If you want to stop gambling online, registering with GamStop is one of the most effective steps you can take. It is free, takes a few minutes, and blocks you from gambling websites and apps licensed in Great Britain. This guide walks you through the registration, the details you give, and what the block does and does not cover.
Before anything else: if gambling is causing you harm right now, you do not have to wait. Free and confidential help is available. Call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or chat to GamCare at gamcare.org.uk. To block gambling sites across your devices straight away, BetBlocker (betblocker.org) is free. Registering with GamStop and reaching out for support are not either/or; many people do both on the same day.
What GamStop is, in one line
GamStop is the free national online self-exclusion scheme for Great Britain. You register once, and operators licensed by the UK Gambling Commission are required to stop you opening accounts or gambling with them for the period you choose. If you want the fuller picture of how the scheme works and where its limits lie, our explainer on what GamStop is and how it works covers it in detail. This page is the practical how-to.
Before you start: what you will need
Registration is quick, but it asks you to confirm your identity so that operators can match the block to the right person. According to GamStop, during registration you are asked to provide your name, date of birth, postcode, your email addresses and your mobile number, and you can add more than one email address. Giving the scheme accurate details is what lets operators match you correctly.
There is good reason to add more than one email. Operators match you against the details they hold, so giving every email you have used, or might use, to gamble makes the block harder to slip past by accident. If you have an old email tied to a gambling account, include it. You will also be asked to verify your primary email address: GamStop sends a link to that address, and you confirm it belongs to you before the registration completes.
Have these to hand before you begin and the whole thing takes only a few minutes.
How to register with GamStop, step by step
The registration lives at gamstop.co.uk. Work through it in order and do not rush the details, because accuracy is what makes the block effective.
Step one: open the official registration
Go to gamstop.co.uk and begin the registration. Make sure you are on the genuine site and not a copycat. GamStop is free, so any page asking you to pay to self-exclude is not the real service.
Step two: enter your personal details
Provide your name, date of birth and postcode as they appear on your accounts. Small mismatches, an abbreviated name or a wrong digit in a date of birth, can weaken a match, so take your time here.
Step three: add every email and phone number you use
Enter your email addresses and your mobile number. GamStop lets you add more than one email, so include the ones you no longer use as well as the current ones. The more complete this list, the fewer gaps an operator’s matching can leave open.
Step four: choose your exclusion period
GamStop asks you to choose a minimum self-exclusion period. According to GamStop, the options are six months, one year, five years, or five years with auto-renewal. GamStop states that with the auto-renewal option, after five years you are automatically entered into another five-year period unless you turn that setting off, which you can only do within the last six months of the exclusion. Choose the longest period you are comfortable committing to. People often underestimate how much they will value the block in a difficult moment months from now.
Step five: verify your email and submit
Complete the registration, then open the verification email from GamStop and follow the link to confirm your primary email address. Until you verify, the registration is not finished. Once it is done, GamStop says your self-exclusion should take full effect within 24 hours, though it cannot guarantee the exact timing, so do not treat the first hour as a reliable barrier.
What happens after you register
Once your registration is live, UK-licensed operators are required to prevent you from using their gambling services for the period you chose. A few things are worth knowing in advance so they do not catch you off guard.
You cannot remove the self-exclusion during the minimum period you selected. That is the point of it: the decision is taken when you are clear-headed, so a low moment cannot undo it. GamStop also states that your self-exclusion remains on its records for seven years after the chosen period expires, unless you contact GamStop to remove it, which gives you a long buffer rather than an automatic switch-off.
When your period ends, the protection does not simply vanish. If you want to keep that barrier in place, you can register again. Treat the end of a period as a checkpoint, not a finish line.
What GamStop covers, and the gap that matters
This is the part to understand clearly, because it is where people get hurt. GamStop covers online gambling companies licensed by the UK Gambling Commission. The Gambling Commission states that since 31 March 2020, being part of GamStop has been a condition of holding an operating licence, so the block reaches the licensed Great Britain market as a whole, not just the brands you happen to name.
