Do I Have To Report Gambling Winnings To Irs
Sep 19, 2020 About Form W-2 G, Certain Gambling Winnings File this form to report gambling winnings and any federal income tax withheld on those winnings. The requirements for reporting and withholding depend on: the type of gambling. Gambling winnings include not only the money you win, but the fair market value of any prizes or “comps” you receive as well. If, like the vast majority of people, you’re a casual recreational gambler, you’re supposed to report all your gambling winnings on your tax return every year. All Winnings Must Be Reported. Under IRS rules, you must report winnings from any type of gambling activity —including lotteries, racing, bingo, sports, slot machines, and cards—no matter how much you earned. This includes money. Any and all gambling winnings must be reported to the IRS. It only means that you do not have to fill out Form W2-G for these particular table-based games.
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Hit it big playing the lottery? You’re probably thinking about how you’ll spend all that sweet cash. But first, Uncle Sam is going to want his cut.
The Internal Revenue Service considers lottery money as gambling winnings, which are taxed as ordinary income. The total amount of tax you pay on your lottery winnings will depend on multiple factors, including the state where you live and whether you take the winnings as a lump-sum payment (one check for the full amount after taxes have been withheld) or an annuity (smaller annual payments that are paid out and taxed over time).
Although you probably won’t be able to completely escape the tax man, you may be able to offset taxes on lottery winnings by claiming deductions you qualify for. Here are some things to know about paying federal income taxes on lottery winnings. Keep in mind tax rules may vary for state and local income taxes, so for the purposes of this article, we’re talking about federal income taxes only.
Do I have to pay taxes on lottery winnings?
The IRS considers most types of income taxable, unless the tax code specifically says it’s not. Because lottery winnings are considered gambling winnings, which are definitely considered taxable income, the IRS will want its cut.
For lottery winnings, that means one of two things.
- You’ll either pay taxes on all the winnings in the year you receive the money — for winnings paid out as a lump-sum payment.
- Or you’ll pay taxes only on the amount you receive each year — for winnings paid as an annuity.
Take note: If you receive interest on annuity installments that haven’t been paid to you yet, that interest must be included in your gross income for the tax year you received it.
How will the IRS know about my lottery winnings?
If your winnings are $600 or more, the lottery agency is supposed to give you a Form W-2G that you’ll have to file with your federal income tax return if the agency withheld federal income tax from your winnings.
The lottery agency is also required to send a copy of this form to the IRS if your winnings are $600 or more, so it’s important to accurately report your winnings on your federal tax return.
And even if you don’t receive a W-2G for your lottery winnings (or other type of gambling payouts), you’re still expected to report those winnings as income on your federal tax return.
How could winning the lottery affect my taxes overall?
Getting a huge financial windfall can be life-changing, but it doesn’t change everything — you’ll still have to pay taxes and bills. Federal and state taxes can decrease the amount of money you ultimately receive, so it’s crucial to understand taxes on lottery winnings when you strike it big.
Whether you’re all-in on your prize money and accept it as a lump sum or you’re receiving payments over time, winning the lottery generally increases your income. Taxes are calculated based on your taxable income for the year, so if the extra income from lottery winnings moves you into a higher tax bracket, you’ll typically end up paying more income tax.
If you fail to report taxable income (including lottery winnings) on your tax return, you could owe additional tax, interest and even penalties.
What is the tax rate for lottery winnings?
Depending on where you live, you may need to pay taxes on lottery winnings to your state and local governments in addition to the federal government.
Federal tax
Right off the bat, lottery agencies are required to withhold 24% from winnings of $5,000 or more, which goes to the federal government. But, depending on whether your winnings affect your tax bracket, there could potentially be a gap between the mandatory withholding amount and what you’ll ultimately owe the IRS.
Even if your lottery winnings don’t boost your tax bracket, if the federal government withheld too much tax on your lottery winnings, you might get a refund at tax time.
State and local tax
Each state has its own rules on taxing lottery winnings, so check both your state’s tax website and your city’s tax website for information. For example, if you live and win in New York City, the state government will withhold 8.82% and the city will withhold another 3.876% — on top of your base federal withholding of 24%.
Seven states — Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and Wyoming — don’t have income tax, so big winners in those states won’t pay state taxes on prize money. Some other states don’t have a state lottery at all.
And three more states — California, New Hampshire and Tennessee — exclude their state lottery winnings from taxable income. But before you play the lottery in a different state, check the rules so that you know whether any taxes will apply to your winnings.
Should I take a lump sum or annuity payments?
Whether you get to choose between a lump sum or annual installments for your lottery payout can depend on different factors, like state lottery rules and how much you won. Either way, here’s how the two payout types will affect your federal income taxes.
