GAMSTOP and Casino Sister Sites: What Is Covered?

GAMSTOP Online covers participating online gambling services across Great Britain, including casino sister sites. Registering with the scheme is different from asking an individual operator to exclude you. The first creates a wider block; the second uses that operator’s own self-exclusion arrangements.

If you have excluded yourself, switching to another brand is not a way to reset that decision. Check which protection you have in place and get help if an account remains accessible. You do not need to make a deposit or try another casino to test the block.

What GAMSTOP Online does

GAMSTOP Online is a free service that helps you block access to online gambling accounts with companies licensed in Great Britain. It works through the participating operators’ checks against your registered details, rather than by removing every gambling website from the internet.

The registration page says the service is available to people living in the United Kingdom, including Northern Ireland, and that activation can take up to 24 hours. Give accurate information and keep the registration confirmation. If you need help completing the process, use GAMSTOP’s own contact service.

There is no need to pay a third party to register you. Go directly to the official website and read the choices there. Self-exclusion concerns your access to gambling, so take time to understand the minimum period you select rather than choosing from an advert or an unofficial summary.

Why sister sites are covered

The block is not limited to the casino where you first noticed a problem. A participating operator must apply the scheme even if its website has a different name, design or games lobby from a casino you previously used. A second brand does not become exempt because it is new to you.

GAMSTOP’s participating-company list lets you check companies and their listed brands. The current list includes both well-known groups and smaller businesses. Company names may differ from the brand on your account, so the site’s legal terms can help identify the relevant operator.

A wider parent group can contain several legal operators, but the scheme is not confined to a single corporate family. That is why you do not need to assemble a complete list of a casino’s sisters before registering. Our sister sites explainer describes the difference between an operator, a parent company and a shared platform.

What the national block actually checks

GAMSTOP’s own explanation shows four steps. You choose to exclude yourself; the service checks your identity and adds you to its register; online gambling operators check that register when someone tries to use an account; and a match tells the operator to block gambling. It is a check tied to the details you registered, not a filter that makes every casino homepage vanish from your phone. A website still appearing in search results says nothing reliable about whether an excluded account can place a bet.

The scheme says operators check at sign-up and login, and companies with an existing account also check the exclusion status daily. That is why accurate names, addresses and contact details matter. If those details change, update them through your GAMSTOP account or contact the scheme. Do not create a gambling account to find out whether an update has worked. Ask GAMSTOP to confirm your status if you are uncertain.

Read the registration page before choosing a period

The official registration page says the service is for people living in the United Kingdom, including Northern Ireland. It lists six months, one year, five years and five years with auto-renewal. It also states that a new block can take up to 24 hours to become effective. Those points are visible together in the screenshot taken on 30 September 2026. The Start button belongs to GAMSTOP; this article is an explanation, not a registration form.

The same page says registering will not automatically return withdrawable money held by a gambling company. Contact that company directly about the funds, while avoiding any return to gambling. Keep a record of your request and any response. If the amount is disputed, use the company’s complaints process. The fact that account access is restricted should not be taken as a reason to leave an unanswered withdrawal request unresolved.

Why a different logo is not a gap in coverage

GAMSTOP publishes a dated participating-company list. It names legal businesses rather than presenting a separate, exhaustive card for every casino logo. On 30 September 2026, that list included BV Gaming Limited with BetVictor in brackets. The Gambling Commission’s BV Gaming domain record also listed heartbingo.co.uk as a White Label domain under that licensee. The relationship between a brand and a legal operator may be less obvious than the branding suggests.

You do not need to locate every BV Gaming brand, or every operator in a larger parent group, to use the national block. It applies across online gambling companies licensed in Great Britain, not just the family of the first casino you used. The example helps explain why checking only a logo is misleading; it is not an invitation to visit BetVictor or Heart Bingo to test access. If your concern is a particular existing account, use its current legal terms and the official list to identify the company you need to contact.

If an old account still appears to work

First distinguish seeing a public page from being able to gamble. Do not make a deposit, place a bet or open another sister-brand account to investigate. Note the brand, account identifier, time and what you could see, then contact the operator and GAMSTOP through their published support channels. If your registration was recent, tell them when you completed it, because the published activation window matters. If it was not recent, ask them to check your registered details and the account match. Keep the reply and follow the operator’s complaints process if the problem is not resolved.

A direct self-exclusion request to one company remains a separate action. Ask that company which of its accounts it has closed and how it will return funds. GAMSTOP registration is the broader online protection; an operator’s confirmation tells you what happened within that business. Neither confirmation requires you to browse for a new casino.

Direct operator exclusion is a separate arrangement

If you ask a casino for self-exclusion, confirm the legal operator and the scope of the exclusion. Under the Commission’s remote self-exclusion rules, licensees must close the excluded customer’s accounts and return funds held. Their procedures must be designed to prevent further access to gambling.

Do not assume that a request to one operator has registered you with GAMSTOP. Equally, do not assume that a different brand under the same licensee falls outside the exclusion. Ask for written confirmation of which accounts are covered if the operator’s wording is unclear.

