Home › Responsible Gambling
Responsible gambling in New Zealand
Pokies and casino games are entertainment, and entertainment has a price you decide in advance. If the price has stopped being one you chose, help in New Zealand is free, confidential and available right now.
Need to talk to someone tonight? Gambling Helpline — 0800 654 655, free, 24 hours. Text 8006. Or call or text 1737 to reach a trained counsellor any time. You do not need to give your name.
Free support services across New Zealand
| Service | How to reach it | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Gambling Helpline | 0800 654 655 · text 8006 · gamblinghelpline.co.nz | 24/7 free phone and text counselling for players and family |
| 1737, Need to talk? | Call or text 1737 | Free national counselling line for any kind of distress |
| Safer Gambling Aotearoa | safergambling.org.nz | Self-help tools, information and service directory |
| Salvation Army Oasis | 0800 53 00 00 | Free face-to-face counselling in the main centres |
| Problem Gambling Foundation | 0800 664 262 · pgf.nz | Free counselling and whanau support nationwide |
| Asian Family Services | 0800 862 342 | Support in Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Hindi, Thai and more |
These services cover the whole country, from Auckland and Hamilton down through Wellington to Christchurch and Dunedin, and every one of them is free at the point of use. Family members can call on their own behalf — you do not need the gambler's permission or presence.
The tools inside a Spinit account
Spinit provides player-protection controls in its account settings under its Gaming Board of Anjouan licence obligations. They are worth setting up on the day you register rather than the day you need them.
- Deposit limits — a daily, weekly or monthly ceiling in New Zealand dollars. Lowering one applies immediately; raising one is deliberately delayed.
- Loss limits — a cap on net losses over a chosen period, which bites harder than a deposit limit if you tend to recycle winnings.
- Session reminders — a prompt showing how long you have been playing and where the balance stands.
- Cool-off — a short pause, from a day to a few weeks, after which the account reopens on its own.
- Self-exclusion — a fixed longer term that support will not reverse early, whatever you ask them afterwards.
A balance sitting in an excluded account is still yours. Ask live chat to process the withdrawal and complete verification if you have not already — details of that process are on the login and account page.
Signs worth taking seriously
Nobody plans for gambling to become a problem, and it rarely announces itself. These are the patterns counsellors hear most often.
- Chasing a loss with a bigger stake, then chasing that one too.
- Playing with money that was meant for rent, power or groceries.
- Hiding how much or how often you play from a partner or family.
- Borrowing, or selling something, to fund a session.
- Feeling flat after a win, because the win only resets the cycle.
One of these is a reason to pause. Two or more is a reason to phone 0800 654 655 today rather than next month.
Practical habits that help
Set your limit before you open the lobby, not while a session is running — decisions made mid-session are made by a different version of you. Treat the money as spent the moment it leaves your bank account, so a payout feels like a bonus rather than a repayment. Keep gambling away from alcohol and away from the hours when you are tired, and never fund a session with credit.
Time limits matter as much as money limits. An hour set on a phone timer is a blunt tool, and blunt tools work.
Only for adults
Online gambling in New Zealand is restricted to players aged 18 and over. Spinit verifies identity before releasing withdrawals, and accounts found to belong to minors are closed with any winnings forfeited. If children share your device, use the parental controls in the operating system and never store casino passwords in a shared browser profile.
Frequently asked questions
The Gambling Helpline is free and confidential on 0800 654 655, by text on 8006, or online. You can also call or text 1737 any time to reach a trained counsellor, and the Salvation Army Oasis service runs free face-to-face counselling in the main centres.
Yes. Deposit limits, loss limits and session reminders are all in the responsible gambling section of your Spinit account settings. Lowering a limit takes effect straight away, while raising one is deliberately slower.
You choose a fixed term and the account is closed to play for that period. A self-exclusion cannot be lifted early by asking support, which is the entire point of the tool.
A cool-off is a short pause, often 24 hours to a few weeks, after which the account reopens automatically. Self-exclusion is a longer, firmer commitment that support will not reverse on request.
Yes. A remaining balance can be withdrawn while the account is excluded from play. Contact Spinit live chat and complete verification if you have not already done so.
Chasing losses, hiding play from people close to you, gambling with money set aside for bills, borrowing to fund a session, and finding that a win no longer feels like much. Any one of them is worth taking seriously.
Yes. Helpline and counselling services are free and confidential, and you do not have to give your name to talk to someone about your own gambling or a family member's.
Yes. New Zealand gambling support services cover whanau and friends affected by someone else's gambling, and the Gambling Helpline has dedicated support for family members.
Page reviewed 2026. If you are in immediate distress, call or text 1737.