Lump-sum impact
Receiving your winnings as a single lump sum could potentially bump you right into the highest bracket for the tax year in which you win the lottery. That would mean if you win a very large amount, your income over a set threshold ($518,401 for single taxpayers and $622,051 for married couples filing jointly, for 2020) would be taxed by the IRS at 37%.
“If you decide to have a lump sum payment, that would probably put you in the higher tax bracket for that one year,” says Megan McManus, CPA and owner at Megan McManus, CPA.
For example, if you’re single and your current taxable income is $40,000, a $1 million lottery payout, taken in a lump sum, would increase your total income to $1,040,000 for the tax year. At the federal level, the portion of your income over $518,401 would be taxed at 37%. But all the lower tax rates would also apply to portions of your income less than that threshold. Here’s what you’d pay (rounded to the nearest dollar).
- 10% on income up to $9,700 = $970
- 12% on the next $29,775 = $3,573
- 22% on the next $44,725 = $9,839
- 24% on the next $76,525 = $18,366
- 32% on the next $43,375 = $13,880
- 35% on the next $306,200 = $107,170
- 37% on the last $529,700 = $195,989
If you add all that up, your total federal income tax obligation for the year would be $349,787.
Do I Have To Report Gambling Winnings To Irs Refunds
Annual payments impact
Depending on your income, receiving annual payments will also likely affect your tax bracket — but the immediate financial impact could be less.
“The annuity payments would probably allow you to be in a lower tax bracket each year,” McManus says.
Let’s look at the above scenario with the same amount of lottery winnings broken out into 30 annual payments of about $33,333.
With the annuity approach, your taxable income would increase to just $73,333 in the year you won the lottery (assuming other factors like a wage increase didn’t boost your taxable income). The highest federal tax rate that would apply to your income would be just 22%. Here’s what you’d pay (rounded to the nearest dollar).
- 10% on up to $9,700 = $970
- 12% on the next $29,775 = $3,573
- 22% on the remaining $33,858 = $7,449
Your total federal income tax obligation for the year in which you win would be just $11,992.
Learn more about the marginal tax rate and what it means for your winnings.
How can I offset federal taxes on lottery winnings?
If you’ve won the lottery, the IRS expects you to report it as income on your tax return. And Uncle Sam is going to want his share whether you receive your winnings as a lump sum or annual payments. But there are ways to try to offset the increased tax obligation your lottery winnings will cause.
Claim deductions
Deductions are dollar amounts the IRS allows you to subtract from your adjusted gross income, or AGI, if you meet the requirements. This lowers your taxable income, which in turn can reduce your tax obligation. Here are two possible deductions (if you itemize).
- Charitable donations — You may be able to deduct the value of your charitable contributions from your income as long as the organization is a qualified tax-exempt organization — but certain conditions and limits apply. For example, you can only deduct cash donations that are equal to no more than 60% of your AGI.
- Gambling losses — You can deduct your gambling losses (like the cost of lottery tickets that you didn’t win on) as long as they don’t exceed the winnings you report as income. For example, if you report $1,000 in winnings but you have $2,000 in losses, you can only deduct $1,000.
Play the lottery in a pool
If you join a pool with others to buy lottery tickets, then any potential lottery prizes will be smaller because you’re sharing it — but your tax hit will be smaller, too.
“You’ll only be taxed on your portion of the income,” McManus says, “so if you receive a third of the winnings, you would only pay tax on that third.”
To make sure you’re taxed correctly, document how much of the winnings go to each person in your group. Ask the lottery agency to cut checks for each person in the pool instead of having one person collect and distribute the winnings. This may help ensure you only pay taxes on the amount you actually receive.
What’s next
Winning the lottery could change your life by giving you a certain level of financial freedom. But before claiming your prize, consider speaking with a financial or tax adviser who can help you understand the potential tax impact of your winnings and plan the best way to manage your windfall.
Consider how you plan to use the money.
“If you want to buy a house or put your kids through college, you might need the funds now, as opposed to taking annual payments,” McManus says.
But if your objective is to ensure a steady stream of income, annual payments may be more appealing to you.
Whether you receive your lottery winnings as a lump sum or annual payments though, you’ll still have to pay the federal government — and possibly your state and local government — their share of your winnings. So it’s important to have a plan for how to best save, invest and grow the winnings you’ll keep.
Relevant sources: Topic No. 419 Gambling Income and Losses IRS: Publication 538 New York Lottery General Rules IRS: Pay As You Go, So You Won’t Owe
Christina Taylor is senior manager of tax operations for Credit Karma Tax®. She has more than a dozen years of experience in tax, accounting and business operations. Christina founded her own accounting consultancy and managed it for more than six years. She codeveloped an online DIY tax-preparation product, serving as chief operating officer for seven years. She is the current treasurer of the National Association of Computerized Tax Processors and holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration/accounting from Baker College and an MBA from Meredith College. You can find her on LinkedIn.
