Responsible Gambling in Canada

If You Need Help Right Now

If you're in crisis, thinking about suicide, or worried about your immediate safety, you can call or text 988 anytime — Canada's Suicide Crisis Helpline is free, confidential, and available 24/7, regardless of where you live in Canada.

If you want to talk specifically about gambling and you're in Ontario, ConnexOntario is available 24/7 at 1-866-531-2600, by text (CONNEX to 247247), or by live chat. If you're elsewhere in Canada, see the provincial resources below — every province has a free line you can call.

You don't have to be in crisis to use any of these services. They're built for anyone who wants to check in on their gambling, set limits, or take a break — before things feel urgent, not just after.

Responsible Gambling Resources

Responsible gambling means gambling in a way that keeps the activity safe, affordable, and within your personal limits. For most people, gambling should remain entertainment — not a strategy for income, debt repayment, or "getting back to even."

These are simple habits that reduce risk and keep gambling in check.

1. 1. 1

      Set a budget

      Decide what you can afford to lose before you start — and stop when you reach it.

   2. 2

      Set a time limit

      Decide how long you'll play and stick to it, even if you're winning.

   3. 3

      Don't chase losses

      Trying to win back what you've lost usually leads to bigger losses.

   4. 4

      Don't borrow to gamble

      Never use credit cards, loans, or borrowed money to fund gambling.

   5. 5

      Take regular breaks

      Step away from the screen or table at set intervals to reset.

   6. 6

      Avoid gambling when stressed

      Emotional or financial pressure makes it harder to stick to your limits.

   7. 7

      Track wins and losses honestly

      Keep a clear record so you know what gambling actually costs you over time.

Signs Gambling May Be Becoming a Problem

The shift from harmless entertainment to a serious problem can be gradual enough that it's hard to notice from the inside. Common signs include:

• Spending more time or money than you planned — and repeating the pattern
• Hiding gambling, lying about it, or feeling shame afterwards
• Chasing losses, increasing bets, or gambling to escape stress
• Borrowing money, missing bills, or using credit to gamble
• Relationship conflict, work impacts, sleep loss, or mood changes linked to gambling

If any of this sounds familiar — for yourself or someone you care about — the resources below are a good place to start. You don't need to wait until things feel like an emergency to reach out.

What to Do If You're Concerned

• Pause and limit access — take a break, set limits, or use self-exclusion tools where available.
• Talk to someone — confidential support is available; use the helplines below.
• Get practical help — ask about counselling, financial supports, and local treatment options.

Canada-Wide Resources

These services provide education, tools, and support options that can be used anywhere in Canada.

Available everywhere

Canada-Wide Resources

Independent organizations offering education, peer support, and counselling tools not tied to any single province or operator.

• Responsible Gambling Council (RGC)

  Independent non-profit providing information and resources on safer gambling and problem-gambling prevention.

• Gambling Therapy

  Global support options including online peer support and counselling tools.

• GamTalk

  Free, anonymous online community with moderated forums and live chat for anyone affected by gambling.

• Kahnawà:ke Gaming Commission (KGC) — Player Protection

  Player protection standards and dispute resolution for interactive and land-based gaming licensed from the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawà:ke.

Additional national options worth knowing about:

• Gamblers Anonymous Canada — A peer support fellowship with in-person, virtual, and hybrid meetings across the country for anyone struggling with compulsive gambling. Contact numbers vary by region — check gamblersanonymous.org for the chapter closest to you.
• Gam-Anon — Support specifically for families and friends affected by someone else's gambling, separate from support for the person gambling themselves. Visit gam-anon.org for meeting information.

Provincial & Territorial Help Lines

If you want to talk to someone today, start with the number in your province or territory. These lines can provide support and connect you to counselling or local services.

Provincial Support Lines

Territorial Support Lines

Ontario

Ontario has the most developed set of responsible gambling tools in the country, split across a few different programs that are easy to confuse:

• ConnexOntario (1-866-531-2600, or text CONNEX to 247247) is a free, confidential referral service — not a self-exclusion tool. It's available 24/7 and connects you to mental health, addiction, and problem gambling services in your community.
• PlaySmart is OLG's overall responsible gambling program (playsmart.ca), covering education, odds information, and in-person PlaySmart Centres located at every Ontario casino and charitable gaming centre. You can also reach the Virtual PlaySmart Centre toll-free at 1-833-888-2306, staffed 7 days a week from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• My PlayBreak is OLG's specific self-exclusion tool, covering OLG.ca, Ontario casinos, and charitable gaming centres. You choose a term — 3 months, 6 months, or 1 through 5 years — and can register at a PlaySmart Centre, at a casino, or by calling the OLG Support Centre at 1-800-387-0098.
• BetGuard is a separate, province-wide digital self-exclusion program run by iGaming Ontario. Unlike My PlayBreak, which covers OLG's own properties, BetGuard lets you self-exclude from all AGCO-licensed private online operators in Ontario at once, for a term of 6 months to 5 years.

