Do You Pay Tax On Casino Winnings Usa
Do you have to pay taxes on gambling winnings even if you’re not a resident of the United States? While this question involves a little wider degree of supposition, the answer is still an emphatic yes. Even nonresidents who win at casinos or with a winning lottery ticket must pay a percentage to the federal government. Whether it's $5 or $5,000, from an office pool or from a casino, all gambling winnings must be reported on your tax return as 'other income' on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 8.If you win a non-cash.
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Gambling may just be a hobby to you, but there’s nothing casual about it when it comes to filing your federal income taxes.
Nearly two-thirds of Americans gamble, according to a 2016 Gallup poll. And while you might think that winning a few bucks from a scratch ticket or a weekend trip to Vegas isn’t a big deal, the government considers every dollar you win from gambling as taxable income.
As a result, it’s important to understand how to report your gambling winnings, what to include and how you can use your losses in your favor. Here are some things you should know about how gambling winnings are taxed.
1. You must report all your winnings
Depending on how much you won during the year, you may receive a Form W-2G listing your gambling winnings. But even if you don’t receive the form, you’re still required to report all your winnings as “other income” on your tax return.
“All cash and non-cash gambling winnings are taxable and should be reported as ‘other income,’ ” says Patrick Leddy, partner at Farmand, Farmand & Farmand LLP. This includes any winnings you received from casinos, lotteries, raffles or horse races. Non-cash winnings, such as prizes like cars or trips, are also considered taxable income and are taxed based on their fair market value.
To make sure you keep track of both your winnings and losses, record the following details every time you gamble:
- The date and type of your gamble or gambling activity
- The name and location of the gambling establishment
- Names of other people who were with you, if applicable
- How much you won or lost
- Related receipts, bank statements and payment slips
2. You can deduct some losses
No one likes to talk about how much money they lost gambling. But when it comes to your tax return, being honest can save you money. That’s because the IRS allows you to deduct gambling losses.
Though you may not be able to deduct all your losses.
“Taxpayers can deduct gambling losses only up to the amount of their gambling winnings,” says Leddy, “and only if they itemize their deductions.”
For example, if your gambling winnings totaled $5,000 in the tax year, but you lost $6,000, you can only deduct $5,000 of those losses. Keep in mind, itemizing your deductions may not afford you the maximum tax benefit. If your total itemized deductions — which can also include charitable donations, home mortgage interest and medical expenses — don’t exceed your standard deduction, itemizing might not be the optimum choice for you.
Can I deduct the cost of a gambling addiction recovery program?
IRS Publication 502 lists alcohol and drug-related addiction-recovery programs as eligible for the medical expense deduction. However, gambling addiction isn’t included. If you need help dealing with a gambling addiction, you can call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration’s 24/7, 365-days-a-year hotline at 1-800-662-4357.
3. Even illegal gambling winnings are taxable
According to the American Gaming Association, it’s estimated that Americans spend more than $150 billion per year on illegal U.S. sports betting — and yes, that can include your office March Madness pool.
A May 2018 U.S. Supreme Court ruling opened the door for states to legalize sports betting, but not all have done so. That said, any winnings you receive from betting on sports legally or illegally (or from any illegal activity, for that matter) are still taxable.
Learn more about sports betting and taxesBottom line
So how are gambling winnings taxed? Every dollar you win from gambling, whether legally or not, is considered taxable income. As a result, it’s critical that you keep a record of your winnings so that you can report them accurately. You’ll also want to keep track of your losses so that you can use them to qualify for a tax break.
Once you’re ready to file your taxes, Credit Karma Tax® can help show you where to include both your winnings and your losses so that you can maximize your tax refund if you’re owed one.
Jennifer Samuel, senior tax product specialist for Credit Karma Tax®, has more than a decade of experience in the tax preparation industry, including work as a tax analyst and tax preparation professional. She holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Saint Leo University. You can find her on LinkedIn.
