Gambling Commission Imposes New Deposit Limits for UK Online Operators

08 October 2026

The UK Gambling Commission is introducing significant changes to deposit limits for online gambling operators, with key new rules going into effect from 2025. In its most recent policy paper, the regulator outlines a series of measures designed to enhance consumer protection and promote responsible gambling.

From October 2025, operators must prompt customers to set a financial limit before their first deposit and remind them to review limits every six months. Most notably, from 2026, only gross deposit limits can be called "deposit limits," and must be offered with equal prominence to other limits. The commission also specifies that deposit limits must have a fixed time frame, and that betting sites must prevent further depositing once a limit is reached, until the period restarts or the limit is increased after a 24-hour cooling-off period.

What the Gambling Commission is changing

The Gambling Commission's new rules aim to improve consumer understanding of financial limits and promote more responsible gambling. The key changes include:

Definitions: Only gross deposit limits (i.e. all deposits, including bonuses) can be called "deposit limits." Other financial limits, such as net deposit limits or stake limits, cannot use the term "deposit."

Timeframes: Gross deposit limits must have a fixed time period (e.g. weekly, monthly). Other financial limits can have either fixed or rolling time periods.

Prominence: Gross deposit limits must be offered with at least equal prominence to any other financial limit when customers set or change limits.

Timeline of the new deposit-limit rules

- October 2025: Operators must prompt customers to set a financial limit before their first deposit

- October 2025: Operators must remind customers to review their financial limits every 6 months

- September 2026: Only gross deposit limits can be called "deposit limits" by operators

- September 2026: Gross deposit limits must have a fixed time period and be offered with at least equal prominence to other limits

How deposit limits must work

Under the new rules, once a customer reaches their gross deposit limit in the specified time period (e.g. weekly or monthly), the betting site must prevent them from depositing further funds. This block will remain in place until:

a) The fixed time period ends (e.g. the end of the day, week or month); or

b) The customer increases their deposit limit, following a 24-hour cooling-off period

According to the commission, the 24-hour cooling-off period is designed to give consumers time to reconsider and prevent impulse-based limit increases.

Critically, the rules specify that setting or increasing a deposit limit must not trigger an immediate payout on existing funds, to avoid rewarding the consumer for attempting to circumvent the limit.

What operators must do at registration and first deposit

From October 2025, operators will have to:

- Prompt a new customer to set at least one financial limit (gross deposit, net deposit, stake, or time-based limit) before they make their first deposit

- Give the customer an option to set a free-text financial limit, without dictating a limit amount, to make limits more meaningful and personalized

- Make financial limit-setting facilities easily accessible via a prominent link on the homepage and deposit pages, with as few clicks as possible

- Offer gross deposit limits with at least equal prominence to other financial limits, using clear and consistent terminology

How the new ID-check rules work

The new deposit-limit rules are accompanied by further clarification on the existing requirement for operators to verify a customer's age and identity before they gamble. As of 2025, customers will need to provide proof of:

- Name

- Address

- Date of birth

- Passport or National Insurance number

Operators should request this information at registration, and use databases such as credit referencing agencies, the electoral roll, and Office of National Statistics income data to validate identity and assess affordability risks.

Why the Commission says the changes matter

The Commission argues that the changes will "make it much easier" for customers to set meaningful deposit limits, bringing clarity to a complex landscape of financial limits and helping consumers understand their options.

The regulator says it has spent several years analyzing operator practices and consulting on how to improve financial limits. The changes are part of a broader set of rules intended to make online gambling fairer and safer, including restrictions on certain advertisements and mechanisms to prevent loopholes.

What remains optional for operators

While the rules set out specific requirements around deposit limits, they remain intentionally flexible in some areas, with operators free to:

- Offer any type of financial limit (gross deposit, net deposit, stake, or time-based) during registration or at any point after, in addition to the mandatory initial one

- Offer any commonly used time period for fixed limits (e.g. by the day, week, or month), subject to the minimum 24-hour cooling-off period

- Allow customers to set free-text limits, without predefined limit levels

- Choose how to present financial limits in terms of prominence, as long as gross deposit limits are at least as prominent as any other type

Implications for UK online poker sites

UK poker sites will need to ensure their systems can accommodate the new rules and limits, while providing clear customer information. Specifically:

- Account management and limit-setting systems will need ample capacity for multiple limit types, including mandatory gross deposit limits

- Deposit windows and New Deposit buttons may have to be adapted for prominence requirements

- Pop-up interfaces, modals, notifications, reminders and inputs for customer limits will need to be enhanced

- Ongoing customer communication must include clear information on limit-setting, 24-hour cooling-off periods, and timeframes for automatic limit restarts

- Some Terms of Service or "Frequently Asked Questions" pages may need updating or expansion