What self-exclusion actually does
Self-exclusion is a request you make once, in a calm moment, that removes the choice from you later, when the moment is not calm. You ask operators to refuse your custom for a set period. They then have to close or block your accounts and stop sending you marketing.
It costs nothing. It is not a judgement about you, it does not appear on a credit file, and it is not a public list. The staff who process these requests do it every day.
The three UK schemes
Britain runs three separate schemes, because online gambling, betting shops and land-based casinos are covered by different registers. Signing up to one does not sign you up to the others.
| Scheme | What it covers | Length | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| GAMSTOP | Gambling websites and apps licensed in Great Britain | 6 months, 1 year or 5 years | Free |
| MOSES | Licensed betting shops | Agreed when you register | Free |
| SENSE | Land-based casinos | Agreed when you register | Free |
GAMSTOP is done online and takes a few minutes. MOSES and SENSE are arranged through the shops and casinos themselves, so they involve talking to someone, which some people find easier and some find harder. Either way, nobody at the counter is going to make it awkward.
What GAMSTOP covers, and what it does not
GAMSTOP applies to sites and apps licensed to operate in Great Britain. It does not reach operators working without that licence, and it does not cover betting shops, casinos or arcades, which is what MOSES and SENSE are for.
That gap is worth knowing about in advance. Someone who registers and then finds an unlicensed site has not failed at anything; they have found the edge of one tool. Blocking software on your phone and computer closes part of the rest, and many UK banks now offer a free gambling block that you can switch on inside the banking app.
It is meant to be hard to undo
A self-exclusion cannot be cancelled the moment you regret it. That is the point of it, and it is the part to think about before you choose a length. Six months is enough to break a routine. Five years is a different kind of decision, and plenty of people make it deliberately.
It also does not switch itself off when the term ends. After the period is up you have to ask for the registration to be removed, and there is a cooling-off period before anything reopens. Doing nothing keeps it in place, which is by design.
Talking to someone first
The National Gambling Helpline, run by GamCare, is free and confidential on 0808 8020 133. You do not need to be in crisis to call it, and you do not need to have decided anything before you do. Asking what the options are is a normal reason to ring.
The same line is there if you are calling about somebody else. Friends and family use it too, and they are not expected to have the vocabulary for it.
Where to start
Pick the scheme that matches where you actually gamble, and register now rather than after the next session, because the decision is easier today than it will be then. Our responsible gambling and support page lists the schemes and helplines for Great Britain and for other countries, including the national registers that block every licensed operator at once.
Where the numbers on this site come from
This article is editorial. The reference sections below derive their figures from the cards, the dice or the pay table rather than quoting them, and each one shows the working:
More in Law of the Game
First published between September and December 2025; rewritten to this site's current standard in August 2026.