What happens to your account — Judge John McHale's Aug 13 order, the Aug 19 & Sept 2 deadlines, and which markets stay open.
Source: Washington Attorney General — Aug 13, 2026 press release · Court: King County Superior Court
Two enforcement deadlines — the first is August 19
Kalshi must implement an IP-and-residency geofence by August 19. The court-mandated GeoComply multi-source system must be live by September 2. Missing that second deadline carries $120,000/day in penalties. Washington's Court of Appeals has already denied Kalshi's request to pause the order while it appeals.
Judge John McHale of King County Superior Court issued the final preliminary injunction requiring Kalshi to restrict most of its operations in Washington.
Kalshi must block Washington users from restricted contract categories using IP address and self-reported residency checks. This is the first enforcement deadline.
Kalshi must deploy a multi-source geofencing system via GeoComply. Missing this deadline triggers $120,000/day in penalties unless Kalshi files a sworn affidavit explaining the delay.
Washington reserves the right to seek recovery of fees and losses incurred by Washington consumers on or after September 2, 2026. Kalshi must preserve all records related to Washington consumers.
The court order draws a clear line between contract types. Not everything on Kalshi is blocked — several categories remain accessible to Washington residents. The restriction targets categories the court found most likely to constitute illegal gambling under Washington law.
Kalshi is also barred from advertising these contract categories to Washington consumers.
The court specifically excluded these categories because they do not involve the gambling-law violations identified for the restricted categories.
The court order explicitly states: “Kalshi will not prohibit users from exiting positions they already hold.”
If you hold open positions in restricted categories (sports, elections, etc.), you retain the right to sell those positions or let them resolve normally. Kalshi cannot force-close or cancel your existing holdings.
Washington state reserves the right to seek recovery of fees and losses incurred by Washington consumers on or after September 2, 2026.
Kalshi must preserve all records related to Washington consumers — including logs, geolocation determinations, and marketing data — until the court orders otherwise.
The court order restricts which new contracts you can open — not access to your account or your ability to withdraw funds. You can continue to log in, view balances, close existing positions in restricted categories, and withdraw your money as normal.
Kalshi must maintain the status quo on funds it collected as transaction fees from Washington consumers for activity the order prohibits. Those fees are not immediately returned — the state is reserving its right to seek recovery as the case continues.
The court ordered a staged implementation because full multi-source geofencing requires integration work. The two deadlines give Kalshi time to build toward the more rigorous system while an interim measure is in place immediately.
By August 19, Kalshi must implement a geofence based on two signals: the user's IP address (which indicates approximate location) and their self-reported state of residency. Anyone whose IP address resolves to Washington, or who has reported a Washington address, will be blocked from opening new positions in restricted contract categories.
This is an interim measure. IP-only geofencing can be circumvented with a VPN. The court acknowledged this limitation, which is why Stage 2 is required.
By September 2, Kalshi must deploy a more comprehensive geofencing solution through GeoComply, a third-party geolocation verification provider. Multi-source geofencing uses multiple signals — IP address, device GPS, Wi-Fi network location, and other data points — to verify a user's physical location before permitting a trade.
If Kalshi misses the September 2 deadline, two outcomes are possible:
If you rely on prediction markets for sports, elections, or politics contracts and you are in Washington, there are alternatives worth considering. The restrictions apply specifically to Kalshi — other platforms have different legal footprints in the state.
Polymarket operates on a decentralized blockchain infrastructure and does not hold a CFTC Designated Contract Market (DCM) license. It is not subject to the Washington state court order targeting Kalshi. Access for Washington residents is not currently restricted by a Washington court order.
Polymarket guideKalshi itself remains available in Washington for the four permitted categories: commodities, climate, economics, and finance. If your primary interest is economic indicators, interest-rate markets, or weather contracts, those remain accessible through your existing Kalshi account.
Kalshi guidePlatform availability by state can shift quickly as courts issue new rulings. Our state legality checker is updated weekly with primary-source citations.
State availability checkerWashington is one of several states with active restrictions on Kalshi. Our state action tracker shows which states have lawsuits, injunctions, or restrictions currently in effect — and what those mean for users in each state.
State action impact trackerWashington Attorney General Nick Brown filed the original lawsuit in March 2026, alleging that Kalshi violated the Washington Gambling Act, the Consumer Protection Act, and the Recovery of Money Lost at Gambling Act by running an unlicensed gambling operation in the state.
Kalshi's primary defense was federal preemption: as a CFTC-regulated Designated Contract Market, Kalshi argued that federal law overrides state gambling statutes. Judge John McHale rejected that argument, finding that Kalshi's advertising made misleading claims about the legality of its products under Washington law and that the platform likely violated multiple state statutes.
A preliminary injunction was first granted on July 20, 2026. Kalshi asked the Washington Court of Appeals to stay that injunction while it appealed — the appeals court denied that request. The final order, issued August 13, sets the geofencing deadlines and enforcement mechanism described on this page.
The order specifically carves out commodities, climate, economics, and finance contracts — the court found those categories do not implicate the gambling-law violations that the restricted categories do.
Kalshi operates under a CFTC Designated Contract Market (DCM) license, which gives it federal authority to offer event contracts. The CFTC has taken the position that its authority preempts state gambling laws and has issued emergency orders compelling Kalshi to continue operations in states where courts have restricted it.
Washington's order is narrower than some other states' orders: it does not require Kalshi to cancel existing trades or refund settled contracts — only to stop offering the restricted categories to Washington residents going forward and to implement geofencing that blocks them from opening new positions.
This means the dual-authority situation is somewhat more workable in Washington than in states like Michigan, where the court initially ordered contract cancellations. Category-level geofencing can coexist with national platform operation.
For Washington traders, the practical outcome is: the platform stays online, your account stays accessible, the allowed categories remain tradeable, and the restricted ones go dark as geofencing rolls out.
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