If you need help right now
Call the Gambling Helpline NZ on 0800 654 655. It's free, anonymous, and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in immediate distress or feel unsafe, call 111 (NZ Emergency) or Lifeline Aotearoa on 0800 543 354.
Our commitment to player safety
Ngāti Paoa is an independent guide to online pokies, sports betting and crypto casinos for New Zealand readers. We earn commissions when readers sign up with operators we list, but that does not change a simple fact: no commission is worth a reader's wellbeing. Every casino and sportsbook on this site is reviewed against responsible gambling criteria — deposit limits, reality checks, self-exclusion tools and licensing standards — before it can earn a placement.
If a reader tells us they want to self-exclude, we honour that immediately. We do not retarget anyone who has opted out, and we do not write content designed to push back at people who are pulling away from gambling. This page is the most important page on our site, and we link to it from every page footer and from the top bar of every page.
Signs of problem gambling
Problem gambling rarely arrives in one moment. It usually creeps in — a little more time, a little more money, a little less control. The signs are well documented by the New Zealand Health Promotion Agency and the Problem Gambling Foundation. If several of these feel familiar, please don't wait to ask for help.
Behavioural signs
- Gambling longer or more often than you intended
- Chasing losses — betting more to "win it back"
- Hiding gambling from your partner, whānau or friends
- Borrowing money, selling possessions, or skipping bills to gamble
- Gambling to escape stress, sadness, boredom or relationship problems
Emotional signs
- Feeling restless or irritable when you try to cut down
- Shame, secrecy or guilt about how much you gamble
- Anxiety waiting for the next deposit, spin or bet
- Mood crashes after a session, especially after a loss
- Thinking about gambling when you should be at work, study or with family
A simple self-check
Healthify (formerly Health Navigator NZ) and the Ministry of Health point to the short Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) as a reliable screen. Ask yourself, thinking about the past 12 months:
- Have you bet more than you could really afford to lose?
- Have you needed to gamble with larger amounts to get the same excitement?
- Have you gone back another day to try to win back money you lost?
- Have you borrowed money or sold anything to get money to gamble?
- Have you felt that you might have a problem with gambling?
- Has gambling caused you any health problems, including stress or anxiety?
- Have people criticised your betting or told you that you had a gambling problem, regardless of whether or not you thought it was true?
- Has your gambling caused any financial problems for you or your household?
- Have you felt guilty about the way you gamble or what happens when you gamble?
If you answered "sometimes," "most of the time," or "almost always" to two or more of these, contact a free support service today. This is not a diagnosis — it is a prompt to talk to someone who can help you decide what to do next.
Player protection tools you can use right now
Every reputable online casino and sportsbook gives you control tools. They are usually inside your account settings under "Responsible Gambling," "Account Limits," or "Player Protection." Set them when you are calm, not when you are mid-session. They take effect immediately and most cannot be reversed for 24 hours or more.
Deposit limits
Cap the dollar amount you can deposit per day, week or month. Lower it any time; increases usually require a 24–72 hour cooling-off period.
Session time limits
Set a maximum login time. The casino logs you out automatically and a reality check pop-up reminds you how long you've played.
Loss limits
Define how much you are willing to lose per day or week. Once reached, the casino locks deposits until the period resets.
Cool-off
A short break — 24 hours up to six weeks. You cannot deposit or play until the cool-off ends.
Self-exclusion
Lock yourself out of the casino for six months, one year, five years or permanently. Many operators also block marketing for that period.
Reality checks
A timed pop-up showing your net wins or losses for the current session. Recommended setting: every 30 minutes.
Self-exclusion options available in New Zealand
New Zealand does not yet have a single national multi-operator self-exclusion register for online gambling. Until the Department of Internal Affairs' new licensed framework is fully operational, self-exclusion happens at three levels:
- Individual operator self-exclusion. Every reputable online casino and sportsbook lets you self-exclude from your account settings or by emailing their responsible gambling team. Some operators participate in BetBlocker, GamStop or international networks that can lock you out of multiple sites at once.
- Multi-Venue Self-Exclusion (MVE) for land-based venues. If you also play pokies in pubs and clubs, the Problem Gambling Foundation administers MVE agreements across class-4 venues in your area. Apply through any PGF counsellor; the process is free.