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Yes, they are taxable. You are on the honor system to report the income. The casinos will not report any winnings to the IRS. It isn’t just on-line casinos, ANY net gambling winnings are taxable, regardless of where or how they were won.
Whether to cash out it all out at once is your decision. Assuming you are a U.S. citizen you are obligated to declare the income on your next tax return. If you don’t you could be charged with tax evasion. However this sort of thing is largely on the honor system. You are also allowed to deduct any gambling losses in the same year against your winnings.
Zero. You can not deduct a net loss at all. However if you have some W2G forms (generally given on wins of $1200 or more in slots, video poker, and keno) then you can deduct other losses against these wins. You should keep documentation for any losses you claim. You may be thinking of deducting losses on stocks. There you can deduct up to $3000 a year, and can carry over amounts larger than that to the next year. I’m still carrying over losses from the tech crash in 2000.
W2G forms are definitely something to think about when playing video poker at the larger bet amounts. Although you are obligated to pay taxes on your net win at the end of the year regardless of how many W2G forms you have, a payout of $1200 or more will necessitate a wait and obligate you to tip the person paying you. In less classy casinos a hand pay will also cause the tip vultures to start hovering around you. To avoid all of this sometimes the player should consider deviating from optimal strategy. For example with AAA88 in 10/7 double bonus the odds marginally favor keeping the aces only. However in a $2 to $10 game hitting four aces will pay over $1200, necessitating a W2G form, while a full house will stay under the limit. Considering the tax implications keeping the full house is the better play.
To answer your question I’ll assume a four of a kind pays 25 times the bet. Then a four of kind on the deal in a $0.20 50-play game will pay $0.20 * 5 * 50 * 25 = $1250. You will get a four of a kind on the deal once every 4165 hands, on average. If you were to drop the number of hands to 47 the win for a four of a kind on the deal would be 47 * $0.20 * 5 * 25 = $1175, staying under the W2G threshold.
I believe the policy at most casinos is that for large transactions you can have the funds any way you want. Before you consider laundering money by turning cash into checks be aware that casinos ask for a Social Security number and make a record of any transaction involving $10,000 or more.
You are subject to tax for any gambling winnings. However table games players are basically on the honor system. An exception that a W2G form is generated if a win is 300 for 1 or more odds and is over $600. That is usually only an issue with progressive jackpots. Also, if there is a cash transaction of $10,000 or over the casino is obligated to fill out a CTR, which stands for Cash Transaction Report. Yet these are nothing to worry about, and I think many big bettors are overly paranoid about them.
Only single wins of $1,200 or over are subject to withholding. If you won over $1,200 in small wins you would not be subject. When you press the cash out button the machine doesn’t know your citizenship and will just print a voucher for whatever you had. Any $1,200 or over win will always lock up the machine until an employee unlocks it. On high denomination games, usually starting at $10 or $25, the casino may keep a log of all your taxable wins. On a $500 machine, I’m sure they would have somebody standing right next to the machine do the paperwork. When you are done they will give you a single W2G form for the sum, and in your case subtract the withholding from that.
The W2-G is based on the gross win, not the net win. So, yes, if the player got a $5000 push on a Red, White, & Blue, he would get a W2-G.
Cliff from Aiea
In the U.S., any gambling winnings of any kind and any amount are taxable. However, with table games, it is on the honor system to report.
I forwarded this one to Brian, who is a former gaming regulator, and currently a casino manager. Here is what he said,
The casino would not know that someone was in the country illegally. If he had a valid passport, the jackpot would be honored. The illegal may not know this, be scared or they may not have a valid ID to show. Whenever someone wins $1,200 or more, ID is required for tax purposes. If someone doesn’t have his ID, the jackpot would be held in the cage waiting for them to claim it. In most cases, the person has legitimately forgotten their ID; however, sometimes you run into a problem, such as a minor who was gaming. If he doesn’t claim it, the money has to be added back into revenue because the deduction (jackpot) was never paid or there are abandoned property rules that prevail. Also, like the U.S., most countries tax worldwide income. To that end, the U.S. has tax treaties with several countries to withhold or notify the respective governments of monies won in the U.S. so Uncle Sam always gets his cut.
