Is Kalshi legal in Nevada? The state court injunction, the Ninth Circuit ruling and what Kalshi's terms say
Is Kalshi legal in Nevada?
A Nevada state court has barred Kalshi from offering sports, election and entertainment event contracts in Nevada since a temporary restraining order of 20 March 2026, and the Ninth Circuit ruled 3-0 for Nevada on 28 August 2026. Kalshi asked for rehearing en banc on 9 September 2026. Its Member Agreement names no US state as restricted.
Piece published Reviewed by CryptoGuardz Register Desk, editorial desk
Is Kalshi legal in Nevada? Not for sports, election or entertainment contracts. A Carson City court has barred Kalshi from offering them in Nevada since a temporary restraining order of 20 March 2026, and on 28 August 2026 the Ninth Circuit ruled 3-0 that Kalshi had not shown federal law overrides Nevada gaming law for its sports contracts. Kalshi's own terms, read on 27 October 2026, name no US state as restricted.
Documents read on 27 October 2026: Kalshi's Member Agreement and help centre, the Nevada Gaming Control Board's releases and timeline, the July 2026 stipulation in the state case, the Ninth Circuit opinion, Kalshi's rehearing petition, two Supreme Court dockets and Chapter 463 of the Nevada Revised Statutes. This is not legal advice.
Does Kalshi allow Nevada users?
Its terms do not exclude Nevada. Section VI of the Member Agreement bars trading for anyone located in a jurisdiction "in which trading Event Contracts on the Platform is prohibited under Applicable Law or by Kalshi policy". The jurisdictions it lists are countries and sanctioned territories. No US state is named, and the help centre article on signing up, dated 10 March 2026, asks a user to "Be 18 years or older" and points to "international jurisdictions" for restrictions.
The Nevada limit comes from a court order, not from Kalshi's terms. In the July 2026 stipulation Kalshi said it had put in place "IP-based and residency-based trading blocks" for Nevada, and agreed to add a geofence by GeoComply. Contract categories outside the order, if any, are not listed in any document read: not verified.
What has Nevada done against Kalshi?
Six steps, each documented on the Gaming Control Board's own site:
| Date | Action | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 4 Mar 2025 | Cease-and-desist letter to Kalshi | NGCB release |
| 17 Feb 2026 | Civil enforcement action in Carson City district court | NGCB release |
| 20 Mar 2026 | Temporary restraining order granted | NGCB timeline |
| 3 Apr 2026 | Preliminary injunction granted | NGCB release |
| 4 Jun 2026 | Board asks the court to hold Kalshi in contempt | NGCB timeline |
| 23 Jul 2026 | Stipulation: geofence by 12 Aug 2026 or $120,000 a day | Case No. 26 OC 00050 1B |
The @NevadaGCB issued the following news release today.
The cease-and-desist told Kalshi to "cease all unlawful activity within Nevada by 5:00 p.m. on March 14, 2025". The Board's release on its complaint of 17 February 2026 cites NRS 463.160, 463.350, 465.086 and 465.092 and says the Board asked the court for "a declaration and injunction to stop Kalshi from offering unlicensed wagering". The Board's release of 24 July 2026 says the written preliminary injunction, entered on 18 May 2026, prohibits Kalshi "from offering or facilitating contracts on sports-, election-, or entertainment-related events within the State of Nevada".
In the stipulation Kalshi accepted a fact the Board had alleged:
Kalshi acknowledges that, notwithstanding Kalshi's implementation of IP-based and residency-based trading blocks, the State's investigators have successfully placed trades in sports-, election-, and entertainment-related event contracts during the pendency of the Court's Amended PI Order.
The same paragraph says Kalshi "does not concede that any such trades amount to cause for an order of contempt". Whether Kalshi met the 12 August 2026 deadline was not stated in any Board or court document found on 27 October 2026: not verified.
What does Nevada law say about sports wagering?
Sports betting is legal in Nevada, but only through a licence. NRS 463.0193 defines a sports pool as "the business of accepting wagers on sporting events or other events by any system or method of wagering", and NRS 463.01962 defines a wager as "a sum of money or representative of value that is risked on an occurrence for which the outcome is uncertain." NRS 463.160 makes it unlawful to "deal, operate, carry on, conduct, maintain or expose for play in the State of Nevada any gambling game, gaming device, slot machine, race book or sports pool" without a licence. Under Regulation 22, section 22.060(2), a licensed book may accept wagers on its premises or through an approved account wagering system; the Nevada state page has the detail.
The Board's position is that a sports event contract is a wager. Its release of 28 August 2026 says "entities offering these contracts must be licensed in the state of Nevada." Kalshi holds no Nevada licence on any document read.
Where does the federal case stand?
Against Kalshi, for now. Kalshi sued the Board in the federal District of Nevada on 28 March 2025 (No. 2:25-cv-00575) and won a preliminary injunction on 9 April 2025. The district court dissolved it on 25 November 2025, per the Board's timeline. On 28 August 2026 the Ninth Circuit affirmed that dissolution for sports contracts:
Kalshi has not shown a likelihood that the CEA preempts state gaming regulations as applied to its sports event contracts.
