Dream11 Banned States 2026: Pre-PROGA List vs Today's All-India Status
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The 30-second answer
Before PROGA, Dream11 paid contests were banned in 6 Indian states under state gaming acts: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Nagaland, Odisha and Sikkim. Free-to-play Dream11 was never banned in any of them. After 22 August 2025, when the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act 2025 (PROGA) received presidential assent, paid Dream11 was suspended nationally. Since 1 May 2026, with full enforcement live, paid Dream11 is unavailable in every one of the 28 states and 8 union territories. Free-to-play Dream11 with in-app coins still works everywhere, including the 6 historically banned states, because PROGA Section 2(j) only catches games with a monetary stake. If you used to search “is Dream11 banned in Tamil Nadu” the answer is no longer state-specific. It is banned for paid play across all of India, allowed for FTP across all of India, and there is no city, district or NRI workaround that brings paid contests back. The State Legality Check widget below gives a state-plus-app verdict in seconds.
If you came here from a Google search that says “Dream11 banned states” the modern truth is simpler than the legacy one. The old state-by-state list mattered before August 2025. Today there is one rule for paid play (no), one rule for FTP (yes), and one set of transitional rules for old wallet balances (recoverable until 30 June 2026).
Why this guide exists in the form it does
The query “Dream11 banned states” was one of the most stable evergreen searches in Indian fantasy sports between 2020 and 2024. It got 12,000 to 25,000 monthly searches in India through that whole period, peaking around IPL season and the Tamil Nadu act passage in October 2022. The reason it kept trending was that the legal map of India had genuine state-by-state variation. A player in Mumbai could play Dream11 paid contests freely while a player in Hyderabad could not, and players moved between states routinely. The question was a real one with a state-specific answer.
That fact pattern has now collapsed. PROGA is a central law passed under Entry 31 of the Union List and the residual entries of the Concurrent List, and it nationalised the answer. The phrase “Dream11 banned states” still has the same search volume, in fact slightly higher because IPL 2026 brought renewed attention, but the answer is no longer state-by-state. This guide preserves the legacy state-by-state detail because thousands of you still want to know exactly what your state used to do, and then layers the post-PROGA reality on top so you walk away with both versions of the truth. The widget at the top of the page lets you pick the era you care about and get a single-line verdict.
The dates in this guide are accurate as of 21 May 2026, exactly three weeks into full PROGA enforcement. The Reserve Bank UPI blocking circular RBI/2026-27/12 took effect on 1 May, the MeitY offshore-site geofencing list expanded on 8 May to 220 plus domains, and the Supreme Court reserved orders on the GST appeal on 13 May. None of these moving pieces changes the headline answer for the next several months.
The pre-PROGA legacy: 6 states that banned paid Dream11
Between 2017 and 2023, six Indian states passed gaming-act amendments or fresh online gambling statutes that specifically caught the paid-contest model used by Dream11, MPL, My11Circle and the rummy operators. None of these states banned the app itself, none of them banned the FTP product, and most of them allowed regular access to the contest joining screens through the Supreme Court 2017 ruling era. What they banned was the cash-entry, prize-payout side of the contest cycle. Each story is slightly different. Here are the six in chronological order of the actual prohibition becoming operative.
Telangana, 8 June 2017 (reaffirmed 25 March 2025)
Telangana was first. The state government issued an ordinance on 8 June 2017 amending the Telangana Gaming Act 1974 to bring online gaming for money squarely within the definition of common gaming, regardless of whether the underlying activity was a game of skill. The amendment was challenged immediately by Dream11 and other operators on the basis of the Supreme Court 1957 Chamarbaugwala ruling and the 1968 Satyanarayana rummy ruling, both of which had carved out games of skill from gambling laws. The Telangana High Court declined to stay the amendment, and the operators geoblocked Telangana from paid contests within weeks.
Telangana stayed off the paid map for nearly eight years. In March 2025, a few months before PROGA was even tabled in Parliament, the Telangana legislature passed a fresh amendment reaffirming the 2017 position with stronger language and explicit references to fantasy sports, rummy and poker. By the time PROGA superseded everything in August, Telangana already had the strictest standing position of any state.
For a player in Hyderabad, Warangal or Karimnagar, this meant Dream11 paid contests had not worked locally for the better part of a decade. The same geoblocking applied to all the major rummy apps. FTP Dream11, by contrast, worked normally throughout this period because no money changed hands.
