How long does GAMSTOP last?

How long GAMSTOP lasts: the three exclusion periods

When you register with GAMSTOP you pick one of three lengths. GAMSTOP’s own pages describe the range as 6 months to 5 years, and the NHS lists the three options as 6 months, 1 year or 5 years. Whatever you pick becomes the minimum time you are blocked, because the scheme does not allow early cancellation.

Think of the chosen period as a lock-in rather than a countdown. Before the end date nothing can shorten it; after the end date the protection continues unless you take a deliberate step to end it.

What happens when your GAMSTOP period ends

This is the part people most often get wrong. According to GAMSTOP’s own description of how it works (opens in a new tab), the exclusion stays in place after the end of the period you have chosen and only ends when you ask GAMSTOP to remove it. You won’t wake up on the end date to find gambling sites open again.

That design is intentional. It means the decision to gamble again has to be made actively, at a time you choose, rather than happening by default. If you still want protection, you don’t need to do anything; if you want more certainty, you can extend or set the exclusion to renew.

GAMSTOP does not publish a fixed waiting time between asking for removal and the block lifting. If you are thinking about removal, contact GAMSTOP directly and ask how it works for your registration.

Renewing or extending a GAMSTOP exclusion

You can set your exclusion to renew, and GAMSTOP’s homepage says you can extend your registration from your account. Extending is the only direction of change the scheme supports during an active exclusion: you can make the protection longer, but never shorter.

• Extend: log in to your GAMSTOP account and lengthen the registration.
• Renew: choose renewal so a new period starts rather than the block depending on you to keep it going.
• Update your details: keep email addresses, phone numbers and your postal address current so operators can match you.

Our step-by-step guide on how to use GAMSTOP shows where these settings sit in the account area.

How to register and choose a GAMSTOP length

1. Go to the GAMSTOP website and select the option to register.
2. Enter your personal details so GAMSTOP can confirm your identity, including every email address and mobile number you have used for gambling accounts.
3. Choose your exclusion length: 6 months, 1 year or 5 years.
4. Decide whether you want the exclusion to renew.
5. Confirm your registration and keep a note of the date you chose.
6. Add a bank gambling block and device-blocking software for sites GAMSTOP doesn’t cover.

How GAMSTOP blocks you for the whole period

GAMSTOP doesn’t block websites itself. Instead, licensed operators check with GAMSTOP when someone tries to open or use an account, and GAMSTOP tells them whether that person is on the register. The operator then has to refuse service. Under the Gambling Commission’s remote self-exclusion code (opens in a new tab), it must also close your accounts, return any balance and take you off marketing lists.

GAMSTOP’s pages don’t give an exact time for a new registration to start working across every operator, so set up your bank block on the same day rather than relying on any one tool in the first hours.

What GAMSTOP covers during the exclusion

Knowing the boundaries of the scheme matters, because the length of the exclusion only protects you where GAMSTOP applies.

Sites that advertise themselves as outside GAMSTOP are almost always unlicensed in Great Britain, which also means none of the UK’s player protections apply. The page on unlicensed casino risks lists the protections that disappear.

Which GAMSTOP period should I choose?

There is no right answer for everyone, but a sensible rule of thumb is to choose longer than feels comfortable. The period is the part you can’t undo, so it should cover the months when you are most likely to be tempted.

If you are unsure, the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 can talk it through. Our guide on how to self-exclude compares GAMSTOP with self-exclusion at a single operator.

Why every UK site has to honour GAMSTOP for the full period

Participation in GAMSTOP stopped being optional on 31 March 2020. Licence code 3.5.5 says licensees must take part in the national multi-operator self-exclusion scheme, and the Commission has acted against firms that didn’t: LEBOM Limited was suspended (opens in a new tab) in November 2022 for failing to participate. Our page on the GAMSTOP requirement covers the rule in full, and the wider self-exclusion rules explain operator duties.

How long other gambling blocks last

GAMSTOP works best alongside other tools, each with its own length. A time-out at a single operator is a short break measured in days or weeks. A bank gambling block lasts until you switch it off, and some banks build in a delay before removal. Gambling blocking software lasts as long as the product or subscription. Our safer gambling tools comparison lines them up side by side.

Before your GAMSTOP period runs out

If your end date is approaching, decide in advance rather than on the day. Ask yourself whether the reasons you registered have changed, talk it through with someone you trust or with the helpline, and remember that doing nothing keeps you protected. Extending is always available, and our questions index has related answers, including whether you can cancel GAMSTOP and how to stop gambling.

18+. Gambling should be entertainment that costs money, not a way to make it. Set a deposit limit before you play: how to set deposit limits. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.