Where this came from
Following engagement between the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, the Irish Banking Culture Board, and the Irish Banking and Payments Federation, Ireland's major retail banks rolled out card-level gambling blocks through 2025, described jointly as a "Common Commitment of Care" for problem gambling. GRAI's own research context: ESRI estimates roughly 1 in 30 Irish adults has problem gambling, with a further 279,000 showing moderate-risk signs — and banking data shows the large majority of that spend now happens online, via debit card.
| Provider | Type | Default | Re-enable delay | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AIB | Bank | Off (opt-in) | Cooling-off period | Debit card gambling merchants |
| Bank of Ireland | Bank | Off (opt-in) | Cooling-off period | Debit card, extending to credit |
| PTSB | Bank | Off (opt-in) | 48 hours | Debit & credit card gambling merchants |
| EBS | Bank | Off (opt-in) | Cooling-off period | Debit card gambling merchants |
| Revolut | Fintech | Off (opt-in) | 48 hours | Card payments only, not transfers |
How to enable each one
- PTSB: App → Security → "Block Gambling Transactions." Also available via Open24 Online Banking if you don't have the app.
- Revolut: Profile → Security → Gambling transactions, toggle on.
- AIB, Bank of Ireland, EBS: available through each bank's own app under card or security settings — check your provider's app directly, as exact menu paths vary and update over time.
What none of these blocks cover
Every option on this page works the same underlying way: detecting card payments coded under a gambling-related merchant category code (MCC) and declining them. That means, consistently across all five:
- Bank transfers and payments through third-party apps generally aren't covered.
- Miscoded merchants — an operator using a non-gambling MCC, deliberately or by error, can slip past the block.
- Crypto purchases are typically a separate toggle with different (often no) cooling-off protection, meaning funds can still reach a crypto-accepting casino through that route.
Why the 48-hour delay specifically
Every provider that publishes a specific figure lands on the same 48-hour window between requesting the block be lifted and it taking effect. This is deliberate: it's long enough to remove the option during an acute moment of wanting to chase losses, while not requiring a lengthy formal process to use at all.
Related reading
See Revolut and debit cards for the two providers covered here in full depth, and the National Gambling Exclusion Register for the operator-level equivalent.