Affordability checks gambling: what changes, for whom, and from when

What are the new affordability checks for gambling in the UK?

Register as of 21 September 2026.

The phrase 'affordability checks' does not appear in the Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice (LCCP). It is used in public for two separate measures. The first is the financial vulnerability check under social responsibility code 3.4.4, in force from 30 August 2024.

The second is the financial risk assessment, which the Commission announced on 7 July 2026 as a staged programme. Its Stage 1 start date has not been published.

Information. The financial vulnerability check applies when a customer's deposits minus withdrawals exceed £150 in a rolling 30-day period. That threshold has applied since 28 February 2025. Between 30 August 2024 and 27 February 2025 the threshold was £500.

The check is a customer-specific public record information check: bankruptcy orders, county court judgments, individual voluntary arrangements, high court judgments, administration orders, debt relief orders or their equivalents.

Change. Financial risk assessments will apply at higher thresholds. Stage 1, for the largest operators, is triggered when net deposits exceed £5,000 in a rolling 24-hour period for customers aged 25 and over, or £2,500 for customers under 25.

The final thresholds are £1,000 in 24 hours or £3,000 in 90 days for those 25 and over, and £750 or £2,000 for those under 25. The announcement states that the assessment is 'frictionless' and 'document-free', supplied by credit reference agencies.

Scope. Both measures apply to remote licensees serving Great Britain. Neither is a statutory instrument; both sit in the LCCP or in the Commission's implementation programme.

Sources: LCCP condition 3.4.4: Financial vulnerability check; Commission to introduce Financial Risk Assessments in staged approach (news, 7 July 2026); Financial risk assessments update, July 2026 (blog, 7 July 2026).

How do affordability checks work for UK online casino players?

Financial vulnerability check · Announced 1 May 2024 · In force 30 August 2024 · Scope: remote licensees, excluding the licence types listed in the code.

The check runs on the account, not on the customer's documents. Code 3.4.4 requires the licensee to conduct a public record information check when the net deposit threshold is exceeded. The licensee must decide whether action is taken manually, in a fully automated manner with the opportunity for manual review, or through a combination.

The code does not require payslips or bank statements. What the licensee does with a result is governed by its wider customer interaction duties, which this bulletin does not cover.

Sources: LCCP condition 3.4.4: Financial vulnerability check; New rules boosting safety and consumer choice (news, 1 May 2024); Commission to introduce Financial Risk Assessments in staged approach (news, 7 July 2026); Financial risk assessments update, July 2026 (blog, 7 July 2026).

Financial risk assessments — announced 7 July 2026, not yet in force

Financial risk assessments · Announced 7 July 2026 · In force: not yet set · Scope: Stage 1 limited to the largest operators.

The assessment is described as document-free, provided by credit reference agencies and with no impact on the customer's credit score. The Commission's blog of 7 July 2026 states that 'the vast majority of customers will never require a Financial Risk Assessment'. It puts the proportion of accounts needing one at less than 3% on full implementation.

It puts those unable to get one in a frictionless manner at less than 0.1%. The pilot found that 97% of those above the threshold levels could be assessed frictionlessly. For the remaining 1 in 1,000 accounts, the blog says operators must verify identity properly and may assess risk through open banking or documents.

For a customer an assessment finds to be in financial difficulty, the Commission says it will back operators to take 'appropriate proportionate action'. Examples given are reduced marketing to vulnerable customers and support to set deposit limits.

A customer whose deposits stay under both thresholds is outside both measures. A customer who crosses the £150 net deposit line in 30 days is inside the first and, at present, outside the second, because Stage 1 has no start date.

Sources: LCCP condition 3.4.4: Financial vulnerability check; New rules boosting safety and consumer choice (news, 1 May 2024); Commission to introduce Financial Risk Assessments in staged approach (news, 7 July 2026); Financial risk assessments update, July 2026 (blog, 7 July 2026).

The table: change register

The register lists each measure the phrase 'affordability checks' is used for, with the two measures most often bundled with it in summaries: the online slot stake limits and the statutory levy. Neither of those is a check on a customer, and the register says so.

