Find gambling support in Ireland today
This guide is for you if gambling has started costing more than money, or if someone close to you is in that position. It sets out the support services that operate in Ireland, the numbers the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland lists on its own help page, and the order in which most people use them. You will also find how operator self-exclusion fits alongside counselling and peer support. Every phone number here was checked against the regulator’s page or the service’s own site, and where two sources disagree we say so.
Who you can contact in Ireland
The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland keeps a short list of support services on its Get Help page, and that list is the safest starting point because it is the regulator’s own. We checked each entry against the service’s website.
Helplines and counselling
The Gambling Awareness Trust runs the national helpline on 1800 936 725, through gamblingcare.ie. GRAI describes it as a 24-hour line, 365 days a year, while a page on gamblingcare.ie gives hours of 9am to 11pm, so ring at whatever hour suits you but expect the stated hours may vary.
Extern Problem Gambling offers free specialist counselling to anyone affected by gambling harm, including family members, on 089 241 5401 or at problemgambling.ie.
The HSE provides addiction services and recovery supports through hse.ie, and its Drugs and Alcohol Helpline on 1800 459 459 opens Monday to Friday, 9:30am to 5:30pm. That line is built around drink and drugs, so for gambling alone the two numbers above are the better first call.
Peer support
Gamblers Anonymous Ireland answers its helpline on 01 872 1133 or 085 879 9995, from 10am to 10pm every day.
Getting help step by step
The order below is the one most people find workable. You can skip a step, but the first two take minutes and cost nothing.
- Step 1
Ring the national gambling helpline
Call 1800 936 725. The call is free and confidential, and you do not need a diagnosis or a plan. Say how much you have lost and over what period; the adviser uses that to point you to the right service. - Step 2
Block your accounts with every operator
Open the responsible gambling section of each site you use and set self-exclusion, or at least deposit limits. Do it for every account, including ones you rarely open, because one forgotten login undoes the rest. - Step 3
Book free counselling with Extern
Contact Extern Problem Gambling on 089 241 5401 or through problemgambling.ie. Counselling is free and open to family members as well, which matters when the debts or the arguments sit with someone else in the house. - Step 4
Go to a Gamblers Anonymous meeting
Find a meeting at gamblersanonymous.ie. There is no booking, no fee and no registration: you turn up and give your first name. Phone and Zoom meetings are listed for anyone who cannot travel. - Step 5
Talk to your GP about further treatment
If the counselling route is not enough, your GP can refer you into HSE addiction services. Mention any low mood or sleep problems too, since gambling harm rarely arrives on its own.
Blocking yourself from gambling sites
Self-exclusion is a block you ask an operator to place on your own account. It does not treat anything, but it removes the easiest route back while counselling or meetings do their work.
Today you set it up site by site, in each operator’s account settings or by asking its support team. Most sites also offer deposit limits, loss limits, reality checks and short cooling-off periods; a limit you can raise yourself after a waiting period is weaker than a full exclusion, so use limits only if you intend to keep playing.
The Gambling Regulation Act 2024 changes this. Section 45 requires the Authority to set up a National Gambling Exclusion Register covering online gambling with all Business to Consumer licensees, with entry available for an indefinite period. Once a person is entered, each licensee holding their account must refund the balance within 7 days of the date in the notice.
Until GRAI announces that the register is open, check grai.ie before assuming it covers you. We could not confirm a launch through our search.
One limit worth knowing: the UK’s GAMSTOP scheme covers sites licensed in Great Britain, and it is not a substitute for blocks on sites serving Irish players.
Counselling or Gamblers Anonymous
The two main free routes in Ireland work differently, and many people use both. Here is how Extern counselling and Gamblers Anonymous compare, based on what each service publishes.
Extern counselling | Gamblers Anonymous |
|---|---|
| Free specialist counselling | Free, no fees at meetings |
| Contact first by phone or website | No booking, just turn up |
| Trained counsellor, one to one | Peer group of people in recovery |
| Open to affected family members | Families go to separate Gam-Anon meetings |
Help for family members
Gambling harm lands on partners, parents and children as often as on the person placing the bets. You can get support whether or not the gambler is ready to.
Gam-Anon runs meetings for family and friends of compulsive gamblers, listed on gamblersanonymous.ie, with groups in Cork, Dublin, Kilkenny, Sligo, Wexford, Laois and Belfast among others. Some groups also hold conference-call meetings, and the meeting secretaries hold the details.
Extern’s counselling is open to anyone affected by gambling, and the national helpline on 1800 936 725 takes calls about a family member’s gambling as well as your own.
On the practical side, protect your own money first: separate accounts, and no new joint credit while the problem is active. That is not a judgement on the gambler. It simply keeps household bills paid while treatment gets going, and the counselling services can talk you through the conversation itself.
Related Terms
Questions about gambling help in Ireland
What is the national gambling helpline number in Ireland?
The Gambling Awareness Trust helpline is 1800 936 725. GRAI lists it as a 24-hour line, while gamblingcare.ie gives 9am to 11pm, so treat the hours as unconfirmed.
Is gambling counselling free in Ireland?
Yes. Extern Problem Gambling provides free specialist counselling on 089 241 5401, and Gamblers Anonymous meetings carry no fee.
Do I need to book a Gamblers Anonymous meeting?
No. GA Ireland says there is no registration and no booking: you turn up and give your first name. Phone and Zoom meetings are also listed.
Can I exclude myself from every Irish gambling site at once?
The Gambling Regulation Act 2024 provides for a National Gambling Exclusion Register. Until GRAI opens it, you exclude yourself with each operator separately.
What happens to money left in my account if I join the register?
Under section 45 of the 2024 Act, a licensee notified of your entry must refund your account balance within 7 days of the date given in the notice.
Is there support for family members of a gambler?
Yes. Gam-Anon meetings are for family and friends, and Extern counselling is open to anyone affected by someone else’s gambling.
More about online casinos
What we would stress is step two. Readers tend to self-exclude from the one site that hurt them and leave three other accounts open. Until a national register is running, each operator has to be told separately, so list every account first and work through them in one sitting.