The BCLC Updated Self-Exclusion Program – An Empowering Amendment

The BCLC updated self-exclusion program renamed ‘Game Break’ will now feature an active reinstatement process. The purpose of this voluntary self-exclusion program update is to provide support to players who want to return to gambling. Participants will be able to choose to enroll in ‘Game Break’ for a term of six months, one, two or three years.

The recent updates in the BCLC self-exclusion program aim to make it more approachable to players and, most of all, to reduce the stigma. The BCLC administration is eager to work towards supporting and empowering players, so they can better understand their own gambling behaviours.

‘Game Break’, the BCLC New-Look Program

The new reinstatement process updates in the BCLC self-exclusion program have the goal of helping individuals recognize the risks in their unhealthy ways, so they can make informed decisions about their gambling and maintain positive play habits.

On the subject, Ryan McCarthy – BCLC director of player health, added: ‘We want players to gamble within their time and money limits, and we want them to feel empowered to take a break if it’s what they need. Taking a break from something is often seen as a positive choice.’. In this regard, we can all agree that returning to gambling can be just as hard and challenging as taking a break from it.

Playing at a top online casino for Canadian players can certainly be a lot of fun, but only if you do it responsibly. Knowing that with the new changes and upgrades in the program, you will be able to examine your gambling habits more precisely is certainly an advantage for any Canadian player.

As already mentioned, the new updates in the BCLC self-exclusion program have further objectives of reducing the stigma and proving that gamblers who feel like returning to gambling is right for them, should have the resources, the support, and the chance to do so.

The terms of enrolment for the BCLC voluntary self-exclusion program (VSE) will remain the same. Players can register and enroll in Game Break for a period of six months, one year, two years, or even three years.

Once the BCLC voluntary self-exclusion program has been completed, the individuals who choose to return to play would have to go through an online course. ‘Game Plan’ will give them the opportunity to self-reflect and to set goals and perspectives before returning to gambling. Ultimately, participants in the BCLC updated self-exclusion program can also choose to further extend their Game Break term if they feel the need to.

The British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) Background

The British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) is a crown corporation. For those of you who don’t know, the Crown is the government of Canada. In other words, Crown corporations are government organizations with commercial and public objectives.

The BCLC in Canada is based in Kamloops and has a secondary office in Vancouver. The enterprise offers a vast range of gambling products and services, such as lottery tickets, brick-and-mortar casino gambling services and online gambling.

The BCLC three business units, Lottery, Casino and eGaming, have five support divisions: Human Resources, Information Technology, Compliance & Security, Finance, and Communications. According to the Gaming Control Act (GCA), the BCLC is responsible for the management of all commercial gaming in British Columbia and has the authority to:

An interesting fact to know is that the British Columbia Lottery Corporation’s annual revenue exceeds the impressive amount of CDN $3.1 billion. Stay tuned over the following paragraphs of our blog, related to the BCLC updated self-exclusion program. We’ll reveal to you more about the Crown corporation’s business lines and its various endeavors, so get ready.

The BCLC Businesses & Involvements

The British Columbia Lottery Corporation has a vast portfolio of products and services, which we’ll tell you about in this paragraph. As already mentioned, the corporation runs various businesses but also offers different social services. The table below will give you a better picture of the BCLC’s endeavors and responsibilities.

Notice that the BCLC platform PlayNow is the only licensed online gambling site in British Columbia. It offers lottery, online casino games and sports betting. Apart from its eGaming activity, the corporation has 36 casinos and gaming centers across the province, offering everything from slots, through table games, to restaurants and concert venues.

The discussed British Columbia Lottery Corporation updated self-exclusion program, ‘Game Break’, is a part of the GameSense Advisor Program. The organization’s role is to educate, support, as well as help towards embedding responsible gambling principles.

Another important thing to mention is that the British Columbia Lottery Corporation updated self-exclusion program came right after the announced new partnership with Everi Holdings. The gaming machine and financial trading services business will now provide its Everi Compliance anti-money laundering software to support the BCLC’s gaming operations. That includes BCLC’s lottery, bingo, casino, and online operations.

Gambling Laws in British Columbia

Speaking of gambling in BC, we couldn’t have missed reviewing the topic of gambling laws in the province. British Columbia is one of the largest and most populated Canadian provinces. It has dozens of casinos, several thousand lottery outlets and a legal online gambling market.

However, almost all land-based casinos in British Columbia are run by the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC), or two of the biggest private gambling enterprises — Gateway Casino & Entertainment and Great Canadian Gaming. In addition to that, there are also a few First Nation casinos. The minimum gambling age in BC is 19, both for land-based and online casinos.

Online gambling in the province is also legal, although solely through a single platform. BC’s only legal online gambling site PlayNow.com has a massive selection of lottery, keno, instant games, casino games, live casino titles, pools, poker, bingo, as well as a premium sportsbook.

Honestly, despite the fact it’s a province-run gaming venue, it has all the entertainment one could possibly need. Finally, be aware that in order to register and play at BCLC’s eGaming platform PlayNow, you must be a British Columbia resident.

FAQ

Hopefully, our blog reviewing the recent updates in the BCLC self-exclusion program was interesting to read and gave you all the information you needed. In this last section, we have included our readers’ most commonly asked questions on the subject, so make sure you don’t miss it.