Today, the Federal Court in Nevada granted Kalshi's preliminary injunction and blocked the State from trying to prevent Kalshi from offering prediction markets. We are grateful for the court’s careful attention to this matter and recognition of Kalshi’s status as a…
The court sent the election contracts back to the district court. Kalshi filed a petition for rehearing and rehearing en banc on 9 September 2026. No ruling on it appeared in any record read on 27 October 2026: not verified.
Two other exchanges took the same Ninth Circuit ruling to the Supreme Court. Robinhood Derivatives filed No. 26-338 on 10 September 2026 and Crypto.com's US derivatives arm filed No. 26-344 on 11 September 2026. Nevada's responses are due 13 November and 16 November 2026. The CFTC has backed the exchanges: on 17 February 2026 it filed an amicus brief in the Ninth Circuit in Crypto.com's case, and its chairman said in the release that the agency has "the expertise and responsibility to defend its exclusive jurisdiction over commodity derivatives". Nevada's Attorney General signed the 39-state amicus brief asking the Supreme Court to hear New Jersey's case against Kalshi, No. 26-299. The national picture is in Is Kalshi gambling?
What happens to a Nevada user's account and money?
Kalshi's documents say little that is Nevada-specific. What they do say:
- Access. Section VI lets Kalshi "grant, deny, condition, suspend, or revoke membership" at its "sole and absolute discretion".
- Withdrawals. Section VI(J): within 90 days of an ACH deposit, "those funds may only be withdrawn to the external account" they came from.
- Termination. Section XIII: "Termination of this Agreement will not affect liability accrued as of termination."
- Open positions in contracts the court order covers: not disclosed in the Member Agreement or the help centre.
The Member Agreement is governed by New York law (Section XX). Tax on any gains is covered in Kalshi and Polymarket taxes; fees and market range are in Polymarket vs Kalshi. The state-by-state picture is in the Kalshi state guide, and the New York and California posts cover two other states in the same fight.
Quick answers
Can you use Kalshi in Nevada?
Not for sports, election or entertainment contracts. A Carson City court has enjoined Kalshi from offering them in Nevada since 20 March 2026, under Case No. 26 OC 00050 1B.
Did Kalshi win or lose in the Ninth Circuit?
It lost on sports. On 28 August 2026 a 3-0 panel held Kalshi had not shown federal law preempts Nevada gaming law. Kalshi asked for en banc rehearing on 9 September 2026.
Does Kalshi's own agreement ban Nevada?
No. Section VI of the Member Agreement, read on 27 October 2026, lists countries and sanctioned territories and names no US state. The Nevada block comes from the court order and the July 2026 stipulation.
What did Kalshi agree to in July 2026?
A GeoComply geofence for Nevada by 12 August 2026, or $120,000 a day until it was in place, or a sworn explanation to the court. Details are on the Nevada state page.
Where can I get help with gambling in Nevada?
The National Problem Gambling Helpline is 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738), with call, text and chat. More options are on the responsible gambling page.
Sources
- Kalshi Member Agreement, undated PDF, Sections VI, XIII and XX, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Kalshi Help Center, Signing Up as an Individual, dated 10 March 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Nevada Gaming Control Board news release, KalshiEX cease and desist order, 4 March 2025, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Nevada Gaming Control Board, Timeline of NGCB actions against prediction markets, page updated 30 June 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Nevada Gaming Control Board news release, NGCB files civil enforcement action against Kalshi, 17 February 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Nevada Gaming Control Board news release, NGCB granted preliminary injunction against Kalshi, 3 April 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- State of Nevada ex rel. Nevada Gaming Control Board v. KalshiEX LLC, First Judicial District Court, Carson City, Case No. 26 OC 00050 1B, joint stipulation and order, July 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Nevada Gaming Control Board news release, NGCB shuts down Kalshi's sports prediction market business in Nevada, 24 July 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Nevada Gaming Control Board news release, Ninth Circuit rules in favor of Nevada, 28 August 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- KalshiEX LLC v. Assad, 9th Cir. No. 25-7516, opinion of 28 August 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- KalshiEX LLC v. Assad, 9th Cir. No. 25-7516, petition for rehearing and rehearing en banc, DktEntry 206.1, 9 September 2026, CourtListener RECAP, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Robinhood Derivatives, LLC v. Dreitzer, US Supreme Court No. 26-338, docket, retrieved 27 October 2026
- North American Derivatives Exchange, Inc. v. Nevada, US Supreme Court No. 26-344, docket, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Brief of amici curiae Ohio, 38 other states and the District of Columbia, No. 26-299, October 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- CFTC press release 9183-26, CFTC reaffirms exclusive jurisdiction over prediction markets in circuit court filing, 17 February 2026, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Nevada Revised Statutes chapter 463, sections 463.0193, 463.01962 and 463.160, Nevada Legislature, retrieved 27 October 2026
- Nevada Gaming Commission Regulation 22, as of January 2026, section 22.060, retrieved 27 October 2026
- National Council on Problem Gambling, National Problem Gambling Helpline, retrieved 27 October 2026
About this piece
Compiled by the CryptoGuardz register team from the sources listed above. Research and drafting are AI-assisted and reviewed by a named editor before publication. Nothing here is a recommendation to gamble. If a figure or a reading is wrong, tell us and the correction is logged in public.