Self-exclusion in Canada, province by province

How self-exclusion works

You choose a period, the operator closes or blocks your access for that period, and in most programs you cannot shorten it once it starts. Several programs also keep the exclusion in place after the period ends until you complete a short return process. That firmness is the point: the decision is made on a calm day and holds on a bad one.

• Provincial programs cover the provincial operator's casinos and its online site, such as PlayNow, lotoquebec.com or Atlantic Lottery.
• Casino-level self-exclusion covers one online casino, or one group of casinos.
• Blocking software covers your devices, including offshore sites that no provincial program reaches.

British Columbia: Game Break

BCLC's program is Game Break. According to PlayNow's help pages, it covers casinos, community gaming centres, commercial bingo halls, PlayNow.com and BCLC's mobile apps, and enrolling online also excludes you from gambling facilities.

• Periods: 6 months, or 1, 2 or 3 years. It begins right away and cannot be changed, though you can extend it.
• How to enrol: online after logging in to PlayNow, in person at a casino, community gaming centre or bingo hall with photo ID, or with a GameSense Advisor by phone, video or live chat.
• When it ends: to return, you complete an online course and then a return to play form. If you do nothing, PlayNow says you remain excluded until 12 months after the Game Break period ends.
• Your account: the PlayNow account is closed, promotional funds are lost, and a cash balance over $5 is returned to your bank account on file.

Saskatchewan: online and casino programs

Saskatchewan has two routes. Online, PlayNow.com Saskatchewan offers voluntary self-exclusion from your account, for 6 months or 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 years. It starts right away and cannot be ended before the date you chose, though you can extend it. You can enrol under My Account, by phone or by live chat.

For casinos, the Game Break program described by Casino Regina covers Casino Regina, Casino Moose Jaw and the province's SIGA casinos, and also applies to PlayNow.com. Periods run from 6 months to 5 years and cannot be shortened or removed once in effect. You enrol at a casino's customer service or security desk, or by appointment, with ID and a photo.

Manitoba: Voluntary Self-Exclusion

Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries runs a Voluntary Self-Exclusion program. Where you enrol decides what it covers:

• In person at Club Regent Casino, McPhillips Station Casino or Shark Club Gaming Centre, or off site by appointment: covers those facilities and PlayNow.com.
• Online through PlayNow, under My Account: covers PlayNow.com only, not the gambling facilities.

The program's brochure lists periods of 6 months, or 1, 2 or 3 years. It cannot be ended early, and it continues after the period until you complete a free online course, send a signed written request, and receive written confirmation that it has ended.

Quebec: Loto-Québec self-exclusion

Loto-Québec has two programs, described on its self-exclusion pages:

• Online gambling: self-exclusion from lotoquebec.com for 3 months to 5 years. Loto-Québec calls it free, confidential and irrevocable: your account is deactivated and you cannot open a new one. You enrol in the Manage My Gambling section of your account or by phone.
• Casinos and gaming halls: 3 months to 5 years, also irrevocable, and it blocks your lotoquebec.com account for the same period. It is done in person at a casino, a gaming hall or Loto-Québec's office, or by appointment at a designated support centre, with photo ID.

For a shorter pause, lotoquebec.com also offers a break from online games of 1 to 89 days.

New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador

Online, through Atlantic Lottery. Atlantic Lottery's self-exclusion program for its online site is called Break in Play. According to Atlantic Lottery, the options range from a day to 36 months, a confirmed break cannot be reversed, and longer breaks end only after a short online Return to Play program. In Newfoundland and Labrador, which has no casinos, this is the provincial route.

New Brunswick casinos. Casino New Brunswick in Moncton, run by Great Canadian Entertainment, offers a Voluntary Self-Exclusion program that bans you from the casino for a set period, and enrolling suspends your rewards membership straight away. The periods and the enrolment steps were not published on the pages we could read, so check them with the casino before you enrol.

