Brazil's betting ban spawns fake refund portals and clone sportsbooks

Weeks after Brazil switched off its licensed betting market, scammers are exploiting the refund process. A lookalike of the government's official ban portal asks users for their tax ID and a 15% "release tax" via Pix, and clones of formerly licensed brands are circulating. The Finance Ministry says refunds carry no fees and remaining balances are paid only through Caixa.

The scam: a "release tax" for money that is not there

Brazil's provisional measure MP 1.394/2026, published on 25 September, banned fixed-odds betting and ordered operators to return player balances. The government set up an official landing address on the gov.br domain to explain the ban and the refund process.

According to VEJA, a copycat site using the same name on a .org domain mimics that page. In VEJA's test, the fake site showed a balance of R$1,800 "available" to a reporter who had never held a betting account. To release the money, the site asked for the user's CPF and a 15% "Imposto de Liberação" (release tax), payable by Pix.

When AskSpinner checked on 23 October, the official gov.br address was online. It displayed an access-blocked notice that explains the ban and points users to the government's betting information pages.

SBT News reported on 22 October that a second version of the scam uses the names of well-known betting brands to lure users into "recovering" balances.

The government's response

In a statement to SBT News, the SPA said it had not received complaints about the practice. It set out three points for bettors:

• No fee or tax is charged to return betting balances, and bettors should not pay or hand over personal data to sites asking for one.
• Any balances still outstanding are being returned exclusively through Caixa Econômica Federal.
• The payment channels used by scammers are under investigation, and linked accounts are blocked as soon as they are identified.

The SPA also told SBT News that more than 100,000 illegal sites have been blocked. The time frame for that figure was not specified. The government's own tally published on 10 October counted 16,627 illegal betting sites referred for blocking between 25 September and 9 October alone.

Clones of licensed brands

The Brazilian Institute for Responsible Gaming (IBJR), which represents formerly licensed operators and opposes the ban, says the problem goes beyond the fake government page. Speaking to SBT News, IBJR president Carlos Lima said copycat sites are using the names and branding of the 188 companies that held licences under the regulated regime. Licensed operators were required to use the .bet.br domain. The clones, Lima said, run on .net, .bet, .com and .online addresses and are promoted through WhatsApp groups.

Where the refund process stands

Under the Ministry of Finance's 5 October timetable:

• Voluntary withdrawals were open until 23:59 on 5 October.
• Betting sites went offline from 6 October.
• Operators reported customer balances to banks on 6–7 October.
• Banks returned funds to bettors' accounts between 9 and 14 October.
• From 14 October, Caixa took over as the intermediary for remaining payments.

The government's 10 October update, reported by Agência Brasil, gave this picture:

The distribution is what makes the scam work. Almost every account held only a token sum, so most former customers have little to collect. A message promising a four-figure "unclaimed balance" therefore stands out, and a 15% fee on it looks like a reasonable price to pay.

Political clock

MP 1.394 is still awaiting the installation of its mixed congressional committee, according to the National Congress tracker. Lawmakers filed 99 amendments before the 13 October deadline. The measure enters the urgency regime on 9 November, and the deadline for Congress to deliberate on it is 23 November. Separately, Ministry of Finance Ordinance 3.005/2026 gives former operators until 15 December 2026 to regularise outstanding obligations.

What to watch

• Whether the SPA or the police announce action against the accounts receiving the scam's Pix payments.
• The next official update on the R$159 million still outstanding and on the eight operators facing AGU action.
• Committee installation and any vote on MP 1.394 before 23 November.

---