Andhra Pradesh, 25 September 2020
Andhra Pradesh followed Telangana by amending the Andhra Pradesh Gaming Act 1974 in September 2020. The trigger was a public petition and a series of complaints about gaming-related financial distress in the state, particularly during the early Covid-19 lockdown. The amendment widened the definition of common gaming house to include online gaming for money and made the act apply to providers operating from outside the state but offering services into AP.
Operators including Dream11, MPL, A23 Rummy and PokerBaazi geofenced AP within a week. The state high court accepted writ petitions challenging the amendment but did not stay it, and the matter sat pending all the way until PROGA superseded it. For five years, players in Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Tirupati and Guntur could not pay to enter contests. FTP remained available.
Tamil Nadu, 12 October 2022 (struck down February 2023, re-enacted April 2023)
Tamil Nadu has the messiest story. The TN Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Act was passed in October 2022 with a sweeping ban on online gambling that explicitly named rummy and poker, and through the schedule it also picked up fantasy sports. Operators paused TN paid play within days. The Madras High Court struck down the act in February 2023 on the basis that the state had overreached on what was a Union-List matter. Operators briefly resumed paid contests in TN for around six weeks.
The state government then re-enacted the law in modified form in April 2023, this time framing the prohibition under public order and health rather than gambling per se. Operators paused again. The matter went back to the Madras High Court and then to the Supreme Court, where a stay was sought but not granted. By the time PROGA arrived in August 2025, TN was firmly in the banned camp.
For Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai and Tiruchirappalli players the practical effect was 30 plus months of no paid Dream11 between November 2022 and August 2025, with a short window of legal access in spring 2023.
Nagaland, 2016 plus prediction-game extensions
Nagaland is different because it passed the Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling and Promotion and Regulation of Online Games of Skill Act 2016, which on the face of it should have been pro-skill-gaming. The 2016 act created a licensing regime for online games of skill including fantasy sports, with a state-issued licence as a prerequisite. The catch is that the Nagaland Director General of Police later extended the prohibition side of the act to cover prediction games and certain fantasy formats that the state government concluded had a substantial chance element.
For Dream11, the practical position was that the operator did hold a Nagaland licence and continued to offer paid contests in the state through the pre-PROGA period, but with restrictions on certain contest types. Players sometimes saw contests greyed out that were available elsewhere. The state is often listed in summary tables as banned because of the structural restrictions, though the formal position is “licensed with carve-outs”. After PROGA the distinction is academic.
Odisha, longstanding under the 1955 Act
Odisha never passed a fresh online gambling statute. Instead, the Orissa Prevention of Gambling Act 1955 was read by the state administration as already covering online money games. The interpretation was conservative compared to states like Karnataka or Maharashtra, which read the same vintage of statute as applying only to physical gaming houses. Operators chose to geoblock Odisha rather than risk an enforcement action.
Players in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Rourkela could not pay to enter Dream11 contests from at least 2019 onward, though the position had never been litigated to a clean ruling. Several writ petitions were filed but the matter sat without resolution. After PROGA the 1955 act becomes background colour against the central law.
Sikkim, residual under the 2008 Online Gaming Act
Sikkim has the cleanest licensing regime of all Indian states. The Sikkim Online Gaming Regulation Act 2008 set up a licence-and-platform regime that allowed regulated online gaming including rummy, poker and casino games, but only through Sikkim-licensed operators. Dream11 was not Sikkim-licensed. As a result, Dream11 paid contests were not formally available to Sikkim users, though the geoblocking enforcement was patchy and many users in Gangtok reported being able to play paid contests through 2024.
The state had a more permissive overall posture than the other five, but for Dream11 specifically the answer was still “not available for paid play” in the strict legal sense.
Other states that had partial or contested bans
Beyond the canonical six, two states had partial or short-lived ban attempts that often appear in older “banned states” lists and deserve a clarification.
Karnataka, October 2021 to October 2022 (struck down)
Karnataka passed the Karnataka Police Amendment Act 2021 in October 2021, banning all online games for money including fantasy sports and rummy. Operators including Dream11 geoblocked the state within days, and Bangalore players were cut off from paid contests for a full year. The Karnataka High Court struck down the amendment in October 2022 in the All India Gaming Federation case, ruling that the state had infringed on Union-List jurisdiction over the technology of online gaming. Paid contests resumed within a week. The state did not re-enact a replacement law before PROGA arrived. Karnataka is therefore not on the canonical pre-PROGA banned list as of August 2025, even though it had a year of effective ban in 2021-2022.