- Device-level blocking software. Free apps such as Gamban and BetBlocker block all gambling websites and apps across your phone, tablet and computer. They sit outside any single operator and cannot be undone without contacting the provider.
If you choose self-exclusion through us, email safer@ngatipaoaiwi.co.nz. We will remove you from our marketing list, decline future affiliate cookies, and provide a list of brand-specific self-exclusion contact addresses for any operator you have signed up with through this site.
Free help services in Aotearoa
| Service | Best for | Contact |
|---|---|---|
| Gambling Helpline New Zealand | 24/7 phone, text and live chat support. The national entry point for help. | 0800 654 655 · text 8006 · gamblinghelpline.co.nz |
| Problem Gambling Foundation (PGF) | Free face-to-face, phone and online counselling across NZ. Also runs MVE. | 0800 664 262 · pgf.nz |
| Mapu Maia | Free Pacific-led gambling support across Auckland, Hamilton and Christchurch. | 0800 21 21 22 · mapumaia.nz |
| Asian Family Services | Free support in Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Hindi, Japanese, Khmer and English. | 0800 862 342 · asianfamilyservices.nz |
| Te Rito Maioha / Salvation Army Oasis | Whānau-centred and faith-based gambling support nationwide. | 0800 530 000 · salvationarmy.org.nz/oasis |
| Lifeline Aotearoa | General mental health and suicide-prevention crisis support. | 0800 543 354 · text HELP to 4357 |
| Gambling Anonymous NZ | Peer-led mutual aid meetings online and in-person. | gamblersanonymous.org.nz |
Choosing where to start
If you are not sure where to begin, call the Gambling Helpline. They will listen without judgement, help you decide on the right next step, and connect you with a service that fits your culture, language and situation. There is no waitlist and you do not need a referral from a GP.
Under-18s and gambling
It is illegal in New Zealand to gamble in any commercial form if you are under 18, and every operator we list requires identity verification before withdrawals are processed. We do not promote gambling to anyone under the age of 18 anywhere on this site. Our offers, comparisons and reviews are written for adults who already gamble or are considering doing so.
If you are a parent or caregiver concerned about a young person gambling — including in-game purchases, loot boxes, or unregulated skins betting — the Problem Gambling Foundation offers free family support and educational resources. You can also ask your internet provider about parental controls, or install free blocking apps like Gamban on the household's devices.
Help for family, whānau and friends
You do not need to be the person gambling to ask for help. Every NZ helpline listed above will support partners, parents, children, siblings and friends affected by someone else's gambling. This is free, confidential, and you do not have to convince your loved one to call for you to access it.
If you suspect a family member is hiding gambling activity, look for: missing money, unexpected secrecy around the phone or computer, sudden mood swings around payday, increased borrowing, and unexplained absences. Approaching the conversation with curiosity rather than accusation often opens a door that confrontation closes.
New Zealand gambling regulation and the 2026 changes
The Gambling Act 2003 is the primary law governing gambling in New Zealand. It is administered by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) and underpinned by the principle that "remote interactive gambling" — what most readers know as online casino play — should be regulated to minimise harm.
From 2026, NZ is introducing a new online casino licensing regime. The DIA is rolling out a capped number of licences for online casino operators that will be able to legally market and serve New Zealand residents. Operators with these licences must meet strict harm-minimisation requirements, including:
- Mandatory deposit and loss limits at account opening
- Identity verification before play (not only at withdrawal)
- Self-exclusion that propagates across licensed operators
- Mandatory contributions to a national problem-gambling levy
- Restrictions on advertising, sponsorship and bonus terms
Until those licences are issued and operational, most online casinos accessible from New Zealand are licensed in jurisdictions such as Curaçao, Malta, the Isle of Man and the United Kingdom. The DIA's official position is that using these offshore sites from NZ is not illegal for the player, but they sit outside New Zealand consumer protections.
We recommend: where a NZ-licensed option is available for your activity (for example TAB NZ for sports and racing), strongly consider using it. Where you choose to use an offshore operator, prioritise those with UK Gambling Commission or Malta Gaming Authority licences, full responsible-gambling tooling, and clear NZ-facing customer support.
Talk to us
If you want to flag an operator listed on this site for poor responsible-gambling practice, request removal of any cookies or tracking, or simply ask a question about gambling safety in New Zealand, you can reach our editorial team at safer@ngatipaoaiwi.co.nz or via our contact page. We answer every safer-gambling email within one business day.