Gambling white paper 2023 tracker

What the gambling white paper 2023 is

A white paper is a government policy document that sets out plans before rules are changed. This one was the result of a government review of the Gambling Act 2005. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport published it on 27 April 2023 as High stakes: gambling reform for the digital age (opens in a new tab), and it was presented to Parliament the same day.

Its starting point was that the 2005 Act predated the smartphone era. The foreword said that ‘the gambling landscape has changed significantly since 2005’, and the paper noted that mobile gambling had grown from 23% of online gamblers in 2015 to 50% in 2020. Rather than write a new Act, the government chose to change the rules made under the existing one, through regulations and the Gambling Commission’s licence conditions.

For online casino players, the white paper is the reason the rules changed so much between 2024 and 2026. This page tracks each relevant proposal against what actually happened, with dates and sources. For the wider list of rules, see our UK casino rules hub.

The white paper’s main proposals for online gambling

The document ran to six chapters plus cross-cutting measures. The parts that touch online casinos were:

• Online protections: a consultation on a slot stake limit of between £2 and £15 per spin, with £2, £4 or a risk-based option for 18 to 24-year-olds; financial risk checks; a review of game speed and design features; and stronger player tools such as deposit limits.
• Marketing: a review of bonus design, including ‘re-wagering requirements’ and time limits; more customer control over the offers they receive; and limits on sports sponsorship and prominent sportspeople in ads.
• Commission powers: a review of Commission fees and, when parliamentary time allows, new powers to tackle illegal sites.
• Redress: an independent ombudsman for complaints about social responsibility failures.
• Young adults: earlier checks and lower stake limits for 18 to 24-year-olds, with age treated as a vulnerability factor.
• Funding: a statutory levy on operators to replace voluntary contributions for research, prevention and treatment.

The government estimated the package would reduce gross gambling yield by 3% to 8% overall and by 8% to 14% online, and said it intended the main measures to be in force by summer 2024. In practice most landed between August 2024 and January 2026.

Gambling white paper 2023 proposals vs outcomes

The table compares each online casino proposal with the rule that followed, using dates from the Gambling Commission and GOV.UK.

Each outcome has its own explainer: the £5 slot stake limit, the £2 limit for under-25s, the 10x wagering cap, the mixed-product promotions ban, the game design rules, marketing consent rules, deposit limit rules and the statutory gambling levy.

What the white paper changed in pounds: before and after

A 50x bonus becomes a 10x bonus

Before 19 January 2026, a £20 bonus with 50x wagering meant £1,000 of play before you could withdraw any winnings tied to it. Under the cap, the most a casino can ask on the same bonus is £20 × 10 = £200. The Commission’s own example used a £10 bonus with 50x wagering, or £500 of play, as the kind of term it wanted to end; its announcement is in Gambling promotions to be safer and simpler (opens in a new tab).

Stake limits on a slot session

Before April 2025 a slot could accept, say, £20 per spin. A player aged 30 now tops out at £5 per spin, and a 21-year-old at £2. Over 100 spins, the maximum stake falls from £2,000 to £500 for the older player and £200 for the younger one. The 18 to 24 limit was confirmed in a government announcement on the £2 maximum stake (opens in a new tab).

The £150 check versus the proposed £125 check

The white paper proposed ‘light’ checks at £125 net loss in a month and enhanced checks at £1,000 in 24 hours. Those figures were never implemented. What applies is a public-record financial vulnerability check once net deposits pass £150 in a rolling 30 days: deposit £200 and withdraw £40 in that window, and the £160 net figure triggers it. It is not a credit check. See our affordability checks page for the full picture.

What the gambling white paper has not delivered

Two headline measures for online players were still outstanding when this page was checked on 20 October 2026.

Financial risk assessments

These would have used credit-reference data for roughly the top 3% of spenders. The Commission ran a pilot from 30 August 2024 with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Its April 2026 update on the financial risk assessments pilot (opens in a new tab) reported that 97% of assessed customers experienced no friction and no consumer had action taken because of an assessment. The findings are with the Commission’s Board, and there is no decision to implement. The Commission says ‘affordability check’ is an inaccurate description and that it has no plans for affordability checks.

