Responsible Gambling

Free help in Australia

Gambling Help Online offers free, confidential counselling and support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, by phone on 1800 858 858 and through online chat and email. It is for anyone affected by gambling, including family and friends.

BetStop, the National Self-Exclusion Register, lets you exclude yourself from all licensed Australian online and phone wagering providers in one step, for a period you choose. It is run under Australian law and is free.

Warning signs

Gambling harm often builds slowly. Any of these is a reason to pause and talk to someone:

• spending more time or money on gambling than you planned;
• chasing losses, or depositing again to win back what you lost;
• borrowing money, using credit or selling things to gamble;
• hiding gambling from family or friends;
• feeling anxious, irritable or low when you are not gambling;
• gambling to escape stress, boredom or other problems;
• missing work, study or family time because of gambling.

Limits that work

Set your limits before you play, not during a session. Practical options include:

• A money limit. Decide a fixed amount per week or month that you can afford to lose, and stop when it is gone.
• A time limit. Use a phone alarm. Long wagering sessions on bonuses make it easy to lose track of time.
• Casino tools. Many casinos offer deposit limits, loss limits, session reminders, cooling-off periods and self-exclusion in the account settings. Set them on day one.
• Bank blocks. Many Australian banks let you block gambling transactions on your card from their app.
• Device blocking software. Blocking apps can stop access to gambling sites on your devices.

No deposit bonuses and safer play

A no deposit bonus can feel risk-free because the first spins are free. The risk comes afterwards. Most offers require a deposit before you can withdraw winnings, and casinos follow up with welcome packages that ask for much larger deposits and heavy wagering. A A$15 chip at 40x is A$600 of bets; a deposit bonus at 35x on deposit plus bonus can mean many thousands. Decide in advance that a no deposit bonus is a free trial and nothing more, and do not deposit to chase a bonus balance you have lost.

Australian law, briefly

The Interactive Gambling Act 2001 prohibits offering online casino games to people in Australia; ACMA enforces it and can have offshore sites blocked. The casinos featured on this site are offshore and do not hold Australian licences, which also means Australian regulators cannot help resolve disputes with them. BetStop covers licensed Australian wagering providers; it does not cover offshore casinos, so use each casino's own self-exclusion tools as well.

A quick self-check

Ask yourself three questions after any session. Did I spend more than I planned? Did I gamble to win back losses? Would I be comfortable telling someone close to me how much time and money I spent? If the answer to any of them is yes more than once, it is worth calling Gambling Help Online, even if things feel under control. Early conversations are easier than later ones, and the service is free whether you want a single chat or ongoing counselling.

Age

Gambling is for adults only. You must be 18 or older to gamble in Australia. If someone under 18 uses your devices, use parental controls and keep your casino logins private.

If someone close to you is gambling

Gambling Help Online also supports partners, parents, children and friends. Talking about specific behaviour you have noticed, without blame, is usually a better start than an ultimatum. You can get advice for yourself even if the person gambling is not ready to seek help. Our main list is on the home page; this page stays linked in the footer of every page.