If you only enroll in one, understand what it covers: My PlayBreak alone won't block you from a private online operator's site, and BetGuard alone won't block you from OLG's land-based casinos.

Alberta

Alberta's responsible gambling program is GameSense, run by Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) under license from BCLC. It's built into PlayAlberta and will extend to the new private operators launching July 13, 2026.

• GameSense Info Line: 1-833-447-7523 (hours vary — check gamesenseab.ca for current times)
• AGLC Self-Exclusion Program: covers Alberta casinos, racing entertainment centres, and PlayAlberta.ca. Terms range from 6 months to 3 years. Register at selfexclusion.ca, at a GameSense Info Centre, or through PlayAlberta directly.
• Alberta Health Services Addiction Helpline: 1-866-332-2322, free and confidential, 24/7.
• Alberta Mental Health Help Line: 1-877-303-2642, 24/7.

British Columbia

BC's program is also called GameSense — it's the original version of the brand, developed by BCLC, and is now licensed to other provinces including Alberta. Self-exclusion in BC is called Game Break, and it covers PlayNow.com along with BC casinos and community gaming centres. You can enroll at a GameSense Info Centre in person or by calling BCLC's customer support line at 1-866-815-0222.

Manitoba and Saskatchewan

Both provinces run their online casino platforms through partnerships with BCLC (Manitoba via MBLL, Saskatchewan via the Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority), and both use the same underlying GameSense and Game Break framework as British Columbia's PlayNow. If you play on PlayNow in either province, the self-exclusion and limit-setting tools are built into your account — check the platform's responsible gambling section for the current registration process in your province.

Quebec

Loto-Québec's Espacejeux platform includes built-in deposit limits, session reminders, and a self-exclusion option, consistent with the other government-run monopoly platforms. Because Quebec's program details can differ from the GameSense/PlaySmart framework used elsewhere, check Espacejeux's own responsible gambling section for the current registration process and contact details rather than relying on another province's process.

Atlantic Provinces (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI, Newfoundland and Labrador)

The four Atlantic provinces share a regulated platform, ALC.ca, run by the Atlantic Lottery Corporation, and also support self-exclusion at land-based casinos in the region:

• Responsible Gaming Information Centre (RGIC) at Casino New Brunswick: 506-861-4699
• Nova Scotia Gaming's Voluntary Self-Exclusion Program: 902-424-8663 (Halifax) or 902-563-3797 (Sydney)
• For PEI and Newfoundland and Labrador, or for ALC.ca's own self-exclusion process, check alc.ca directly, as land-based contact numbers above are specific to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

Territories (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut)

The territories don't operate a local regulated online casino platform, so there's no territory-specific self-exclusion program to enroll in. If you're in one of the territories and want support, use the territorial helplines listed above, or the Canada-wide resources — Gamblers Anonymous Canada, Gam-Anon, GamTalk, and the 988 crisis line are available regardless of where you live.

Setting Limits Before You Need Self-Exclusion

Self-exclusion is a significant step, and most regulated Canadian platforms offer lighter-touch tools you can use before it comes to that:

• Deposit limits — cap how much you can add to your account daily, weekly, or monthly
• Loss limits — cap how much you can lose in a given period, regardless of how much you've deposited
• Session time reminders — pop-up alerts after a set amount of continuous play
• Reality checks — periodic reminders showing how long you've been playing and how much you've spent

These are usually available in your account settings at any regulated Canadian platform, and setting them before a session starts — not after you've noticed a problem — is the point. A cap you set for yourself while calm is worth more than a good intention mid-session.

A Note on Offshore and Unregulated Casinos

If you play at an offshore casino that isn't licensed by a Canadian province, none of the self-exclusion programs above will apply there — provincial programs only cover the platforms they regulate. Some individual offshore operators offer their own deposit limits or self-exclusion tools, but there's no guarantee of consistency or enforcement the way there is with a provincially licensed platform. If you're trying to manage your gambling across both regulated and offshore sites, consider pairing account-level tools with third-party website-blocking software, and lean on the national resources above, which aren't tied to any specific platform.