How GamStop Works With Sister Sites

Written by Alex Morris
Last updated 5th July 2026

One question arrives in our inbox more than almost any other: if I self-exclude from a casino, can I still play at its sister sites? The short answer is no, and that is by design. This page explains what GamStop is, why registering once covers every brand on every UK licence, and why any website promising to get around that protection should be treated as a hazard rather than an opportunity. Unlike most pages on this site, this one is not about choosing where to play; it is about how the safety net works when you need it.

What GamStop is

GamStop is the free national self-exclusion scheme for online gambling in Great Britain. When you register, you choose an exclusion period of six months, one year or five years, and your details go into a central database that every gambling business licensed by the UK Gambling Commission is legally required to check. Registration normally takes effect within 24 hours. From that point, licensed operators must block your existing accounts, refuse any new account that matches your details and stop sending you marketing.

Two features make the scheme genuinely protective. It cannot be reversed early: once registered, you cannot talk yourself out of it during a weak moment, whatever you tell customer support. And it does not lapse automatically: when your chosen period ends, the exclusion remains in place until you take deliberate steps to have it removed.

Why one registration covers every sister site

Participation in GamStop is a licence condition, not a courtesy. Every remote operator on the Commission’s register must screen customers against the database, which means a single registration covers well over a thousand licensed websites at once, from household-name bookmakers down to the smallest bingo skin.

Sister sites make this point vivid. As we explain in our guide to what sister sites are, most British casino brands are skins run in bulk by a single operating company on a single licence. Jumpman Gaming alone runs 38 brands we document, and Broadway Gaming Ireland has registered well over a hundred trading names. GamStop does not care about the branding: it blocks you at every one of them, because they all sit behind licensed operators checking the same database. There is no back door where a fresh coat of paint on the same platform lets a self-excluded player back in.

Operator-level exclusion works the same way one tier down. If you self-exclude directly with a casino rather than through GamStop, the operator must apply that exclusion across every brand it runs on the licence. Discovering that a site you have never heard of is closed to you because you excluded from its stablemate is the system functioning exactly as intended.

Why “casinos not on GamStop” is a red flag, not a loophole

Search for almost any casino name alongside GamStop and you will find sites promoting “casinos not on GamStop” as though they had found a clever workaround. Here is what that phrase actually means: a gambling website with no British licence at all, because every operator the Commission licenses must be in the scheme. These are offshore businesses, typically licensed in Curacao, and playing there means no GamStop, no UKGC-mandated safer gambling tools, no affordability checks, no UK dispute resolution and very little recourse if a withdrawal is refused.

It is worth being blunt about the audience for that marketing. It targets people who deliberately excluded themselves during a moment of clarity and are now being invited to undermine their own decision. A business whose customer acquisition strategy is built on recruiting self-excluded gamblers is telling you precisely how it will treat you later. We do not link to such sites, and where offshore brands appear in our reviews they carry explicit warnings, as our review methodology explains. If you want to check whether any site holds a real British licence, our licence verification guide walks through it step by step.

What happens to your accounts once you register

Registering does not make your money disappear. Funds already in your withdrawable balance remain yours, and you can contact each operator’s support team to have them paid out; what you lose is the ability to log in and gamble with them. Operators must also remove you from their marketing lists, so the emails, texts and push notifications with “we miss you” offers are required to stop. If a licensed site continues promoting to you or lets you open a fresh account while excluded, that is a compliance failure worth reporting, both to the operator in writing and to the Gambling Commission.

It is also worth knowing what GamStop checks against: the name, date of birth, postcode and contact details you register with. Keeping those details up to date if you move house or change email address keeps the matching accurate for the full length of your exclusion, and the scheme lets you add extra addresses and emails precisely so the net stays tight.

What GamStop does not cover

GamStop is an online scheme for Great Britain, and its edges matter. It does not cover land-based betting shops, casinos or arcades, which operate their own schemes through their trade bodies, and it does not cover National Lottery products. It cannot block offshore sites that ignore British licensing, which is exactly why those sites advertise around it. Many people pair GamStop with blocking software on their devices and with bank-level gambling transaction blocks, which most major UK banks now offer, so that the offshore gap is closed off too.

Where to get help

Self-exclusion works best alongside actual support. GamCare runs the free, confidential National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133, open 24 hours a day, with advisers who can talk through your situation and refer you into free treatment. GambleAware provides self-assessment tools, practical guides and routes into the same support network. Both services are free, neither judges, and using them is a considerably better bet than anything reviewed on this site. If gambling has stopped feeling like entertainment, please treat this page as your sign to register with GamStop and make the call.

GamStop and sister sites: common questions

If I self-exclude from one casino, does GamStop block its sister sites too?

GamStop registration blocks every online gambling site licensed by the UK Gambling Commission, so all of a brand’s sister sites are covered automatically, along with every other UK-licensed operator. Separately, if you self-exclude directly with an operator rather than through GamStop, that exclusion applies across all brands on the same licence.

How long does GamStop last and can I cancel it early?

You choose six months, one year or five years when you register, and the exclusion cannot be cancelled or reversed before your chosen period ends. Once the minimum period has passed, it stays in place until you actively ask for it to be removed.

Are casinos not on GamStop safe to use?

No site advertising itself as "not on GamStop" holds a British licence, because every UKGC licensee must participate in the scheme. These are offshore operators with no UK player protections, and marketing aimed at self-excluded people is a serious warning sign about how the business operates.

Does GamStop cover betting shops and the National Lottery?

No. GamStop covers online gambling with UK-licensed operators. Land-based bookmakers, casinos and arcades run separate self-exclusion schemes, and National Lottery products are outside GamStop, so you may need more than one scheme for full coverage.