This is getting out of my area, but I'll try to help. The IRS web site says that for this purpose, the U.S. has tax treaties with the following countries: Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Russian Federation, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom. Note that New Zealand is not on the list.
If you are a resident of one of the listed countries, and you hit a jackpot of $1,200 or more, then you should ask to fill out a form W8BEN. That should reduce, or in most cases, eliminate the withholding.
Even if you are not from one of the listed countries, or don’t fill out the form, you can still get the withholding back by filling out form 1040NR, or the simplified version the 1040NR-EZ.
My own tax accountant is Marissa Chien EA, author of Tax Help for Gamblers. She does an outstanding job, but some might consider her expensive. For a 1040NR she says she charges about $1,000. She adds this form is usually incorrectly filled out by most others. Her e-mail is .
IRS PDF’s:
- 1040NR-EZ instructions (PDF)
- 1040NR-EZ form (PDF)
- 1040NR instructions (PDF)
- 1040NR form (PDF)
- W8BEN instructions (PDF)
- W8BEN form (PDF)
Marissa is on Twitter at @taxpro4gamblers, where she occasionally answers tax questions to followers.
Title 31 is a regulation stating that the casino should make a record of cash transactions of over $10,000 by a single player in a single day. In such cases, a CTR must be filled out, which stands for Cash Transaction Report. This includes making multiple transactions, adding up to over $10,000. If you cash chips close to, but under, $10,000, the cage will likely want to make a note of it, in case you come back later that day, and go over the $10,000 daily limit.
My advice is to give them what they ask for. You have a lot more to fear by looking like you are avoiding CTRs than the CTRs themselves. In fact, I think there is nothing to fear from a legitimate CTR; the casinos generate lots of them. Personally, I have generated hundreds, to no known detriment. However, it raises lots of attention when you look like you are going out of your way to avoid them. I know one person who was rebuffed when he tried to cash in chips, because he had too many previous redemptions of just under $10,000. So, that is my two cents. Better suited to answer this is 'Brian,' a current Las Vegas casino manager, and former regulator, whom I like to turn to for procedural questions like this.
In a nutshell, Title 31 is the U.S. Department of Treasury Code designed to prevent money laundering. It requires that certain large cash transactions be reported to the Government. These are filed on FinCEN Form 103 “Currency Transaction Reports by Casinos” (FinCEN is the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network). Casinos are required to report all currency transactions in excess of $10K in a single day. The “day” doesn't follow the clock − a casino picks their day (e.g., 3 a.m. to 2:59 a.m.).
All Financial Institutions comply with Title 31. Casinos are considered financial institutions because of the types of transactions they perform, which are similar to those of a bank (e.g., check cashing, wires, loans, cash exchanges). Unlike traditional financial institutions, casinos conduct a great deal of transactions with unknown patrons. When you set up your checking account at the bank, you give them all of the necessary information needed to fill out CTRs. However, when cashing chips at the cage, the only way the casino can get this information is to ask. Casinos have to get all of the necessary information to fill out a CTR before the patron crosses the $10,000 threshold. Since the fines for non-compliance are hefty, they make a diligent effort to comply.
Casinos are apprehensive to give patrons too much information on Title 31 for fear of inadvertently breaking the law. Casinos are specifically precluded from aiding patrons in structuring transactions in such a manner as to allow them to skirt the requirements. When you ask questions, they prefer to point to a preprinted informational card and don’t like to discuss the matter for fear of divulging inappropriate information.
