Someone types “EPIS list” on a Sunday evening. They land on pages explaining what the register is, how to sign up, what it blocks. None of them answers the question. They simply wanted to see the list.
That search comes up hundreds of times a month in Belgium, in one form or another. And it rests on a misunderstanding nobody bothers to clear up.
The EPIS list cannot be consulted by anyone. Not by you, not by an employer, not by a journalist, and not by an operator wanting to know who is on it. This article explains what it really is, the five ways of ending up on it, and why that very inaccessibility is what makes it useful.
A register, not a directory
EPIS has existed since 2004 and marked its twentieth year in 2024. It is maintained by the Belgian Gaming Commission, which updates it continuously.
The word “list” is misleading. This is not a document you open but a database you query. An operator does not consult EPIS: it asks a precise question about one specific person and receives a binary answer. Allowed, or not.
At no point does anyone see who else is on it.
The scheme protects every channel at once, online and physical alike. That is what sets it apart from an in-house exclusion offered by a site, and I have set out how it works for the player on my responsible gambling page.
The five ways of ending up on it
People generally assume you put yourself on it. That is one route out of five, and three of them do not depend on the person at all.
Voluntary exclusion
The best known. You request it yourself, online through itsme or a card reader, and it takes effect as soon as the Commission receives it. No justification is asked for.
You may also name a person of trust to support you through the process: a partner, a family member, a friend or a colleague.
A relative’s request
A third party can request an access ban for someone in difficulty, provided they can show a personal interest. The procedure takes considerably longer, and for a precise reason: the person concerned is summoned and can put their case to the Commission before any decision is taken.
That safeguard is little known. Nobody is entered without their knowledge.
Exclusion by profession
This is the least known route, and the most surprising. Certain professions are entered automatically, by the nature of their office: magistrates, notaries, bailiffs and members of the police services.
Those people asked for nothing and present no particular risk. The ban is not there to protect them but to protect the functions they hold, by keeping gambling debts away from those who decide, certify or enforce.
A court decision
A judicial measure can lead to exclusion with no question of addiction. The Commission cites guardianship of property: someone whose assets are managed by a court-appointed third party has no access to gambling.
Collective debt settlement
This is the broadest route, and nobody talks about it. Anyone in collective debt settlement is excluded, automatically, online and offline alike.
The logic matches the professions: it is not about establishing an addiction but about avoiding a situation. Someone whose debts are being cleared under court supervision has no business in a casino.
The Commission groups those last three routes under the term preventive exclusions: they affect people in whom no addiction has been established.
One methodological detail follows, and it explains why the public figures are awkward to read. The same person can be excluded on several grounds, for instance voluntarily and through collective debt settlement. The number of files is therefore higher than the number of people.
That point alone also explains why the register cannot be public. A consultable list would expose, among others, every magistrate and police officer in the country, and everyone in collective debt settlement.
Who queries the register, and when
Two precise moments, and they are not alike.
When an online account is created, the operator verifies your identity and then queries EPIS. If you are on it, registration is refused. That is why the scheme only works on licensed sites: they alone are connected to the register. What that check requires in practice is set out in my page on the identity check mandatory since 2025.
On physical entry to a casino, an automatic gaming venue or a betting shop, the same check happens before you are given access to the games.
In both cases the answer says nothing beyond allowed or not. The operator learns neither the reason for the entry, nor its duration, nor who requested it.
It does not stop on its own
This is the most misunderstood point, and the one to know before signing up.
A voluntary exclusion has no end date. It does not lapse after six months or a year: it runs until you request its cancellation yourself. Do nothing, and it stays active.
An exclusion requested by a relative works differently. It lasts at least one year, and only after that term can the person concerned ask for it to be lifted.
The asymmetry is logical. An exclusion you impose on yourself can be lifted when you decide; one imposed by a third party requires you to show the situation has changed.
How you come off it, and why it takes three months
The method depends on how you got on it, and the gap between the two is considerable.
For a voluntary exclusion
You send the Commission a letter requesting cancellation, signed and accompanied by a copy of both sides of your identity card, by registered post.
Then comes the delay: access is only restored three months later. That is not administrative slowness but an imposed period of reflection, preventing anyone from leaving the scheme on impulse, on a tempting evening.
For an exclusion requested by a third party
This is far more demanding. The request must be reasoned and supported by evidence: bank statements showing there are no debts, documents attesting to support received for a gambling problem.
The Commission expects a demonstration on four points: your financial situation, your ability to limit the share of your income spent on gambling, your ability to control the time spent, and the fact that you treat gambling as entertainment.
The third party who requested the exclusion is informed and can respond. The file then goes to a sitting, and you are summoned to present your arguments.
Why it will stay closed
Back to the original question. Why can it not be consulted?
Because a list of people banned from gambling is, by nature, a list of people struggling with gambling. Making it visible would publicly expose a vulnerability the scheme exists to protect.
And because it also holds, as we have seen, entire professions entered automatically.
The only information you are entitled to is the information about you. If you believe you are on it wrongly, the Commission is the only interlocutor, and it handles that kind of request.
So the inaccessibility is not a flaw in the system. It is what allows someone to ask for help without anyone else knowing.
Frequently asked questions
Can the EPIS list be consulted?
No, by anyone. The register is queried by operators about one specific person, who receive a binary answer. No operator, no third party and no private individual can see who is on it.
How do I know whether I am on the EPIS list?
By contacting the Belgian Gaming Commission. You are entitled to the information concerning you, and to none other. An operator cannot tell you, even having just refused your registration.
How long does a voluntary exclusion last?
It has no end date. It stays active as long as you do not request its cancellation. An exclusion requested by a relative lasts at least one year.
How do you come off the EPIS list?
Through a signed letter sent by registered post to the Commission, with a copy of both sides of the identity card. Access is restored three months later. If a third party requested the exclusion, the request must also be reasoned and backed by evidence.
Which professions are entered automatically?
Magistrates, notaries, bailiffs and members of the police services. The entry relates to the nature of their office, not to their gambling behaviour.
Does collective debt settlement lead to exclusion?
Yes, automatically, online and offline alike. The Commission classes it among the preventive exclusions, alongside those tied to a profession or a judicial measure.
Can you play online while on the list?
No, on no site licensed in Belgium. Sites that would let you play are not connected to the register, which means they hold no Belgian licence. You will notice their absence from the comparison of licensed operators.
Sources
- Access ban, Belgian Gaming Commission, for the minimum age and the professions entered automatically
- Voluntary request for an access ban, for the procedure and the person of trust
- Request by a third party, for the one-year minimum and the right of defence
- Cancelling an access ban, for the three-month delay and the documents required
- In figures, for preventive exclusions and collective debt settlement
- A licensed operator’s note on EPIS, for the age of the system
- Belgian gambling act of 7 May 1999
Recorded 7 September 2026. The terms for requesting and lifting an entry are set by the Belgian Gaming Commission and may change; in case of doubt, it is the authority.
Three years in iGaming, focused on licensed casinos in Belgium. I write every CasinAudit page myself and check each figure against an official source.