Brazil sets October 5, 23:59 deadline for bettors to withdraw funds before betting sites are shut down

Brazil’s federal government has announced a suspension of betting operations in the country, with new deposits blocked immediately and all betting sites and apps set to go offline from October 6. For PSPs and acquirers, the important bit is not the headline ban itself but the unwind: refunds, bank reporting, CPF-level balance reconciliation, and a fallback role for Caixa Econômica Federal.

1. On Friday, the federal government announced the suspension of betting activity in Brazil during an event attended by Finance Minister Dario Durigan, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT/SP), and other ministers. A Provisional Measure with the details will be published in an extra edition of the Diário Oficial da União.
2. From the publication of the Provisional Measure on Friday, new deposits into betting platform accounts are prohibited. Bettors have until 23:59 on October 5 to withdraw their funds voluntarily.
3. Starting at 0:00 on October 6, betting sites and apps must come down, and betting operations become prohibited in Brazil. The announcement also says betting companies may no longer offer bets or advertising from that point.
4. The Provisional Measure sets out a withdrawal schedule for balances still sitting on the platforms. Between October 7 and October 8, betting companies must inform financial institutions about remaining balances, broken down by CPF. From October 1 to 14, banks are expected to return those balances to bettors.
5. If banks face an obstacle that prevents them from returning the funds, from October 14 onward Caixa Econômica Federal will receive the money and handle the refunds. Any balance left untouched after 180 days will be transferred to a specific account at Caixa Econômica Federal.

The government also announced a debt renegotiation program aimed at families that have fallen into debt because of online gambling addiction, though it is not limited to that group. Betting has been regulated in Brazil since 2023, when Law 14.790/2023, known as the Lei das Bets, was signed by Lula.