Self-exclusion and GamStop

Self-exclusion is a formal request to an operator to close your account and stop marketing to you for a set period. On sites licensed by the Gambling Commission, offering self-exclusion is a licence condition, not a courtesy. Under the Gambling Act 2005, any operator offering remote gambling to consumers in Britain must hold a Commission licence, and that licence carries a duty to provide workable exclusion tools.

GamStop is the free national online self-exclusion scheme covering operators licensed in Britain. You register once with your own details, choose an exclusion period of six months, one year or five years, and the exclusion applies across every participating licensed site. You cannot log in, deposit or receive marketing from those operators while the exclusion is active. Registration takes minutes and the service is free.

One gap matters and deserves stating honestly: GamStop covers licensed British operators only. Sites operating without a Commission licence, including the offshore brands reviewed across this site, are not part of the scheme and are under no obligation to honour a GamStop registration. That is a genuine loss of protection for anyone who has excluded and is then shown offshore advertising. If your reason for self-excluding is to stop gambling altogether, treating offshore sites as off-limits by personal decision, and being honest with yourself about that, is part of the picture the scheme alone cannot solve.

How limits and time-outs work

Deposit limits, reality checks and time-outs are also licence conditions for online operators licensed in Britain. A deposit limit caps how much you can load into your account over a day, week or month. A well-set limit should feel slightly tighter than comfortable; if it never bites, it is probably set too high. Increases to a limit should not take effect immediately, which gives you a cooling-off window to change your mind.

Reality checks interrupt play at intervals you choose, showing how long the session has run and what you have spent. They are easy to dismiss in the moment, which is exactly why setting them at short intervals rather than long ones is worth doing.

A time-out is a shorter break than full self-exclusion, typically from a day up to several weeks. During a time-out you cannot deposit or play, and it cannot be reversed early. It suits a period when you want to step back without committing to a multi-year exclusion.

None of these tools carry a stigma. Operators licensed in Britain must offer them, and the Commission’s public register lets you confirm a brand holds a licence before you sign up. Using the tools early, before spending feels like a problem, is when they work best.

Where to get help

If you are worried about your own gambling or someone else’s, the fastest route is the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133. It is free, open 24 hours a day, and staffed by trained advisers. GambleAware funds the National Gambling Support Network behind the helpline, and its site at begambleaware.org lists the current services, including treatment routes and self-help tools.

GamCare, at gamcare.org.uk, provides free information, advice and support for anyone affected by gambling harm, including counselling and structured support for family members. Its forum and chat services run alongside the helpline, so you can reach out in whichever way feels manageable.

The NHS also lists gambling support among its live-well resources at nhs.uk, including where to find NHS-run clinics for gambling-related harm. A GP appointment is a reasonable starting point too; GPs can refer you into treatment without any judgement attached.

None of these services will report you to anyone, charge you, or push you into anything. Contacting one is confidential, and talking to an adviser once costs nothing but a phone call.

A final word

Gambling should be entertainment you can afford to lose at, never a way to make money or chase back what has gone. If the balance has shifted, the tools on this page exist for exactly that moment, and the people on the other end of 0808 8020 133 have heard every version of the story. You do not need to prepare a speech before calling.