Kerala, July 2021 partial measures
Kerala issued a notification in February 2021 banning paid online rummy specifically. The notification was struck down by the Kerala High Court in September 2021 in the Head Digital Works petition. Kerala did not target fantasy sports directly. Dream11 was not formally banned in Kerala at any point. The state appears on certain affiliate “banned” lists because of the rummy notification confusion, but for fantasy contests Kerala has always been in the legal column.
Assam, longstanding under the 1970 Act
Assam Game and Betting Act 1970 has been read by the state to prohibit online money games. Dream11 and rummy operators did not offer paid contests in Assam for much of the pre-PROGA window, though enforcement was light. Assam is the seventh state that often shows up on extended lists, alongside the canonical six.
Post-PROGA: the all-India paid ban from 1 May 2026
On 22 August 2025 the President of India gave assent to the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act 2025. The act has 56 sections across 8 chapters and the operative paid-play prohibition lives in Section 5, which reads in substance “no person shall, in any manner, offer or facilitate, or aid or abet the offering of, an online money game to any person in India”. The phrase online money game is defined in Section 2(j) as any online game played for a monetary or other stake, with no skill or chance distinction.
The same day, every major Indian fantasy and rummy operator suspended paid contests. Dream11, MPL, My11Circle, Games24x7 issued same-day statements. The Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports filed a joint review petition the next morning. The Supreme Court declined to stay the act, citing the public-policy framing in the preamble. Paid contests stopped on the night of 22 August 2025 and have not resumed.
Between August 2025 and May 2026 the country was in transition. Operators continued to process pre-ban wallet withdrawals, the app stores kept the FTP versions live, and offshore sites tried to fill the gap. The 1 May 2026 milestone activated three connected enforcement levers. The Reserve Bank circular RBI/2026-27/12 instructed scheduled commercial banks to block UPI Virtual Payment Addresses linked to historical gaming merchant codes. MeitY directed Indian ISPs to geofence a published list of around 220 offshore alternative domains, with the list refreshed weekly. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting reissued the 2023 surrogate-advertising prohibition with sharper monetary penalties up to 10 crore rupees per breach.
The legal effect of all this for our state map is direct. Every state and every UT, including the six that had pre-PROGA bans, sits under the same central law today. None of them has a paid Dream11 product. None of them ever will under the current statutory regime. The Article 254 doctrine of repugnancy means a state could not pass a “less restrictive” law to allow paid play even if it wanted to, because the central law on a concurrent-list subject occupies the field.
FTP works in every one of the 28 states and 8 UTs
Free-to-play Dream11, with no entry fee in rupees and no cash payout, is legally outside the scope of PROGA Section 2(j) because there is no monetary stake at any point in the contest cycle. The exact same logic exempts it from every residual state law that ever existed, because every one of those state laws also requires a money element. FTP has therefore never been banned in any state and is not banned in any state today.
The list of jurisdictions where you can install Dream11 and play FTP contests as of 21 May 2026 is exhaustive. Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal cover all 28 states. The 8 union territories are Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Delhi (NCT), Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Lakshadweep and Puducherry. FTP works in every one of them.
The app itself is on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store as of 21 May 2026. Around 50 million monthly active users continue to log in across IPL 2026. The in-app coin economy, the daily login rewards, the cosmetic shop and the leaderboard prizes in coins are all functioning normally. There is no city-level or district-level restriction on FTP in any state.
State-by-state matrix: pre-PROGA paid, post-PROGA paid, FTP
The table below shows the three columns that matter for every state and UT. The pre-PROGA column captures the legacy position right up to 22 August 2025, when the central law took over. The post-PROGA paid column is uniformly “Not available” because the central law overrides any state position. The FTP column is uniformly “Legal” because FTP has no monetary stake. The notes column captures the residual state statute where one exists, which still sits on the books even though it does not actively constrain anything today.
