Last updated 5 November 2026·Checked against published operator terms

Guides

Nine guides, each answering one question about the British self-exclusion scheme and the offshore market that sits outside it. They are written to be read in order if you are starting from nothing, or picked individually if you already know what you are looking for.

Start here

If the only thing you know is that GamStop exists and something about it has affected you, read what GamStop is first, then how it works. Those two pages explain the scheme without assuming any prior knowledge, and they are the ones that answer the question most people actually have.

The three questions behind most searches

“What is it?” GamStop is a single register that lets a person exclude themselves from every UK-licensed gambling site at once. It is run as a condition of Gambling Commission licensing, which is why it reaches so widely inside Britain and not at all outside it.

“How long does it last?” You choose the period when you register, with a minimum of six months and a maximum of five years. It does not end early because you change your mind.

“Can I get out of it?” Only by waiting, or by the process the scheme sets out. There is no shortcut, and the pages on removal explain why the shortcuts people advertise do not do what they claim.

What these guides are not

They are not clinical advice and they are not a substitute for talking to a support service. If gambling is causing harm right now, the responsible gambling page lists organisations that answer quickly and free of charge. GamCare runs a helpline and a live chat, and both are confidential.

They are also not a route to a casino. This site compares offshore operators, and some of those pages sit alongside these guides. If you are on the register, the honest reading is that the casino pages are not for you at the moment, and the guides are.

Why the offshore market exists at all

Because licensing is national. A company regulated in Curaçao is not bound by British licence conditions, so it is not part of the register and cannot be blocked by it. That is the entire explanation, and it is the one fact that makes the rest of this site comprehensible. The registration page takes it apart in more detail.

What the guides deliberately leave out

They do not rank casinos, recommend one, or explain how to keep gambling while an exclusion is in force. Those would be different documents with a different purpose. The guides exist to explain a system that is widely misunderstood — often by the people it affects most — and to point anyone in difficulty towards services that answer quickly.

They also avoid clinical language. Self-exclusion is a practical tool, not a diagnosis, and the pages are written for someone who wants to know what happens next rather than someone looking for a treatment plan. Where support is the right answer, the guides say so and link to it.

One thing they do not do is guess. GamStop's own terms change — the retention period, the removal process and the auto-renew option have all been revised since the scheme launched — and a guide that states a figure without checking it becomes wrong quietly. Where a rule could have moved since this page was last read, it says so and points at the source rather than asserting a number that may no longer hold.

Reading order, if you want one

Frequently Asked Questions

Where should I start if I have just self-excluded?

Start with the page on what GamStop is, then the one on how it works. The first explains what the register is and why it reaches every UK-licensed operator; the second sets out how your chosen period is applied and how operators apply the block. Together they answer the practical questions most people have in the first week: how long you are excluded for, what the entry does and does not cover, and who to contact if a site lets you in anyway. Read those before looking at anything else here.

Do these guides recommend offshore casinos?

No. The guides describe how the offshore market works and where its limits sit; they do not point anyone towards a particular operator. Casinos licensed outside Great Britain are not bound by UK licence conditions, so they sit outside the register and carry no Financial Ombudsman route if a payout is disputed. That is a fact about licensing rather than an endorsement. If you are currently excluded, the honest reading is that the guides are written for you and the comparison pages are not, at least until the period has ended.

Is the information here official?

No. This is an independent plain-English summary, not a statement from GamStop or the Gambling Commission. Each page lists its primary sources at the foot, so you can follow any claim back to the scheme's own guidance or the regulator's published register and check it yourself. Where the sources are silent — for example on a casino's wagering terms — the page says so rather than filling the gap. Treat the guides as a route into the official material, and treat the official material as the version that counts if the two ever differ.

Can I get help today?

Yes. GamCare runs a free, confidential helpline on 0808 8020 133 and an online chat service, and both are staffed by people who deal with gambling harm every day. BeGambleAware offers advice and can point you to local services if you would rather speak to someone face to face. Neither service requires a referral, and neither reports to GamStop or to a casino. If money or mood is already causing difficulty, contacting one of them today is a more useful step than reading further pages.

Does GamStop cover betting shops and the Lottery?

No. GamStop covers online gambling operators that hold a Great Britain licence, because the scheme is imposed through remote gambling licence conditions. Betting shops, casinos and bingo halls run their own self-exclusion arrangements, so you have to ask each venue directly about its process. The National Lottery sits outside the register entirely. If your concern is a betting shop rather than a website, the practical route is to speak to the manager and ask what the venue offers.

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