Some online casinos offer bonuses that seem too good to be true. They usually are. Some online casinos offer 200% and even 300% welcome bonuses to their players. The wagering requirements are also low. The bonus offers seem very attractive until you read something like this in the Promotion T&C's: "Play bonus credits are for wagering purposes only. No withdrawal will be honoured for an amount less than the play bonus. Upon your first withdrawal, any amount up to the equivalent value of the play bonus will be deducted from your play balance or winnings prior to settlement." What this means is that the bonus "sticks" to the player until it is lost. Sticky bonuses (or play bonuses as they are also called) can be used to play, but can never be cashed out. You can cash out winnings generated from sticky bonuses but the bonus amount will always be deducted when you cash-out. This means that this kind of bonus is practically useless. An example will show you why:

You join a casino, deposit $100 and receive a $200 sticky bonus. You now have $300 on your casino account. The wagering requirements are low, let's say 6 x (deposit + bonus) = 1800. You fulfil you wagering requirements by playing on a variety of games with an average house edge of 2% (98% payout). If you played optimal you should on average have won (1800*0.98) = $1764. You will on average have lost (1800-1764) = $36. This leaves (300-36) = $264 on your account. The problem is that the $200 bonus will be deducted upon your first withdrawal so if you would want to cash out at this point, you can only cash out (264-200) = $64. So much for a bonus. You are no better off than if you had not received a bonus at all and just played with your initial $100...

Stay away from sticky bonuses and casinos that offer them. They are a pitfall. Do not get blinded by what seems to be a fantastic bonus offer. Play at online casinos that offer real bonus money like the ones on the Recommended Casinos list instead. There are no catches to the bonus offers at these casinos. There are wagering requirements, but no catches...