| State or UT | Pre-PROGA paid legal | Post-PROGA paid legal | FTP legal | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andhra Pradesh | No (banned 2020) | No (PROGA) | Yes | AP Gaming Act amendment 2020 still on books |
| Arunachal Pradesh | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Assam | Restricted | No (PROGA) | Yes | Assam Game and Betting Act 1970 |
| Bihar | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Chhattisgarh | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Goa | Yes (offline casino regime separate) | No (PROGA) | Yes | Goa Public Gambling Act, casinos unaffected |
| Gujarat | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | Gujarat Prevention of Gambling Act |
| Haryana | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Himachal Pradesh | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Jharkhand | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Karnataka | Yes (ban struck down Oct 2022) | No (PROGA) | Yes | KP Amendment Act 2021 invalidated |
| Kerala | Yes (rummy notification struck down 2021) | No (PROGA) | Yes | Kerala Gaming Act position evolving |
| Madhya Pradesh | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Maharashtra | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | Maharashtra Prevention of Gambling Act |
| Manipur | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | Manipur Public Gambling Act |
| Meghalaya | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Mizoram | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Nagaland | Restricted (licensed with carve-outs) | No (PROGA) | Yes | Nagaland Prohibition of Gambling Act 2016 |
| Odisha | No (Orissa Act 1955 read in) | No (PROGA) | Yes | Orissa Prevention of Gambling Act 1955 |
| Punjab | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Rajasthan | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Sikkim | No (Sikkim 2008 licensing regime) | No (PROGA) | Yes | Sikkim Online Gaming Regulation Act 2008 |
| Tamil Nadu | No (banned Oct 2022, re-enacted Apr 2023) | No (PROGA) | Yes | TN Prohibition of Online Gambling Act |
| Telangana | No (banned 2017, reaffirmed 2025) | No (PROGA) | Yes | Telangana Gaming Act amendment 2017 |
| Tripura | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Uttar Pradesh | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Uttarakhand | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| West Bengal | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | No state-specific RMG law |
| Andaman and Nicobar | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | UT under central laws |
| Chandigarh | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | UT under central laws |
| Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | UT under central laws |
| Delhi (NCT) | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | UT under central laws |
| Jammu and Kashmir | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | UT under central laws |
| Ladakh | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | UT under central laws |
| Lakshadweep | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | UT under central laws |
| Puducherry | Yes | No (PROGA) | Yes | UT under central laws |
The matrix above is the single most useful artifact in this guide. If you came here from a Google search like “is dream11 banned in maharashtra” or “is dream11 working in kerala 2026”, scan the row for your state. The pre-PROGA column tells you what was true before August 2025. The post-PROGA paid column gives you the current paid-play answer, which is uniformly no. The FTP column gives you the current install-and-play answer, which is uniformly yes.
State law vs PROGA: how the conflict resolves under Article 254
A natural follow-up question is whether a state could choose to permit paid play despite PROGA. The answer is no, and the reason is Article 254 of the Indian Constitution and the doctrine of repugnancy.
The Seventh Schedule to the Constitution divides legislative competence between the Union and the states across three lists. Online gaming falls partly under Entry 31 of the Union List (posts and telegraphs, broadcasting, other forms of communication) and partly under Entry 34 of the State List (betting and gambling). The Supreme Court has held in a series of cases including the 1957 Chamarbaugwala ruling and the 1968 Satyanarayana ruling that games of skill played in a physical setting fall outside gambling, and the 2017 Varun Gumber and Junglee Games line of rulings extended skill-game protection to online formats including fantasy sports.
PROGA was drafted to sit under both Entry 31 of the Union List and the residual Entry 97. The Act in its preamble cites the central government’s interest in regulating online communications and public order. Section 3 of the Act expressly invokes Article 254(2), which says that where a law made by Parliament occupies the field on a concurrent-list subject, any state law to the contrary is void to the extent of the inconsistency. PROGA does not need to defer to state acts. Where a state had a stricter position (Tamil Nadu, Telangana, AP, Odisha) the state law continues to coexist but adds nothing because PROGA is already strict. Where a state had a permissive position (Maharashtra, Karnataka after 2022) the state law is overridden by PROGA’s ban on the supply side.
A state cannot legislate to permit paid Dream11 even if its legislative assembly wished to, because Article 254(2) would void any such law to the extent of the inconsistency with PROGA. The only paths to bring paid fantasy back are a Supreme Court ruling striking down PROGA on constitutional grounds (the operator-side appeal heard 13 May 2026 with orders reserved) or a Parliament amendment to PROGA itself.
For a player this means there is no “state where paid Dream11 is still allowed” in May 2026, and there will not be one absent one of those two interventions. Affiliate claims to the contrary are wrong.
What if I’m in one of the 6 pre-banned states with a stuck balance?
If you live in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Nagaland, Odisha or Sikkim and you still have a Dream11 wallet balance from before the paid product was switched off, the recovery flow is exactly the same as it is for anyone else in India. The PROGA transitional rules at Rule 14(3) require operators to settle all outstanding pre-ban player wallet balances by 30 June 2026. State residence is not a barrier. Your old state-level ban did not vest in the state any claim over your money, and Dream11 owes you that money under ordinary contract law plus the PROGA transitional carve-out.