A routine account closure, deposit limit and short time-out are different tools. They may have different durations and scopes. If your intention is to self-exclude, use that term explicitly with the operator rather than relying on a request simply to close an account.

How long the block lasts

The available choices are six months, one year, five years, or five years with auto-renewal. The auto-renewal option starts another five-year minimum period when the current one ends. GAMSTOP’s explanation of longer exclusions sets out that option and when its setting can be changed.

You cannot cancel an exclusion before its minimum period ends. Nor does the end of that period immediately reopen gambling accounts. The current terms explain continued exclusion, the official removal process and a minimum 24-hour cooling-off period. Without removal or auto-renewal, exclusion can continue for up to a further seven years after the minimum period expires.

Do not rely on an old date in your calendar as proof of your current status. Check your GAMSTOP account or contact the service. An individual gambling operator can also have its own exclusion or account restriction, separate from GAMSTOP.

What happens to money in an existing account?

GAMSTOP registration does not automatically send money back from each casino. The scheme’s account-balance guidance says operators are required to return withdrawable funds after activation, with the arrangements depending on the business.

Contact the operator directly about an outstanding balance. Explain that you are self-excluded and want to arrange its return without resuming gambling. Keep the date, account reference and relevant correspondence together. A withdrawal query does not require you to try to reopen play or find a sister site.

If there is a dispute about the amount, use the operator’s complaints procedure. A promotional balance with unmet conditions is not necessarily the same as withdrawable cash. GAMSTOP manages the exclusion service; it does not determine the outcome of your individual bonus or payment dispute.

What to do if an account still allows gambling

Stop using the account and contact the gambling company. That is the first step in GAMSTOP’s guidance on continued access. Give the date of your registration and describe what happened. You can also ask GAMSTOP for help with your registration details or status.

Keep your information current if your name, address, email or phone details change. The scheme’s privacy policy explains why accurate account information matters. Use your GAMSTOP account or contact its team to correct outdated details. Do not alter details to try to evade an exclusion.

If you believe an operator has failed to follow the rules, keep the evidence and use its complaints process. Our licence-checking guide can help identify the company responsible. Avoid treating access to an account as confirmation that gambling has become safe or that your exclusion no longer applies.

Will gambling adverts stop?

GAMSTOP says you should be removed from the email marketing lists of gambling companies you were registered with. Its advertising guidance also explains that you may still see online adverts or receive marketing from companies you had not registered with.

If an operator continues sending account-related promotions, contact it about suppression of those messages. General advertising on websites, television or social media is a separate issue from account access. Seeing an advert does not mean GAMSTOP has removed your exclusion.

What is outside the online scheme?

GAMSTOP Online does not replace self-exclusion from physical betting shops, bingo halls, casinos or arcades. Its offline gambling guidance links to the relevant services. If both online and in-person gambling are a concern, consider the arrangements for both.

National Lottery Instant Win Games are covered, but draw games are not. The National Lottery’s responsible-play tools page makes that distinction and explains its own options for excluding from all its online games. If you want to block draw games too, use those additional account controls.

The scheme also cannot be relied on to block access to services outside its coverage. If you are excluded, avoid marketing that presents non-participation as a route back into gambling. An advert’s wording is not evidence of a casino’s legal status or the protections available to you.

Why use other tools alongside self-exclusion?

A bank gambling block and device blocking software can provide additional barriers. They do different jobs: one concerns payments, while the other restricts access on the devices where it is installed. Check the scope of each tool rather than assuming it covers every payment method or device automatically.

GAMSTOP’s overview of tools and support recommends combining services. You can ask your bank about its gambling block and a support adviser about device software or in-person exclusion. None requires you to look for another gambling website to see whether a restriction works.

Where to get help

For registration or account-status questions, contact GAMSTOP on 0800 138 6518. Its phone and webchat services are open from 10am to 8pm, seven days a week.

For support with gambling harm, GamCare offers free, confidential help on 0808 8020 133, available 24 hours a day. It also offers online support if you would rather write than call. GambleAware provides information about support options. You can seek help for yourself or because someone else’s gambling is affecting you.

GAMSTOP and sister sites: common questions

Does an operator exclusion automatically register me with GAMSTOP?

No. Direct operator exclusion and GAMSTOP registration are separate arrangements. Confirm what the operator has put in place and use the official GAMSTOP service if you want its wider online block.

Can I cancel GAMSTOP early?

No. The minimum period cannot be ended early. Contact GAMSTOP for questions about your status or the choices available after that period; do not use unofficial removal services.

Should I use a site advertising itself as not on GAMSTOP?

If you are self-excluded, do not use it to work around your exclusion. Keep the protection in place and contact a support service if you are finding the urge to gamble difficult to manage.

Does GAMSTOP cover betting shops and the National Lottery?

Betting shops need a separate in-person exclusion arrangement. National Lottery Instant Win Games are covered by GAMSTOP, but draw games are not. The National Lottery has additional controls for its own online account.