On this page
Polymarket restricts its international service in a range of countries and regions, but a country list alone cannot tell you whether you may use it. The official Help page and developer documentation describe restrictions differently. Neither provides a worldwide legal opinion or confirms what a particular account can do.
The useful starting point is to identify the product, the activity and the source. Reading market data, opening an account, placing a new trade, closing a position and withdrawing money are separate questions. This guide compares selected examples from the official pages checked on 16 October 2026 and explains where their answers remain uncertain.
Separate Polymarket Global from Polymarket US
Polymarket Global and Polymarket US are separate products. Their official documentation distinguishes the international blockchain-based service from the US product, and the Help page describes separate accounts and support teams. A statement about one service should not be applied automatically to the other. [1] [2]
The CFTC record identifies QCX LLC, doing business as Polymarket US, as a designated contract market, with a designation date of 9 July 2025. That is a US regulatory record for a named entity. It does not establish that Polymarket Global is licensed worldwide, that every country permits its use, or that an individual is eligible for either product. [3]
This distinction matters when a search result says that “Polymarket is regulated” or lists the United States as restricted. Those statements can refer to different products and activities. Check the entity and service before relying on the headline.
What blocked and close-only mean
In the developer documentation, a complete block prevents new orders and closing existing positions. Its close-only category describes closing existing positions without opening new ones. These are descriptions of platform controls, not findings about local law. The document also separates restrictions by interface, so its categories should not be read as a single country-wide permission statement. [4]
The Help page, dated 14 August 2026, places Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Poland in its blocked-country table and also describes them as close-only. The developer page uses a more detailed classification. That difference is material: repeating only the more permissive description could give a reader confidence that an action will work when the sources do not establish it. [5]
Close-only also does not mean that withdrawals are guaranteed. Closing a trade, redeeming a resolved contract and moving money out of an account are different operations. A restriction label does not settle identity checks, payment-route conditions, an account review or local legal requirements.
Selected countries: what the sources establish
The comparison below highlights useful examples and source disagreements. It is not a complete list of restricted countries or a map of where trading is legal. The Help page and developer page should both be consulted; this guide does not choose a more permissive category when they conflict. [4] [5]
| Example | What the official sources say | What remains unresolved |
|---|---|---|
| Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Poland | The Help page includes each in both its blocked table and its close-only section. The developer page puts each in a close-only group. | The overlapping labels do not confirm which actions a particular account can perform or whether local law permits them. |
| Germany | The Help page describes holding existing positions until resolution. The developer close-only category describes closing existing positions. | These are different accounts of available actions. This guide does not promise a sale, redemption or withdrawal. |
| South Korea | The developer page names South Korea in a restriction group, although it is absent from the Help page's blocked-country table. | Omission from one page is not permission. The documents also differ in interface scope; no individual eligibility follows. |
| India and Hong Kong | Neither is named in the location tables reviewed for this comparison. | An absent name is not an affirmative statement about registration, trading or local legality. |
| North Korea | The developer page places it in both the complete-block and close-only groups. | The conflicting entry is not a basis for choosing a less restrictive interpretation. |
| United States | The Global geography sources list restrictions. Separate documentation describes Polymarket US. | Global restrictions and a US product's regulatory status cannot be combined into a general permission claim. |
Some restrictions also apply below country level. The reviewed pages name Canadian provinces and Ukrainian regions. A country-only summary can therefore omit information that matters to a reader. Rather than assume that an unlisted country or region is eligible, check the current official conditions for the particular service and activity. [5]
Check eight independent questions
Eligibility is not a single switch. A positive answer in one row does not answer the others, and these checks are not a sequence that guarantees approval.
| Stage | Question to resolve | What it does not prove |
|---|---|---|
| Website access | Can you read a page or see market data? | That registration, funding or trading is permitted. |
| Terms geography | Which product's current terms apply to your circumstances? | That a technical restriction table contains all contractual conditions. |
| Signup | Are you permitted to create and maintain the account? | That a working registration screen establishes eligibility. |
| Identity checks | What identity and account checks does that product require? | That passing a check decides local legality. |
| Funding | Is the particular payment route allowed for that account? | That a displayed deposit option is permission to use it. |
| Trading | Are new positions, existing-position sales or both restricted? | That a close-only label guarantees an available transaction. |
| Withdrawal | What conditions govern moving funds out of the account? | That closing or resolving a position guarantees a withdrawal. |
| Local law | What do competent local authorities and applicable law say about the relevant activity? | That website access or US regulatory designation supplies local permission. |
The complete current Global and US terms were not available in the source material assessed for this guide. Their contractual conditions therefore remain an important gap. The geography pages can identify restrictions worth investigating, but cannot fill that gap or clear an individual's account. [6] [7]
Use a country guide for the next question
A cross-country hub is useful for interpreting labels. A country guide can examine the relevant jurisdiction, distinguish platform policy from local rules and identify unanswered account questions. Existing English guides cover India, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Thailand. Each guide has its own dated evidence and limits; a link here is not a legal clearance.
When the sources disagree about an account action, seek current clarification from the relevant service before relying on it. A platform's answer can explain its own conditions; a local legal question still requires competent local evidence. Do not treat a third-party country list, a search snippet or another user's experience as a substitute for either.
Common questions
Where is Polymarket legal?
There is no reliable worldwide yes-or-no answer in the sources reviewed here. Start by separating Global from US, then distinguish platform restrictions from local law and the particular activity. A location missing from a platform list has not thereby received legal approval.
Does close-only mean I can withdraw my money?
No withdrawal guarantee follows from that label. It concerns how a source describes position-taking or closing. Withdrawal is a separate account operation, and the official geography sources themselves differ about some available actions.
If the website loads, can I trade?
Page access does not establish trading permission. Market data can be visible while other functions are restricted. Terms, account conditions, identity checks and local law remain separate questions.
Which official restriction page should I trust?
Read both with their scope and date in mind. The Help page is general user guidance; the developer page describes technical restrictions in more categories. Neither page's wording resolves every conflict, and this guide does not silently replace one with the other.
Is Polymarket US approval valid for Global users?
The CFTC designation concerns QCX LLC doing business as Polymarket US. It does not supply worldwide authorization for the international service or establish that a particular user may trade. [3]
Sources and scope
Sources checked on 16 October 2026. The geography Help page displays 14 August 2026; the developer geography page supplies no explicit update date in the reviewed text. Their categories and descriptions of available actions differ, so this guide retains those uncertainties rather than publishing a complete eligibility list. Complete current terms were not assessed. No individual legal, registration, identity, funding, trading or withdrawal clearance is established.
- Polymarket US: product overview — official product description, used to distinguish the US and international services.
- Polymarket Help: website and app differences — dated 25 June 2026; used for product and account separation, not current app availability.
- CFTC: QCX LLC d/b/a Polymarket US — designated contract market record dated 9 July 2025.
- Polymarket developer documentation: geographic restrictions — platform restriction categories; conflicting entries and differing interface scope remain unresolved here.
- Polymarket Help: geographic restrictions — user guidance dated 14 August 2026; overlapping blocked and close-only descriptions retained.
- Polymarket Global terms — complete operative text was unavailable for assessment.
- Polymarket US terms — complete operative text was unavailable for assessment.
HypaForecast publishes this editorial guide and operates a competing prediction-market service. It is not affiliated with Polymarket. This guide does not establish individual eligibility or legal permission.
Share this guide