The flow is in five steps. First, log into the Dream11 app or web portal with the same credentials you used pre-ban. The login still works for the FTP product and the withdrawal portal is integrated into the same account. Second, navigate to the withdrawal section, which is now signposted as Legacy Withdrawal in the help centre. Third, file a single consolidated withdrawal request for your full balance. You will see the breakdown of contest winnings (post TDS under Section 194BA) and unspent deposits. Fourth, wait 11 to 24 days for settlement. The legacy bank rail under the RBI carve-out is slower than the pre-ban UPI rail but it is functional. Fifth, if your request is older than 21 days or rejected, escalate to grievance at dream11 dot com, then to the operator nodal officer named in the in-app help, then to the RBI Sachet portal within 30 days.
There is a state-residence wrinkle for Tamil Nadu specifically. The TN re-enacted act from April 2023 contained a provision requiring operators to “disgorge” stake amounts received from TN residents during the ban window. This was never actively enforced and was overtaken by PROGA in August 2025. If you are a TN resident and you see your balance reduced by an “operator disgorgement adjustment” line, raise a written grievance citing PROGA Rule 14(3) which preserves your contractual claim and pre-empts the state-level disgorgement attempt. We cover this in detail in the stuck-balance recovery guide.
NRI or OCI players in a foreign state
A common follow-up question is whether non-resident Indians (NRIs) or overseas citizens of India (OCIs) physically located outside India can still play paid Dream11 contests. The short answer is no, with three layers of nuance.
First, Dream11 itself does not service users from outside India and never did. The geo-IP fence and KYC requirements have always blocked overseas access except for occasional roaming users with Indian KYC and an Indian bank account. After 22 August 2025 the paid product is dead globally for Dream11 because the operator is Indian-licensed and has shut paid contests for every user.
Second, the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) cap at 250,000 USD per year per resident Indian carry their own gaming restrictions. FEMA Schedule III explicitly prohibits remittance of foreign exchange for any purpose of lottery, banned magazines or any other restricted activity, and an RBI clarification in January 2026 added “online gaming for monetary stake offered from outside India” to the prohibited-purpose list. This shuts down the route of using your LRS allowance to fund an offshore fantasy site.
Third, NRIs and OCIs playing on local offshore sites in their country of residence are governed by that country’s law. A Dubai-resident OCI can legally play DFS sites licensed in the UAE under UAE law. A Singapore-resident NRI can use Singapore-regulated platforms. None of this brings Dream11 paid contests back, because Dream11 is not available outside India.
For OCIs who are physically in India for the IPL season, the rules are the same as for residents: paid Dream11 not available, FTP available, no state-level workaround.
Common confusion: “banned” vs “no paid version” vs “FTP blocked”
A lot of the confusion in the search results around “Dream11 banned states” stems from conflating three different things that affiliate sites and short-form videos blur together. Untangling them is half the battle.
The first concept is state-level prohibition of paid contests. This is what the canonical six states (and arguably Assam and Karnataka briefly) did pre-PROGA. The app was not banned, the FTP version was not banned, downloading was not banned, the contest UI was visible. What was banned was the actual cash-entry and cash-payout. Geoblocking enforced the ban at the operator level. This is the historical sense in which “Dream11 was banned in Tamil Nadu” was a true statement.
The second concept is operator-level discontinuation of the paid product. This is what happened on 22 August 2025 with PROGA. Dream11 itself stopped offering paid contests across all of India in one go. This is not a state-level ban, it is a national operator response to a central statute. The accurate phrasing today is “Dream11 paid contests are not available” rather than “Dream11 is banned”.
The third concept is app-store delisting or technical blocking of the FTP version. This has not happened in any state and is not on the table. The Google Play and Apple App Store listings for Dream11 are live everywhere in India. The MeitY geofencing list targets offshore alternatives (Parimatch, 1xBet, Stake, BC.Game and around 215 smaller domains) and does not touch the domestic FTP app. If you cannot download Dream11 in your state, the cause is local network filtering or ISP error, not a legal restriction.
When you see a YouTube short or an affiliate site claiming “Dream11 is banned in [state]”, it is now most often the second concept (operator discontinuation under PROGA) being presented as the first (state-level prohibition). Both lead to “no paid play” but for different reasons, and the reason matters for the legal recourse, the recovery flow and the prospect of future change.