Nova Scotia casinos. The province's voluntary exclusion program covers Casino Nova Scotia in Halifax and Sydney. You enrol in person at either casino or with the province's gaming division, with ID. Periods are 6 months, 1 year, 3 years or indefinite. It is free, cannot be ended early, and you can apply to return only after the period, or after at least 3 years for an indefinite ban.

Prince Edward Island casinos. Red Shores runs Break in Play for its Charlottetown and Summerside gaming floors: 30, 60 or 90 days, or 6, 12, 24 or 36 months. A break cannot be cancelled or reversed, and continues until you request Return to Play and attend an on-site meeting. You can enrol on site, off site through addiction services, or by calling a PlayWise advisor.

Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut

We found no territorial self-exclusion program and no territorial online casino in any of the three territories. Lotteries Yukon's responsible gambling page lists support lines but no self-exclusion, and Yukon's only casino is seasonal. The Northwest Territories and Nunavut have no casino. In the territories, the tools that work are casino-level self-exclusion and blocking software, both below, together with the help lines on our responsible gambling page.

Province by province at a glance

From each program's own page, read October 21, 2026. Rules change; check the program's page before you enrol.

Self-exclusion at an online casino

Provincial programs stop at the provincial operator's own venues and site. The casinos on our Canadian list are licensed outside the provincial system, so you have to exclude yourself at each one where you have an account. Most offer it in the account settings, under a heading such as responsible gaming, safer gambling or account limits. If you cannot find it, ask support in the live chat to close the account for self-exclusion, and ask for written confirmation.

• Ask about sister sites. Many operators run several brands under one licence. Ask whether the exclusion covers all of them.
• Check what happens to your balance. Withdraw your cash balance first, or ask how it will be returned.
• Unsubscribe from marketing. An excluded account should receive no offers. Report any you still receive to the casino.
• Know the difference from a cool-off. A time-out or cooling-off period is shorter and often ends by itself. Self-exclusion is the longer, firmer option.

Our casino reviews note which safer-play tools each casino shows: deposit limits, time-outs, self-exclusion and reality checks.

Blocking software for your devices

Blocking software stops gambling sites and apps from opening on your phone, tablet or computer, including offshore casinos that no provincial program covers.

• Gamban blocks gambling websites and apps on Android, iOS, macOS and Windows, with one licence for all your devices. It is a paid subscription after a free trial, and it is designed to be hard to remove.
• BetBlocker is free, from a non-profit, for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and iOS. You choose a restriction from 1 day to 5 years, and once it is active it cannot be lifted early.
• GamBlock is a paid blocker for Windows, Android and Apple devices.

Blocking software works alongside self-exclusion, not instead of it. Install it on every device you use, including a work laptop or a tablet you share.

Blocking payments and ads

• Your bank. We found no Canadian bank page offering a gambling block that customers can switch on themselves. Ask your bank what it can do. A card lock and lower Interac e-Transfer limits are other options; our Canadian banks guide lists the limits bank by bank.
• Ads. In Google's ad settings and in Facebook and Instagram ad preferences you can reduce gambling ads.

When you need help now

If gambling is causing harm, you do not have to wait for an exclusion to take effect. Every province and territory has a free, confidential help line, listed on our responsible gambling page and at the bottom of every SpinsPilot page. Online gambling is for adults only: 19+ in most provinces, 18+ in Quebec and Manitoba.

More guides in the academy

• Beginner's guide to online casinos in Canada
• Wagering requirements explained, in dollars
• Casino licences Canadians see
• Gambling winnings and tax in Canada
• Casino glossary
• Odds formats explained
• The puck line explained
• Parlays explained

Sources

Read October 21, 2026.

• PlayNow (BCLC): help, Game Break
• PlayNow.com Saskatchewan: voluntary self-exclusion and Casino Regina: Game Break
• Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries: concerned about your gambling
• Loto-Québec: self-exclusion
• Atlantic Lottery: Break in Play
• Great Canadian Entertainment: responsible gambling
• Nova Scotia: voluntary exclusion from casinos
• Red Shores: Break in Play
• Lotteries Yukon: gambling responsibly
• Gamban, BetBlocker, GamBlock