Where Can I Get Help With Gambling?
Free, confidential, and available right now. This page also covers the controls that work, which are the ones set before they are needed.
Gambling Help Online on 1800 858 858, free and confidential, 24 hours a day by phone, chat or email. In a crisis, Lifeline on 13 11 14. For money problems, the National Debt Helpline on 1800 007 007.
Free help in Australia
| Service | Contact | What it offers |
|---|---|---|
| Gambling Help Online | 1800 858 858, gamblinghelponline.org.au | 24/7 phone, chat and email counselling |
| Lifeline | 13 11 14 | 24/7 crisis support |
| Beyond Blue | 1300 22 4636 | Anxiety and depression support |
| National Debt Helpline | 1800 007 007 | Free independent financial counselling |
| BetStop | betstop.gov.au | National self-exclusion register for licensed Australian operators |
| Your GP | Local | Referral into subsidised psychological support |
None of these require you to have decided anything in advance, and Gambling Help Online supports family and friends as well as gamblers.
Controls that work
The ones set before they are needed, because that is when they are easy to set.
- Deposit limits in the account. Reductions apply immediately; increases carry a waiting period. That delay is the part that works.
- Bank gambling blocks. Nearly every Australian banking app has one, and switching it back off normally involves a compulsory waiting period.
- Operating system time limits. iOS Screen Time and Android Digital Wellbeing will both put a passcode-protected daily cap on one particular site.
- Cash-only deposits. Neosurf vouchers mean depositing requires leaving the house, which is a real and effective limit.
- Self-exclusion. Cannot be lifted early by support, by you, or by opening another account. That is the point.
- Telling someone. The most effective control, and the one people use last.
The questions worth answering honestly
Nobody plans for gambling to turn into a problem. It shifts gradually, and the useful signals are behavioural rather than financial.
Have you deposited again to win back a loss? Played longer than you meant to, more than once? Been vague about what you spend when asked? Used money set aside for something else? Thought about the next session while doing something unrelated? Felt anger rather than disappointment at losing?
One yes is worth noticing. Several is worth acting on. None of these ask about amounts, because the amount is not what defines the problem.
If it is someone else
You do not need their agreement to call Gambling Help Online, and they support family and friends directly.
Describe what is happening rather than who they are, keep your own wallet out of their debts, and stop short of monitoring them. Counterproductive: ultimatums, and reading a slip as evidence the whole effort was pointless.
Free financial counselling through the National Debt Helpline is often the most immediately useful step, because it addresses the consequence while everything else addresses the cause.
Every game on every casino site returns less than it takes over time. That is what the business is. Gambling can be entertainment worth paying for, but it cannot be a way to make money, and any plan that assumes otherwise fails.
Also asked
How do I set a deposit limit?
In your account settings. Reductions take effect immediately; increases carry a delay so a limit cannot be raised on impulse.
Can a self-exclusion be reversed?
Not early. Support cannot shorten it, and a second account opened to bypass it will be closed.
Does BetStop cover this casino?
No. BetStop applies to licensed Australian operators. For an offshore site use the casino’s own self-exclusion plus a bank-level block.
Is help free?
Yes. Gambling Help Online and the National Debt Helpline are both free and confidential.
What is a bank gambling block?
A setting in most Australian banking apps that blocks payments to gambling merchants, usually with a delay before it can be turned off.