Circumventing Title 31 is relatively easy for undocumented transactions (e.g., chip buys, chip redemptions, etc.), but why would you want to? If the casino has reason to believe that you are purposefully conducting your transactions in an effort to avoid the reporting requirements of Title 31, they'll fill out a Suspicious Activity Report by Casinos form (aka SARC). If a casino learns that you exceeded the $10K threshold and they didn't get the required information, they will bar you from gaming until they get it. — Brian
Do You Pay Tax On Casino Winnings Usa Today
Here is what the bill says:
In the case of a taxpayer other than a corporation, there is hereby imposed (in addition to any other tax imposed by this subtitle) a tax equal to 5.4 percent of so much of the modified adjusted gross income of the taxpayer as exceeds $1,000,000. -- Section 59C(a) page 337 H.R. 3962 (PDF — 3270 KB) or CNN.comThe surcharge would be applied before the gambler could deduct any offsetting losses. I verified this with Marissa Chien, co-author of Tax Help for Gamblers. For high-level slot players, it is not difficult to rack up W2-G forms in the millions per year. Most of these players will still have a net loss on an annual basis. Past the million point in gross income, the player will pay a 5.4% tax on any win of $1,200 or more, even if there is a net loss for the year. This is just my opinion, but I think that isn’t fair. If we must tax gambling winnings (which they don’t in Canada), it should be on the net, not the gross winnings, on an annual basis. Should this become law, it will ruin high-level slot play in this country.
Marissa is on Twitter at @taxpro4gamblers, where she occasionally answers tax questions to followers.
According to page 12 of IRS publication 529 (PDF), the minimum a gambling log should include is:
- Date and type of wager or wagering activity.
- The name and address or location of the gambling establishment.
- Names of other persons present during the gambling activity.
- Amount won or lost.
In addition, you should keep other documentation, such as W2-G forms and losing tickets. Personally, I keep my log in Excel and always retain W2-G forms and losing sports tickets. The book Tax Help for Gamblers by Jean Scott & Marissa Chien has a whole chapter on this topic.
This question was raised and discussed in the forum of my companion site Wizard of Vegas.
Marissa is on Twitter at @taxpro4gamblers, where she occasionally answers tax questions to followers.
I’m told that said provision (section 59C) was dropped from the final bill. That is the good news. The bad news is there is a new Medicare tax on unearned income above $250,000 for a married couple, starting in 2013. It looks like this may apply to gambling winnings before itemizing any gambling losses. Please ask me about this again in about two years for a status report.
This question was raised and discussed in the forum of my companion site Wizard of Vegas.
gambler
That is quite the difficult and controversial question. Before I answer, let me say that tax law is not my area of expertise, so you should consult a tax professional about your personal situation. Another better source than me about this is Tax Help for Gamblers by Jean Scott & Marissa Chien. Chapter three deals with this topic.
The general rule of thumb is that earnings are taxable and gifts are not. So a no-obligation comp would not be taxable. Anything that was given to you based on points, a drawing, a tournament, or earned some other way would be taxable. Granted this is not going to cover every situation, and some situations can be in a gray area. If you’re in doubt, consult a tax professional.
This question was raised and discussed in the forum of my companion site Wizard of Vegas.
Do You Pay Federal Taxes On Gambling Winnings
First, you'll have to produce photo identification, or the casino will hold onto the money until you do. If you show identification but decline to produce or declare a valid social security or other tax identification number, then 25% to 30% will be withheld depending on whether the jackpot is more or less than $5,000, and whether you are from the United States or a foreign country with a reciprocal tax treaty.
As of 2011, such countries were Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Moldova, Morocco, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Thailand, The Czech Republic, The Netherlands, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan and Venezuela.
I've been trying to figure out the rules exactly, but it is giving me a headache. Please refer to IRS rules for issuing a W2G form for more information.
My thanks to Marissa Chien, co-author of Tax Help for Gamblers , and MathExtremist for their help with this question.
This question is discussed in my forum at Wizard of Vegas.