A gambling ombudsman

An independent ombudsman was proposed, able to order redress for social responsibility failures, which fall outside normal ADR. No ombudsman has been created. Instead, the Commission has consulted on amending its rules so that ADR refers to providers accredited under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. Our gambling ombudsman page follows this.

Land-based measures, such as more gaming machines in some casinos and changes to machine ratios in bingo halls and arcades, were also proposed. Their implementation has not been checked for this page, so we don’t state their status.

Why the white paper was written

The government framed the review around balancing freedom for adults who gamble safely with protection for those at risk. The foreword stated that operators should not ‘place commercial objectives ahead of customer wellbeing’ and that ‘prevention of harm will always be better than a cure’. It pointed to evidence that customers who claim online bonuses are more likely to engage in high-risk gambling, which underpinned the bonus changes, and to the speed and intensity of online slots, which underpinned stake limits.

It also addressed funding. Help and research had relied on voluntary contributions from operators. The white paper proposed a statutory levy collected by the Gambling Commission, which started on 6 April 2025. Online operators pay 1.1% of the previous year’s gross gambling yield, split between research (20%), prevention (30%) and treatment (50%). The voluntary model ended on 31 March 2025, and GambleAware, previously funded that way, has since wound down.

Advertising and sponsorship after the white paper

Much of the marketing agenda was left to industry and advertising regulators. The paper recorded the Premier League’s agreement to remove gambling sponsor logos from the front of players’ shirts, from the 2026/27 season according to the executive summary, while a cross-sport sponsorship code was planned. Advertising rules themselves sit in the CAP Code, enforced by the ASA; our gambling advertising rules page has the current rules, including the ban on ads with strong appeal to under-18s.

Gambling white paper timeline: 2023 to 2026

The government’s February 2024 announcement had said stake limits would start in September 2024; the actual dates were 9 April and 21 May 2025. Our what changed in 2025 and what changed in 2026 guides cover each year’s changes in plain terms.

How to check white paper rules are applied at your casino

These checks take a few minutes at any UK-licensed casino and confirm you are getting the protections the white paper led to.

1. Confirm the casino holds an active Gambling Commission licence on the public register.
2. Open the bonus terms and check any wagering is 10x the bonus or lower, and that the offer does not mix products such as sports bets and casino spins.
3. Try to raise a slot stake above £5 (or £2 if you are 18 to 24); the game should not allow it.
4. Open your account settings and check you can set a deposit limit, and that decreases apply immediately.
5. Review your marketing preferences: casino, betting and bingo should each have separate email, SMS and phone choices, all off unless you opted in.
6. If any of these fail, complain to the casino and keep evidence; our guide on how to complain about a casino explains the next steps.

What could change next after the white paper

The open items are clear: a decision on financial risk assessments, the shift to DMCC-accredited ADR, and any proposals that need new legislation, such as court powers to block illegal sites. The gross deposit limit deadline for operators passed on 30 September 2026. Remote gaming duty, a tax change rather than a white paper measure, rose from 21% to 40% on 1 April 2026. We record each confirmed change on the latest UK casino rules feed with its start date.

Where to play under the post-white paper rules

Both offers below are from Gambling Commission licensed casinos and were checked on 5 October 2026. 18+ only; terms apply.

• Coral Casino: deposit and bet £10 or more on slots to get 100 free spins on selected games, worth 10p each (£10 of spins in total). New players only, 1 October 2026 to 1 February 2027; accept within 48 hours and use within 7 days. No wagering on winnings from the spins. Neteller, PayPal, Paysafe, Skrill, prepaid cards and certain debit cards don’t qualify.
• PlayOJO: first deposit of £10 or more for 80 free spins on Big Bass Bonanza at 10p each (£8 of spins). No wagering: winnings are paid in cash. New UK customers only, excluding Northern Ireland; can’t be combined with other offers and only available through the designated offer link.

Free, confidential support is available from the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133, 24 hours a day, and from GamCare online.

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.