Brazil blocks social benefit recipients from online gambling deposits
The federal government will prevent beneficiaries from making new deposits in online betting accounts, following a Supreme Court ruling.
Key Points
- Beneficiaries will be unable to open new betting accounts or make deposits in existing accounts
- The system will be checked through a centralized database
- The measure affects over 50 million Family Allowance recipients and 3.75 million BPC beneficiaries
The Brazilian Federal Government will prevent beneficiaries of the Family Allowance (Bolsa Família) and the Continuous Cash Benefit (BPC – Benefício de Prestação Continuada) from making new deposits in online gambling accounts until the end of the year.
According to Regis Dudena, Secretary of Prizes and Gambling at the Ministry of Finance, the measure complies with a Supreme Federal Court (STF) ruling that requires the government to stop the use of social assistance funds for online gambling.
Two restrictions will be implemented: beneficiaries will not be able to open new betting accounts, and those with existing accounts will be blocked from making new deposits. In August, Family Allowance paid benefits to around 19.2 million families, equivalent to more than 50 million people. The BPC had 3.75 million beneficiaries in July.
Dudena explained that Brazilian law requires users to register a CPF, which is a Brazilian’s individual tax ID number, and a bank account to hold online gambling accounts. Only after registration can they deposit funds to place bets.
The government will require the approximately 80 licensed sports betting operators to check a centralized system provided by the Federal Data Processing Service (Serpro) whenever a new user registers or makes a deposit.
Dudena said: “It is a centralized registration, with the data of the beneficiaries of these two major social programs, which will be consulted by the betting houses via API. They will not receive the data of all beneficiaries, but they will have to consult at specific points to ensure these beneficiaries cannot deposit money.”
He added that the system is expected to start operating in September, with a one-month adaptation period, and be fully functional by the end of the year.
Good to know: In Argentina, the Senate of Salta recently approved a law barring individuals who are behind on child support from entering casinos, sports stadiums, and cultural events
The Ministry of Finance estimates that the effective monthly spending on online bets, calculated as total wagers minus prizes paid, is around BR2.9bn ($580m), far below the BR20–30bn monthly figures reported by the Central Bank. Around 17.7 million Brazilians placed bets in the first half of 2025, averaging about BR164 per active bettor per month.
He concluded: “From now on, we are starting to take a closer look at the players. We know the average spending is BR160 per month. But how is it distributed? I have many players with very low spending and a few with very high spending. We are beginning to examine this in more detail now.”
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