Sources: LCCP condition 3.4.4: Financial vulnerability check; New rules boosting safety and consumer choice (news, 1 May 2024); Commission to introduce Financial Risk Assessments in staged approach (news, 7 July 2026); Financial risk assessments update, July 2026 (blog, 7 July 2026); The Gambling Act 2005 (Operating Licence Conditions) (Amendment) Regulations 2025, SI 2025/215; Online slots stake limit guidance; The Gambling Levy Regulations 2025, SI 2025/213.

A worked example in pounds

Financial vulnerability check · threshold £150 net deposits in a rolling 30-day period · from 28 February 2025.

A customer deposits £20 a week and withdraws nothing. A rolling 30-day period holds four such deposits on most days and five on some, so net deposits are £80 or £100. Both are below £150.

On the code as read, that pattern alone does not trigger the check.

A customer deposits £40 a week and withdraws nothing. Four deposits make £160 and five make £200. Both exceed £150, so the licensee must run the public record information check.

The customer is not asked for documents by this code; the check is against public records.

The announced Stage 1 financial risk assessment threshold for a customer aged 25 or over is net deposits above £5,000 in a single rolling 24-hour period. That stage has no start date. Withdrawals count against deposits in both measures, because the figure is deposits minus withdrawals.

If a change to limits or checks affects how you gamble, the tools are described on the operator's safer-gambling page and support is on 0808 8020 133 (GamCare, free, 24 hours).

Sources: LCCP condition 3.4.4: Financial vulnerability check; Commission to introduce Financial Risk Assessments in staged approach (news, 7 July 2026); Help for problems with gambling.

What this page does not tell you

It does not tell you what an operator must do after a financial vulnerability check returns an indicator. That is governed by the customer interaction code, which this bulletin did not read.

It does not tell you when Stage 1 of the financial risk assessments starts, or which operators count as the largest. The Commission's blog of 7 July 2026 says the start date will be confirmed in the formal consultation response, and no such response was published by 21 September 2026 on the pages read.

It does not tell you how a credit reference agency assessment is scored. The announcement gives examples of 'appropriate proportionate action' — reduced marketing and support to set deposit limits — but not a precise definition for every case.

It does not tell you how to set a deposit limit or a time-out; Play in Balance covers those controls. It does not compare Great Britain's checks with another jurisdiction's; Night Atlas covers that. Nothing here is a statement about tax on winnings.

Sources: Financial risk assessments update, July 2026 (blog, 7 July 2026); Commission to introduce Financial Risk Assessments in staged approach (news, 7 July 2026).

Questions answered

Each answer gives the finding first and the source document second, as read on 21 September 2026.

Sources: LCCP condition 3.4.4: Financial vulnerability check; Commission to introduce Financial Risk Assessments in staged approach (news, 7 July 2026); New rules boosting safety and consumer choice (news, 1 May 2024).

Sources checked 21 September 2026

Sources checked 21 September 2026. Each document was read over HTTPS on that date.

1. LCCP social responsibility code 3.4.4, Financial vulnerability check, Gambling Commission. 2. New rules boosting safety and consumer choice, Gambling Commission news, 1 May 2024. 3. Commission to introduce Financial Risk Assessments in staged approach, Gambling Commission news, 7 July 2026. 4.

Financial risk assessments update, July 2026, Gambling Commission blog, 7 July 2026. 5. The Gambling Act 2005 (Operating Licence Conditions) (Amendment) Regulations 2025, SI 2025/215, legislation.gov.uk. 6. Online slots stake limit guidance, Gambling Commission. 7.

The Gambling Levy Regulations 2025, SI 2025/213, legislation.gov.uk. 8. Statutory levy, Gambling Commission. 9. Help for problems with gambling, NHS, for the helpline number.

Sources: LCCP condition 3.4.4: Financial vulnerability check; New rules boosting safety and consumer choice (news, 1 May 2024); Commission to introduce Financial Risk Assessments in staged approach (news, 7 July 2026); Financial risk assessments update, July 2026 (blog, 7 July 2026); The Gambling Act 2005 (Operating Licence Conditions) (Amendment) Regulations 2025, SI 2025/215; Online slots stake limit guidance; The Gambling Levy Regulations 2025, SI 2025/213; Statutory levy; Help for problems with gambling.