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We doubt that anyone ever woke up thinking, “Gee, I hope I get audited by the IRS this year”. An IRS audit could easily be one of the worst things that could happen to you this year. So if you want to avoid receiving that ominous letter from the IRS that your 2015 tax return is being audited here are seven red flags you need to totally avoid.
Not reporting all of your taxable income
Those 1099’s and W-2s you received this past January? You weren’t the only one that got them. The IRS got them too. It’s important to make sure you report all of the required income on your return. The computers used by the IRS are pretty darn good at matching the numbers on your return with the numbers on your 1099s and W-2s. If they turn up a mismatch this will create a red flag and the IRS computers will spit out a bill. If those darn computers do make a mistake and you receive a tax form that shows income that wasn’t yours or lists incorrect amounts of income, you will need to get the issuer to file the correct form with the IRS. And what about that income you earned on those side jobs? In most cases you should have received a 1099 documenting your earnings. If not, this is definitely a case where it’s better to be safe than sorry and report it.
Taking deductions that are higher than average
If the IRS spots deductions on your return that are disproportionately large in comparison with your income, it may pull your return for review. For example, a very large medical expense –again out of proportion to your income – could cause a red flag. However, if you do have the documentation to support the deduction then don’t be afraid to claim it.
Claiming really big charitable deductions
Charitable deductions can be a great write off. Plus, when you contribute to a charity it can make you feel all fuzzy and warm inside. However, if those deductions are disproportionately large in comparison with your income, it will raise a red flag. The reason for this is because the IRS knows what is the average charitable deduction for people at your level of income. Did you donate some very valuable property? In this case we hope you got an appraisal for it. Did you make a non-cash donation over $500? Then you better make sure you file form 8283. if you don’t file this form or if you don’t have an appraisal supporting that big donation you’ll become an even bigger target for auditing.
Claiming big gambling losses or not reporting gambling winnings
If you’re a recreational gambler you must report your winnings as “other income” on the front page of your 1040 form. If you’re a professional gambler you will need to report your winnings on Schedule C. If you don’t report gambling winnings this can draw the attention of the IRS – especially in the event that the casino or other venue reported your winnings on form W-2G. It can also be very risky to claim big gambling losses. In fact, what you should do is deduct your losses only to the extent that you report your gambling winnings. For example, if you were to report you had won $5000 gambling but had losses of $20,000, this could cause a red flag. Also, only professional gamblers can write off the costs of meals, lodging and other expenses related to gambling. And the surest way to invite an audit is by writing off what you lost at gambling but no gambling income. If you’ve done any of these things, or are worried about some other common tax return mistakes, it might be wise to file an amended tax return and account for those wins or losses correctly.
Writing off a hobby as a loss
Do I Have To Report Gambling Winnings To Irs
You will dramatically increase the odds of “winning” an IRS audit if you file a schedule C showing big losses from any activity that could be considered a hobby such as jewelry making, coin and stamp collecting, dog breeding, and the like. IRS agents are especially trained to ferret out people who improperly deduct losses associated with a hobby. You must report any income your hobby generated or whatever but can then deduct your expenses up to that income level. But the IRS will not allow you to write off losses from a hobby. So if you want to write off a loss you must be running your hobby as if it were a business and must have the reasonable expectation of generating a profit. As an example of how this works if your hobby generates a profit in 3 out of every 5 years then the IRS will presume that you’re actually in business to make a profit unless it can prove something to the contrary. Of course, if you’re unfortunate and win the audit lottery the IRS will make you prove that you do have a legitimate business and that it’s not just a hobby. So make sure you keep all documents that support your expenses.
If you report income from self-employment of $100,000 or more
Let’s suppose that you’re self-employed, had a really great year and had earnings of $100,000 or more you are reporting on schedule C. This is likely to trigger an IRS audit because according to the IRS people who file a schedule C are more likely to under report their income and overstate their deductions. What this means is that if you earn $100,000 or more and are reporting it on schedule C you’ll need to make sure you have the documentation necessary to support your deductions and again, make sure you report all your income very accurately.
If you work in certain industries
The IRS knows based on past audit experience that there are certain activities or industries that have a higher incidence of what’s technically called noncompliance but really means cheating on their taxes. Included in this group are the tax returns of air service operators, gas retailers, auto dealers, attorneys and taxi operators. So, if you’re employed in one of these industries or activities and don’t want to suffer an IRS audit, it’s best to follow the old adage that honesty is the best policy.