Video lottery in Quebec: how the terminals in bars work
In plenty of Quebec bars there is a small room off to the side with a few glowing screens: the video lottery terminals, known in French as ALV (appareils de loterie vidéo) or just "the machines". They look like slot machines, but they follow different rules from the ones in casinos. This guide explains who runs them, where they are allowed, who may not play, the protections built into every terminal and what an hour of play really adds up to. The facts come from official texts: the Rules respecting video lottery machines, documents from the Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux (RACJ) and from Loto-Québec, checked on 7 November 2026.
The basics
- Operator: Loto-Québec.
- Oversight: the RACJ issues site operator licences and inspects establishments.
- Minimum age: 18.
- Where: in a bar with a bar permit in force, and in Loto-Québec's gaming halls.
- Number in Quebec: 9,492 registered terminals in 2024-2025, according to the RACJ annual report.
- Built-in limits: session length of 60 minutes or less, $100 maximum insertion, 5 seconds between games.
- Help: Jeu : aide et référence, 1-800-461-0140, 24 hours a day.
Why Loto-Québec runs them
In Canada, gambling starts with the Criminal Code. Paragraph 207(1)(a) lets a provincial government conduct and manage a lottery scheme in its province. Subsection 207(4) then says that a game "operated on or through a computer, video device, slot machine or a dice game" cannot be run by a charity, a fair or a licensee. The result: only the province can operate this kind of machine.
In Quebec, that role belongs to Loto-Québec. The bar does not own the terminals and does not set the games. It provides the space and must hold a site operator licence issued by the RACJ. Our guide on whether online gambling is legal in Quebec explains the framework in more detail.
Where terminals are allowed
The Rules respecting video lottery machines (CQLR, c. L-6, r. 3), up to date July 1, 2026, set the conditions. Under section 26, terminals may be operated in a bar whose bar permit from the Régie is in force and not suspended. The same section bans them, among other places:
- in a room whose capacity on the permit is under 15;
- in a room designated as a theatre or a terrace, among others;
- where the permit is used at a craft alcohol production site.
The RACJ checklist adds layout rules:
- terminals must be visible from the service counter, so staff can watch players at all times;
- they must not be visible from outside;
- if minors can enter the establishment, terminals must be in a room with a "permanent, opaque and sealed" partition, out of sight of anywhere minors are;
- that room must have at least 15 seats, not counting the seats in front of the terminals.
Loto-Québec's responsible commercialization document gives the example of a bowling alley with a liquor permit: the terminals are in a section closed to minors.
Earlier versions of the Rules capped the number of terminals per establishment at 5 (section 29), or 10 in some groupings (section 29.1). Both sections are now repealed.
How many terminals and sites
The RACJ's 2024-2025 annual management report lists, for video lottery, 1,272 licences issued (down from 1,347 the year before) and 9,492 registered terminals (up from 9,431). The Régie also reports 170 investigations and inspections involving video lottery terminals in 2024-2025, down from 297 the year before.
Loto-Québec also says it wants to group its terminals into fewer, better-supervised locations. That is the thinking behind the gaming halls in Québec City and Trois-Rivières.
Who may not play
The Rules and the RACJ checklist are clear:
- Minors. Section 55 forbids minors from playing, and section 56 forbids the bar from tolerating it, even through an adult. Section 28 requires the bar to post a notice at all times saying people under 18 may not play.
- The bar permit holder, their spouse and their children.
- The person in charge of video lottery at the establishment.
- Staff.
- Performers giving a show at the establishment.
These people may not play or encourage the public to play. Under section 50, the bar also may not let someone play who is clearly drunk or under the influence of a drug, medication or other substance.
The protections built into every terminal
According to Loto-Québec, every video lottery terminal has these features:
| Protection | What it does |
|---|---|
| Permanent clock | The time stays on the game screen |
| Session length | The player must choose a length, of 60 minutes or less, before each session |
| Maximum insertion | $100 |
| Automatic coupon | Printed when the bank reaches or passes $1,000 |
| Bank display | In dollars or in credits |
| Delay between games | 5 seconds |
| Automatic shutdown | Outside authorised hours |
| Explanatory menu | On chance and common misconceptions |
| Help line | The Jeu : aide et référence number is displayed |
Two of these deserve a closer look. The session length makes you decide in advance how long you will play; it is a good moment to set an amount too. And showing the bank in dollars instead of credits makes losses more concrete: 400 credits at $0.25 is $100.