Case study 1: Karthik in Chennai (Tamil Nadu) — TN ban plus PROGA
Karthik is 31 and works as a software developer in Chennai. He had been a paid Dream11 user from 2018 through October 2022. When the TN Prohibition of Online Gambling Act passed in October 2022, paid contests in TN stopped. Karthik briefly switched to friends-and-family private leagues run through other platforms, but the legal grey was uncomfortable. When the Madras High Court struck down the act in February 2023 he resumed paid play for about six weeks. When the act was re-enacted in April 2023 he stopped again.
Between April 2023 and August 2025 Karthik was a passive FTP user, logging in for IPL cosmetics and the daily coin rewards but not playing any paid product. He had a residual balance of 4,820 rupees from the February to April 2023 window that he never withdrew because the amount was small and the withdrawal portal had issues right after the act re-enactment.
PROGA arrived on 22 August 2025. For Karthik the practical change was zero, because he was already not playing paid contests. He did go and file his stuck-balance withdrawal in October 2025 once the PROGA transitional rules confirmed the legacy bank rail. The 4,820 rupees settled in 17 days. TDS had already been deducted on the contest winnings portion at the time of credit in 2023, so no fresh tax filing was needed.
Today in May 2026 Karthik plays FTP Dream11 for IPL 2026 and uses MPL FTP for casual rummy. His verdict is that PROGA has standardised what TN started in 2022: paid is gone, FTP is fine, the recovery worked. He does not expect paid fantasy to return.
Case study 2: Anjali in Hyderabad and Bangalore — cross-state move
Anjali is 28 and a marketing manager. She lived in Hyderabad until February 2024, then moved to Bangalore for a job change. Telangana had banned paid Dream11 since 2017, so during her Hyderabad years she had never played paid contests, only FTP. When she moved to Bangalore she discovered that paid Dream11 had resumed there in October 2022 after the Karnataka act was struck down, and she signed up to a few small contests during IPL 2024.
She built a paid balance of around 11,500 rupees by July 2025 through small ongoing wins. When PROGA hit in August 2025 her contest entries on the day were refunded automatically. The remaining balance was held for recovery.
Anjali filed her stuck-balance withdrawal in November 2025 from her Bangalore address. The settlement took 14 days. TDS at 30 per cent had been deducted on her net winnings of around 4,200 rupees throughout 2024-25 under Section 194BA, so what she received was the post-tax balance.
Her state change was irrelevant to the recovery. PROGA Rule 14(3) does not segment by state of residence at the time of contest play. What matters is the original deposit identity and the KYC linkage, both of which remained constant.
Anjali’s view at the time of interview in April 2026 is that her short paid-fantasy window in Bangalore was fine while it lasted, the recovery worked, and she has no interest in chasing offshore alternatives given the FEMA exposure and the post-1-May UPI blocking.
Case study 3: Vivek in the Bangalore-Goa boundary
Vivek is 35 and a startup founder who splits his time between Bangalore and Goa, with two weeks a month roughly in each city. He was an enthusiastic Dream11 user from 2016 through August 2025, with deposits varying month to month from 2,000 rupees to 25,000 rupees depending on the IPL or T20 schedule.
Vivek’s geographic split made no legal difference pre-PROGA because both Bangalore (after the October 2022 Karnataka strike-down) and Goa had paid Dream11 available. Goa’s separate offline casino regime under the Goa Public Gambling Act did not affect online fantasy sports. His routine was to log in from whichever city he was in and play normally.
When PROGA arrived Vivek had around 78,000 rupees in his Dream11 wallet. He filed for recovery in September 2025 through the early-bird wave that Dream11 ran for high-balance users. Settlement took 22 days. He received the post-TDS amount.
His follow-up tax filing for FY 2024-25 had to capture his Dream11 winnings of 1.34 lakh rupees that year on the new ITR-2 schedule for winnings from online games. Section 115BBJ taxes net winnings at a flat 30 per cent. The TDS already withheld matched the gross liability, but Vivek still had to disclose the income separately. His chartered accountant flagged that loss set-off was not available against winnings income, which Vivek found mildly painful given his late-season losses.
Vivek’s current rotation is FTP Dream11 plus offline poker in Goa where it is legal and licensed. He has no interest in offshore fantasy and considers the UPI block since 1 May 2026 to have ended any debate.
25 player FAQs answered
1. Is Dream11 banned in India 2026?
Paid Dream11 contests are not available anywhere in India since 22 August 2025 under PROGA Act 2025. Free-to-play Dream11 with in-app coins remains legal and available across all 28 states and 8 UTs. The app itself is on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
2. Is Dream11 banned in Tamil Nadu?
Tamil Nadu banned paid Dream11 under the TN Prohibition of Online Gambling Act 2022 (struck down February 2023, re-enacted April 2023). Since 22 August 2025 the TN-specific ban has been overtaken by PROGA, which bans paid play nationally. FTP Dream11 is legal in TN.
