Do prediction markets have to geofence states?

In several states, yes, for now: in 2026 courts in Washington, Michigan and Nevada ordered Kalshi to geofence residents out of sports and other event contracts, while federal appeals courts are split on whether state gambling law applies at all, and the question is before the Supreme Court.

This page records what courts and regulators have said, with dates. The law is moving quickly. It is not legal advice.

State orders to geofence

• Washington. In August 2026 a King County Superior Court order required Kalshi to stop offering wagers on sports, elections and other categories in Washington, and to “implement an IP address and residency based geofence by August 19 and a multi-source geofencing solution by September 2” (Washington Attorney General). The state’s case for multiple sources: investigators in Nevada had “successfully placed trades on Kalshi within the state despite IP- and residency-based blocks” (KUOW).
• Michigan. A preliminary injunction signed 1 September 2026 “requires Kalshi to maintain geofencing to block Michigan residents and those within Michigan’s borders” from its sports contracts, with a $500,000 daily fine for violations (Michigan Attorney General).
• Nevada. The Nevada Gaming Control Board obtained a preliminary injunction on 3 April 2026 giving Kalshi 30 days to geofence sports, election and entertainment contracts. In June the Board told the court Kalshi had “not implemented geolocation and geofencing technology that prevents all people in Nevada from buying the covered contracts” (KTNV).

Federal courts are split

• Third Circuit, 6 April 2026. Ruled 2 to 1 for Kalshi in New Jersey, keeping the state from enforcing its gambling laws against Kalshi’s sports contracts (opinion). New Jersey asked the Supreme Court to review it on 2 September 2026 (petition, No. 26-299).
• Ninth Circuit, 28 August 2026. Held that Kalshi had not shown the Commodity Exchange Act likely pre-empts Nevada’s gaming rules as applied to sports contracts (Holland & Knight summary).
• Sixth Circuit, 25 September 2026. Ruled for Ohio and Tennessee that states can regulate sports prediction markets (CNBC).

What “geofencing” has come to mean here

The Washington order is the clearest statement so far: an IP and residency block first, then a “multi-source” solution, because IP and residency alone were shown not to work. IP establishes where traffic entered the network, residency establishes where someone says they live, and neither establishes where a device is at the moment of the trade. See IP vs device geolocation and in-process geolocation.

Last reviewed 19 October 2026