to dispute it. If a result or balance looks wrong, keep records and act quickly.
Online casinos and New Zealand law in 2026
The Online Casino Gambling Act 2026 came into force on 1 May 2026, with the Department of Internal Affairs, Te Tari Taiwhenua, as the regulator. We took the dates below from DIA publications and checked them in early October 2026. Our legal guide gives the longer answer to “is online gambling legal in NZ?” for players.
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1 May 2026 | The Act takes effect. Advertising an unlicensed online casino in New Zealand becomes unlawful, and no new providers may enter the market. |
| 29 September 2026 | The DIA’s auction for up to 15 licences begins. Participants are not disclosed. |
| 1 December 2026 | Offshore providers that have not applied for a licence must stop serving New Zealand customers. |
| Early 2027 | The DIA expects to issue the first licences, possibly in stages. |
| 1 June 2027 | Latest date until which providers that applied may keep serving New Zealand, without advertising, while their application is decided. |
Advertising
Since 1 May 2026 it has been unlawful to advertise an unlicensed online casino in New Zealand. As no licences have been issued yet, the DIA treats all online casino advertising aimed at New Zealanders as prohibited for now. It can issue takedown notices to anyone who publishes or arranges such an advertisement, and courts can impose civil penalties of up to NZ$5 million for a company or NZ$300,000 for an individual.
Playing at offshore casinos
The DIA says New Zealanders are not breaking the law by playing at overseas casinos that were already serving New Zealand before 1 May 2026, but it describes this as an unregulated activity with no guarantee of player safety. New Zealand player protections do not apply, and New Zealand has yet to set up a national register for online casino self-exclusion.
What happens on 1 December 2026
Providers that have not applied for a New Zealand licence must stop serving New Zealand customers from 1 December 2026. Only winners of the licence auction can apply. The DIA does not name the participants and, at our last check in early October 2026, had not announced the results. We do not know whether Neptune Projects S.R.L. has applied, so we cannot say if Vegastars will keep accepting New Zealand players after that date. The latest position is set out in the DIA’s information for players.
No guarantee of winnings or payouts
Casino games are designed to give the operator an edge over time. A published return-to-player (RTP) percentage is a theoretical average across a very large number of rounds. It tells you nothing about a single session, and you can lose your whole deposit. Bonuses carry conditions as well: the Vegastars welcome offer comes with 40x wagering and T&Cs apply, so read the bonus rules before you opt in.
The operator decides whether and when you are paid. A withdrawal depends on identity verification, account limits, the payment method you use and the operator’s own checks. We cannot guarantee that a withdrawal will be approved or arrive by a particular time.
Gamble responsibly
Gambling is for adults aged 18 and over. Treat any money you deposit as spending on entertainment that you may not get back. Set a budget before you play and stop once it is spent; trying to win back losses usually makes them bigger. Limits, time-outs and self-exclusion, together with the full Gambling Helpline NZ contact list, are covered in our responsible gambling guide. If gambling is becoming a problem, these services can help:
- Gambling Helpline: 0800 654 655 or text 8006, free and confidential, 24 hours a day.
- Problem Gambling Foundation: 0800 664 262, Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 5pm.
- Bank blocks: customers of ANZ, Westpac and Kiwibank can stop gambling transactions on their cards. In ANZ goMoney, switching the block off again takes 48 hours.
- Blocking software such as BetBlocker and Gamban can stop gambling sites loading on your devices.
Tax on winnings
Inland Revenue (IRD) guidance says that recreational gamblers in New Zealand generally pay no tax on their winnings. The position can differ when gambling is part of a business or some other taxable activity. We found no IRD guidance written specifically for offshore online casinos. This is not tax advice: for your own circumstances, ask a tax adviser or contact IRD.
How current our information is
The date at the top of each page is the day we last checked it against the operator’s published terms and official sources, and details can change after that date. How each page is checked is described in our review method. Operators update their terms often, and New Zealand’s online gambling regime will keep shifting until it is fully in place, which the DIA expects in 2027. Where our pages and the operator’s website disagree, the operator’s current terms prevail. To report an error, email [email protected].