3. Is Dream11 banned in Andhra Pradesh?
AP banned paid Dream11 in September 2020 by amending the Andhra Pradesh Gaming Act 1974. Since 22 August 2025 the AP-specific ban sits underneath the PROGA national ban on paid contests. FTP remains legal.
4. Is Dream11 banned in Telangana?
Telangana banned paid Dream11 in June 2017 (reaffirmed March 2025). Since 22 August 2025 PROGA has superseded the Telangana-specific position. Paid contests are unavailable, FTP works.
5. Is Dream11 working in Kerala 2026?
FTP Dream11 works in Kerala on the same basis as the rest of India. Kerala did not have a fantasy-specific ban pre-PROGA. Paid contests are not available in Kerala because PROGA bans paid play nationally.
6. Is Dream11 working in Karnataka 2026?
FTP Dream11 works in Karnataka. The Karnataka Police Amendment Act 2021 that briefly banned paid play was struck down in October 2022, so paid Dream11 was available in Karnataka from October 2022 to 22 August 2025. PROGA now blocks paid play across India including Karnataka.
7. Is Dream11 working in Maharashtra 2026?
FTP Dream11 works in Maharashtra. The Maharashtra Prevention of Gambling Act never targeted online fantasy specifically. Paid contests are unavailable since 22 August 2025 due to PROGA.
8. Is Dream11 working in Delhi 2026?
FTP Dream11 works in Delhi (NCT). Delhi has no UT-specific gaming law. Paid contests are unavailable since 22 August 2025 due to PROGA.
9. Is Dream11 working in Goa 2026?
FTP Dream11 works in Goa. Goa’s offline casino regime under the Goa Public Gambling Act is separate and unaffected. Paid Dream11 contests are unavailable since 22 August 2025 due to PROGA.
10. Is Dream11 working in West Bengal 2026?
FTP Dream11 works in West Bengal. The state has no fantasy-specific ban. Paid contests are unavailable nationally under PROGA.
11. Can I install Dream11 in Tamil Nadu in 2026?
Yes. The app is on Google Play and the App Store. The FTP product is legal in Tamil Nadu. Installing does not violate the TN act or PROGA because no monetary stake is involved.
12. Why was Dream11 banned in 6 states before PROGA?
Six states (AP, Telangana, TN, Nagaland, Odisha, Sikkim) passed or read state gaming laws to prohibit online money games regardless of skill content, on public-order grounds. The bans applied only to paid contests, not to the app or FTP.
13. Did any state ban Dream11 entirely (including FTP)?
No. No state has ever banned FTP Dream11. Every state law that touched fantasy targeted only the money-stake element. FTP has always been legal everywhere in India.
14. Can a state pass a law to allow paid Dream11 again?
No. Article 254(2) of the Constitution makes any state law that conflicts with PROGA on this concurrent-list subject void to the extent of the inconsistency. PROGA is a central law that occupies the field for online money games.
15. Will Dream11 paid contests come back?
Possible but not soon. The Supreme Court reserved orders on the operator GST and PROGA-adjacent appeal on 13 May 2026. A favourable ruling that strikes down PROGA could restore paid play. A Parliament amendment to PROGA could also restore it. Neither is expected within 2026.
16. Is my pre-ban balance safe if I live in a previously banned state?
Yes. PROGA Rule 14(3) requires Dream11 to settle pre-ban wallet balances for every Indian user by 30 June 2026, regardless of state of residence. The state-level ban did not vest in the state any claim on your wallet.
17. How long does Dream11 withdrawal take in 2026?
Average settlement is 11 to 24 days through the legacy bank rail under the RBI carve-out. UPI is not used because the May 2026 UPI block applies to ongoing money-gaming flows, not transitional refunds.
18. Can I use a VPN to play paid Dream11 in 2026?
No. Dream11 has no paid product running anywhere. A VPN cannot create a paid mode that does not exist. Using a VPN to access offshore alternatives exposes you to FEMA Schedule III prohibitions and potential income-tax notices under Section 285BAA.
19. Are offshore fantasy alternatives legal for Indian players?
No. The MeitY geofencing list published 1 May 2026 blocks roughly 220 offshore domains including Parimatch, 1xBet, Stake and BC.Game. FEMA Schedule III prohibits remittance for foreign online money gaming. ED has opened 47 investigations into offshore-gaming flows from India.