The rules for the bar
The bar must follow a responsible commercialization code, posted at all times. Mystery shoppers and authorised representatives check that it does. Among the rules:
- no ATM near the terminal area;
- nobody may play more than one terminal at a time (also in section 50 of the Rules);
- no loans, credit or cash advances for play;
- an employee trained in responsible commercialization must always be on site to direct players to help when needed.
The RACJ checklist adds that the bar must make game rules, pay tables and operating instructions available, and refuse any exchange of goods or services for games played.
What an hour of play adds up to
Terminal results are random: a loss does not make a win "due", and a recent win changes nothing about the next game. What matters over time is the share of bets the terminal keeps on average, the house edge. The official documents do not give a return rate for video lottery terminals. The effect of pace is still easy to see.
The 5-second delay caps the number of games. Even if a game were instant, that would be at most 12 games a minute, or 720 an hour. At $1 a game, that is up to $720 wagered in an hour, often by re-betting the same winnings.
Take a purely hypothetical 8% house edge to show the calculation:
| Bet per game | Games per hour (maximum) | Total wagered | Average loss at 8% |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0.25 | 720 | $180 | $14.40 |
| $1 | 720 | $720 | $57.60 |
| $2 | 720 | $1,440 | $115.20 |
In practice, each game's animation slows things down, so the real number of games is lower. But the logic holds: the average loss grows with the total wagered, not with the cash you put in at the start. A $20 bill that "lasts a long time" has usually been bet several times over. Our guide to Espacejeux slots explains how to read a return to player figure when one is shown.
Video lottery, casinos and online play: the differences
| Bar terminal | Casino or gaming hall | Espacejeux (online) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | Loto-Québec | Loto-Québec | Loto-Québec |
| Age | 18 | 18 | 18 |
| Where | Bar with a bar permit | Loto-Québec venue | In Quebec, remotely |
| Self-exclusion described by Loto-Québec | Not mentioned | Yes | Yes |
| Specific limits | 60 minutes, $100, 5 seconds | Depends on the game | Account limit tools |
Loto-Québec's document describes self-exclusion covering casinos, gaming halls and the online account. It does not mention bars. If bar terminals are what is causing trouble, the help line is the best way in.
When the machines take up too much room
Bar terminals remain a major source of help requests. According to the Centre de référence du Grand Montréal's 2024-2025 annual report, in-person video lottery terminals made up 15% of the games named by people asking for help, just behind online slots (17%).
A few simple habits:
- decide on an amount and a time limit before walking into the room, and use the terminal's session length;
- leave the debit card at home, since there should be no ATM near the terminals;
- take the coupon and stop at the point you set in advance, not when the bank hits zero;
- if you go back to the bar mainly for the machines, talk to someone about it.
Jeu : aide et référence answers free and in confidence, 24 hours a day, at 514-527-0140 in Montreal and 1-800-461-0140 elsewhere in Quebec. Our responsible gambling page covers the other tools.
Sources
Official texts checked on 7 November 2026.
- Rules respecting video lottery machines, CQLR c. L-6, r. 3 (French text, up to date July 1, 2026)
- RACJ, video lottery operating checklist (PDF, French)
- RACJ, 2024-2025 annual management report (PDF, French)
- Loto-Québec, responsible commercialization actions (PDF, French)
- Rules respecting video lottery machines, historical version up to date September 1, 2012
- Criminal Code, section 207
- Centre de référence du Grand Montréal, 2024-2025 annual report (PDF)
Key terms
- House edge
- The cut a game is built to keep for the casino on average, shown as a percentage of what you bet.
- Random number generator (RNG)
- An RNG (random number generator, "générateur de nombres aléatoires") is the software that decides slot and table game results. Labs certify it.
- Return to player (RTP)
- Return to player ("taux de retour"): the share of all bets a game is built to pay back over a huge number of rounds.
- Self-exclusion
- A ban you put on yourself ("autoexclusion") to stop gambling at one site, or at every licensed site in a region, for a set time.