What GamStop does not reach is the offshore market: gambling sites licensed outside Great Britain, often under far lighter regimes in jurisdictions such as Curacao or Anjouan. These sites are not part of GamStop and do not honour it, and in many cases will let a self-excluded person open an account and deposit. An offshore licence is not equivalent protection. There is no GamStop participation behind it, no UK Gambling Commission oversight, and no UK dispute-resolution route if things go wrong.
That gap is exactly why self-exclusion alone sometimes fails. People register with GamStop in good faith, then come across an offshore site that lets them through, and the losses mount in precisely the way they were trying to prevent. If that has happened to you, it is not a personal failing, and it may matter. Where an operator allowed you to gamble after you had taken steps to stop, or let you lose far beyond your means, you may be able to seek recovery. A free, confidential eligibility check can tell you honestly where you stand, with no obligation.
Pair GamStop with BetBlocker to close the gap
Because GamStop does not reach offshore sites, a useful step alongside registering is to add device-level blocking. BetBlocker (betblocker.org) is free, run by a registered charity, and works differently from GamStop: rather than relying on operators to recognise you, it blocks access to a long list of gambling sites directly on your phone, tablet or computer, including many offshore sites that GamStop cannot touch.
Used together, the two cover far more ground than either alone. GamStop binds the licensed Great Britain operators through the Gambling Commission, while BetBlocker puts a barrier on your own devices that does not depend on a site choosing to cooperate. For many people serious about stopping, both is the right answer, not one or the other.
It is also worth telling someone you trust, and considering the practical money steps that make a relapse harder, such as the gambling blocks many banks now offer. Our guide to gambling help and support in the UK sets out the free services, blocking tools and support options in one place.
Common questions people have while registering
A few worries come up often. You do not need to name specific casinos to be protected; the block applies across all Great Britain licensed operators automatically. You can register even if you currently have open balances or accounts; self-exclusion does not depend on closing them first, though you should still contact those operators about any funds. And you can register for yourself only: GamStop is a personal self-exclusion, so it cannot be set up for someone else without their own involvement.
If you are unsure whether a site you used is covered, you can check the UK Gambling Commission public register at gamblingcommission.gov.uk. If the operator is not on it, GamStop will not cover that site, and BetBlocker becomes the more important tool.
If self-exclusion has already failed you
Registering with GamStop is a forward step, and most of this guide is about doing it well. But if you are reading this after the damage is done, because you self-excluded and an operator still took your money, the practical advice changes. Keep your records: your GamStop confirmation, account statements, deposit history and any messages with the operator. Try not to deposit again to chase losses, and do not delete the account in frustration, because that history is part of the picture.
Where a UK-licensed operator let you gamble after a self-exclusion, or where an offshore site allowed losses far beyond your means, the circumstances can matter to a recovery claim. Clinton & Co Advisors assesses the facts and, where a case proceeds, works with regulated legal partners. The initial check costs nothing and commits you to nothing. No outcome is guaranteed, and an honest assessment is the only thing we offer at the first stage.
If gambling is causing you harm, free and confidential help is available now. Call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or chat to GamCare (gamcare.org.uk). To block gambling sites across your devices, BetBlocker (betblocker.org) is free. GamStop self-exclusion is at gamstop.co.uk.
Sources
- GamStop, registration and how it works (gamstop.co.uk), including the details requested at registration, the choice of six months, one year, five years or five years with auto-renewal, the email-verification step, the aim to take full effect within 24 hours, and the seven-year record-retention period after expiry.
- UK Gambling Commission, self-exclusion with GamStop and licensing requirements (gamblingcommission.gov.uk): being part of GamStop is a condition of the operating licence for online operators in Great Britain since 31 March 2020.
- UK Gambling Commission, public register of licensed businesses (gamblingcommission.gov.uk).
- BetBlocker (betblocker.org). GamCare and the National Gambling Helpline (gamcare.org.uk).
General information, not legal advice. Clinton & Co Advisors is a trading name of Ramays TA/Clinton and Co Limited. We are not solicitors or a law firm. We connect clients with regulated legal partners.