We review offshore pokies sites for a living, so take this from the wrong side of the fence: BetStop, Australia's national self-exclusion register, does not block a single casino covered on this website. It is still worth registering for. Here is what it shuts down, where its blind spot sits, and what to use for the pokies sites it cannot reach.
What BetStop is
BetStop is the National Self-Exclusion Register, a free Australian Government service run by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA). It launched on 21 August 2023 as the tenth and final measure of the National Consumer Protection Framework for Online Wagering.
One registration, every licensed provider
While you are on the register, every Australian-licensed online and phone wagering provider must refuse your bets, refuse new accounts, close any account you hold and refund its credit, and stop sending direct marketing. The rules have teeth: in June 2025 the ACMA found four betting services in breach. You can also nominate up to five support people.
How to register
Registration runs through betstop.gov.au and takes about five minutes. You need a mobile number, an email address and one piece of ID: an Australian driver's licence, an Australian passport or a Medicare card.
Choosing and extending a period
The minimum exclusion is 3 months, the maximum is lifetime, and you can extend online at any time. When a fixed period ends, BetStop contacts you beforehand and removes you automatically. Accounts closed during your exclusion stay closed, so betting again means opening new ones.
Cancelling early
Leaving early is intentionally hard: you can apply only after at least 3 months, you must supply a statutory declaration confirming you have seen a counsellor or a GP, and a valid application still takes 7 days before removal. The friction exists to stop impulse cancellations.
Who is using it
ACMA's quarterly reports counted 49,382 registrations and 31,838 active exclusions as of 30 September 2025, with lifetime the most-chosen period at 39%. By 31 March 2026 totals had reached 59,830 registrations and 37,247 people currently excluded, with roughly 5,000 new sign-ups a quarter. The profile is young - 45% of registrants are 30 or under, another 32% in the 31 to 40 bracket - and the pull of lifetime suggests many arrive only after smaller fixes have failed.
The blind spot - offshore pokies
BetStop covers licensed Australian wagering, full stop. The Victorian gambling regulator lists what it misses: in-venue gambling - casino floors, pub pokies, TAB outlets - "or illegal services such as online casinos". BetStop's own site says it "does not apply to online casino games or other gambling services that are illegally provided in Australia".
Offshore pokies sites are exactly that category. Under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 the operator, not the player, is the one breaking the law (our legal overview explains the distinction), so no offshore casino appears on the register - including every site in our reviews. Nothing about registering stops you logging back in five minutes later.
What works against offshore sites
Your bank's gambling block
Major Australian banks let you block gambling transactions inside the banking app; our bank blocking guide walks through each. CommBank's lock carries a 48-hour cooling-off period before it can be switched off, and the other big banks offer similar controls. One caveat: the blocks key off gambling merchant codes - the system behind declined card deposits - and offshore casinos often process cards under other codes or take crypto, so CommBank itself warns some transactions may still go through. A strong layer, not a finished wall.
Blocking software
BetBlocker is free in the fullest sense - run by a registered charity, funded by donations - and blocks over 351,000 gambling websites and 1,800+ apps, including unlicensed and offshore operators, on Windows, Mac, Android and iOS. Gamban does the same job on subscription: a 7-day free trial in Australia, then roughly A$5 a month via the App Store.
Per-site exclusion and real help
Any offshore casino will close your account if you ask through live chat, and you should ask. Weigh it honestly, though: no regulator enforces the promise, and closing one account does not touch the next brand. Pair it with the bank block and blocking software, and talk to someone - Gambling Help Online (1800 858 858) is free, confidential and open 24/7, with online chat.
Frequently asked questions
No. The register binds Australian-licensed online and phone wagering providers - bookmakers, in practice. BetStop's own site states it does not apply to online casino games provided illegally in Australia, which covers every offshore pokies site. Block those with a bank block plus BetBlocker or Gamban.
Go to betstop.gov.au and allow about five minutes. You need a mobile number, an email address and one form of ID: an Australian driver's licence, an Australian passport or a Medicare card. Pick any period from 3 months to lifetime; you can extend online later.
Only after at least 3 months on the register, and only with evidence: a statutory declaration confirming you have seen a counsellor or a GP. Even a valid application takes 7 days to process before your name comes off. There is no instant exit, by design.
Partly. Licensed wagering providers must stop sending you direct marketing - emails, texts, push offers - once you register. It is not an ad filter: gambling ads still run on TV and across the web, and offshore casinos ignore the register completely. Use blocking software for those.
BetStop's shortest period is 3 months, so it suits a real stretch rather than a breather. For less, ask your casino for a time-out or a deposit limit, and switch your bank's block on; lifting CommBank's takes a 48-hour cooling-off. Our responsible gambling page covers lighter tools.
Responsible gambling
If you found this page because gambling has stopped feeling like a choice, act while the tab is open: register at BetStop, switch on your bank's block, and call Gambling Help Online on 1800 858 858 - free, confidential, 24/7, with chat at gamblinghelponline.org.au. 18+.