Brazil's Finance Ministry has blocked access to licensed online betting platforms for 2.8 million people who receive Bolsa Família, Brazil's flagship cash-transfer program for low-income families, or the Continuous Cash Benefit (BPC), a federal benefit for low-income elderly people and people with disabilities.
The figure represents 10.4% of the 27 million people covered by the two programs and 11.2% of the 25 million Brazilians who tried to place at least one bet in 2025, according to single-source reporting from Folha de S.Paulo based on ministry data.
Court-Ordered Ban
The Finance Ministry barred all beneficiaries of Bolsa Família and BPC from registering with online bookmakers, known in Brazil as "bets," to comply with a decision by Brazil's Supreme Federal Court (STF). The court sought to prevent welfare payments from being used for gambling.
All 27 million beneficiaries are now prohibited from opening accounts on authorized betting sites. The 2.8 million figure refers to people who already had accounts and had their access suspended. Betting companies must check their customer databases every two weeks.
Licensed operators can consult Sigap, the betting management system run by Brazil's federal data-processing company Serpro, using a person's CPF, the national taxpayer identification number used across public and private services. The system tells companies whether a prospective customer is either allowed or barred because of social-program status, the ministry said.
Other Restricted Groups
Brazilian law also prohibits several other groups from betting: public officials involved in the betting sector, professional athletes, referees, sports executives, inspectors, coaches and people diagnosed with gambling addiction. Unlike the welfare-beneficiary ban, however, those restrictions do not yet have a centralized system that automatically blocks registration. They rely on self-declaration.
More than 925,000 people have also enrolled in Brazil's centralized self-exclusion platform, which lets citizens block their own access to all betting sites authorized by the Finance Ministry's Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA).
Users can choose a fixed or indefinite exclusion period. In the indefinite option, a person may request removal from the restriction only after 12 months. Folha reported that some people registered even if they had never gambled, following recommendations that the system could help prevent third parties from misusing their CPF.
Illegal Sites Remain
Betting industry groups cited by Folha say the model has a significant gap: people barred from licensed platforms may still gamble on clandestine websites operating outside SPA supervision.
Unlicensed operators do not follow Brazil's advertising conduct rules, do not pay the government authorization fee required of legal betting companies and do not collect taxes under the regulated framework. They also remain outside the centralized self-exclusion system.
To use the self-exclusion tool, citizens must access the SPA page on Brazil's federal Gov.br portal. The process requires authentication through a silver or gold Gov.br account, the platform's higher security levels, and completion of a request stating the reason and duration of the block. During the chosen period, authorized betting sites cannot allow access or send targeted advertising to the registered person.