20. Is FTP Dream11 still profitable to play if winnings are only coins?
Coins are not exchangeable for cash. The IPL 2026 leaderboard rewards are coins and merchandise vouchers. Players who treated paid Dream11 as a side income now use FTP for enjoyment only. We list the alternative free fantasy products in our free fantasy alternatives guide.
21. Do I need to file ITR for my pre-ban Dream11 winnings?
Yes. Section 115BBJ taxes net winnings from online games at a flat 30 per cent. TDS under Section 194BA was already withheld by Dream11 at credit. You still must report the gross winnings figure on the ITR-2 schedule for online gaming winnings. Loss set-off against winnings is not allowed.
22. What if I’m an OCI in India for IPL season?
Same rules as for residents. Paid Dream11 is not available anywhere in India. FTP is available. Your OCI status does not unlock paid play. If you also have a foreign residence with local DFS legality, that is governed by that country’s law.
23. Is RummyCircle banned in the same states as Dream11?
The pre-PROGA banned states overlapped substantially. AP, Telangana, TN, Odisha and Sikkim banned both fantasy and rummy. Karnataka’s 2021 act covered rummy too before being struck down. Since 22 August 2025 PROGA covers rummy, poker and fantasy under the single “online money game” definition.
24. Is MPL banned in the same way as Dream11?
Yes. MPL’s paid product was suspended on 22 August 2025 along with Dream11, My11Circle, Games24x7 and the other major operators. MPL FTP and its esports product remain available. The stuck-balance recovery flow on MPL mirrors Dream11’s, with the same 30 June 2026 deadline.
25. Where can I track future changes to the Dream11 banned states list?
This guide is updated monthly on the 21st with the latest position. The two events that could change the picture are the Supreme Court ruling on the pending appeal (orders reserved 13 May 2026) and any PROGA amendment in Parliament’s monsoon or winter sessions. We will update the matrix at the top of this page within 48 hours of either event.
Conclusion
The “Dream11 banned states” question went through three distinct eras. From 2017 to 2025 the answer was state-specific, with six states (Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Nagaland, Odisha and Sikkim) running paid-contest prohibitions of varying form and force, and Assam and Karnataka adding partial coverage. From 22 August 2025 to 30 April 2026 the country sat in transition: paid play was off, the legal framework was in place under PROGA, but enforcement levers like UPI blocking and offshore-site geofencing were not yet fully active. Since 1 May 2026 the answer is national and uniform. Paid Dream11 is not available in any state or UT. FTP Dream11 is legal in every state and UT. Pre-ban balances are recoverable until 30 June 2026.
If you came to this page hoping to find a state where paid Dream11 is still alive, the honest answer is that no such state exists today and none is going to exist absent a Supreme Court reversal or a Parliament amendment. The reverse hope, that PROGA might exclude your particular state, is also not on the table because the Article 254 doctrine of repugnancy makes state-level carve-outs structurally impossible while PROGA stands.
The practical advice for the four reader profiles we hear from is straightforward. Casual players should treat FTP as the only Dream11 product worth their time, and the IPL 2026 coin contests scratch the same itch with a slightly different reward structure. IPL-season punters who used to play paid contests should accept that the paid route is gone and avoid the offshore trap, which is now both UPI-blocked and ED-investigated. Players with stuck balances should file recovery requests before 30 June 2026, escalating through grievance and Sachet if needed. Accountants and salaried players need to file ITR-2 with the new winnings schedule for any FY 2024-25 or FY 2025-26 winnings, with TDS reconciliation against the Dream11 consolidated certificate.
The PROGA debate is not over. The Supreme Court orders are reserved, the operator-side industry continues to argue that PROGA conflicts with the Supreme Court 2017 skill-game ruling and with Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, and the GST 2.5 lakh crore rupee dispute remains in the background. For now, in the third week of May 2026, the map is uniform: no paid play anywhere, FTP everywhere, recovery channel open until 30 June. Bookmark this page and check back monthly for the matrix refresh. The State Legality Check widget at the top of the page is the fastest way to get a state-plus-app verdict in a single click.
For a fuller treatment of the underlying central law see our PROGA Act 2025 explained guide. For the broader Dream11 legality picture beyond state-specific questions see is Dream11 legal in India 2026. For the specific recovery process on stuck wallet balances see stuck-balance recovery. For free alternatives that fill the IPL fantasy itch without any money stake see free fantasy alternatives 2026. For a side-by-side of the central law against the residual state acts see PROGA vs state laws India.