Blackjack Bonuses

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Casinos often offer bonuses to entice new players to sign up with them. Once a player has signed up with a casino they may also be offered ‘reload bonuses’ to encourage them to deposit and play again. Bonus bagging is the practice of extracting as much of the casino bonus money as possible while risking your own money to the lowest extent. This is achieved with a combination of favourable bonus terms, and by completing the wagering through low-variance blackjack so that losses that occur during the wagering requirement do not eat into your own funds or bonus profits too severely.

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Wagering Requirements

The first thing you need to be aware of when evaluating bonus offers is the wagering requirement. This is the number of times you need to play the bonus or the deposit + bonus before you are eligible to cash out. In the olden days casinos would offer huge bonuses with a wagering requirement of one. This meant that you only had to bet the bonus amount once in order to be able to cash out the whole amount.

Today, casinos operate a little more stringently. Wagering requirements often stipulate players must bet 15-40 times the deposit + bonus amount before being able to cash-out. Generally the more generous the bonus, the higher the wagering requirement will be for the offer. Often the flashy banners will make no reference to the wagering (sometimes called play-though) requirement. These details will be hidden in the terms and conditions for the bonus, so it is vital that you read these terms before depositing your own money. Check the promotions/bonus page for a link to the conditions.

Another important aspect to remember is that some casinos will limit the games that are eligible towards the wagering requirement. While slots play generally counts towards the wagering requirement, in some cases blackjack, craps or roulette cannot be played at all towards the wagering. In other instances these games may contribute towards 50% of the bet amount towards the wagering requirement. Reputable casinos which allow blackjack wagering towards bonuses are listed on our blackjack bonus page.

Sometimes, casinos offer different wagering requirements based on the game you intend to play. Slots may have a 5x WR whereas blackjack may be 30x. Again, this is vital to check before depositing.

Before attempting to cash-out it is vital that you have completed the entire wagering requirement. If you have not completed all of the necessary wagering consequences can range from a polite reminder from the casino, through to being told that you have forfeited the bonus (and any winnings you have accumulated) for ‘attempted bonus abuse’. While this may sound extreme, the most common player complaint against online casinos is that they are withholding bonuses. In some cases the player may not even be able to withdraw their own deposited funds until the WR has been completed.

There are a number of ways to verify that the wagering requirement has been met for cash-out. Some players will make a note of each bet placed using a tally chart, multiplying bet size and number of bets. If you use this strategy be sure to account for double-downs and splits (if playing blackjack). Another more straightforward solution is to periodically check the online cashier; normally this will indicate the amount you have wagered for any given period. Some cautious players may like to contact a customer support operative to verify that they have met the wagering requirement before requesting a withdrawal.

Casinos operating on the Microgaming platform will offer a ‘clear play policy’. In practice this means that the cashier will show your cash balance as well as a separate bonus balance. As you complete wagering, the bonus balance is automatically transferred into the cashable account. Once the entire bonus has been transferred over to the cash balance, you know that you have successfully completed the wagering requirement and can safely request a withdrawal.

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