Gambling might be an adrenaline rush, but your winnings are subject to the federal income tax and this can throw a damper on things.Gambling winnings consist of income from wagers and bets, lotteries, sweepstakes, raffles, prizes, awards, and contests. Gambling Loss Deductions Broadened Under New Tax Law. As a result, you can deduct $2,500, but you’re taxed on the $7,500 difference. If you incurred $5,000 in losses and have zero winnings, you get no deduction at all. The best you can hope to do tax-wise on your 2017 return is to break even.
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Gambling winnings are income, the same as money you make from your job or from renting out half of your two-family house. Gambling winnings are just as much income as other somewhat 'speculative' earnings you may have, such as commissions on sales (since that's not guaranteed but depends on making the sales) or a holiday bonus (which depends on whether and how much your employer wants to give you). As such, it is taxable as any other income.
Income: The IRS has made this very plain: in their online advice under 'Tax Topics: Topic 419, Gambling Income and Loses', the IRS said in no uncertain words that ' Gambling winnings are fully taxable and you must report the income on your tax return.' (The IRS also provides an interactive online 10-minute interview for gamblers; the online assistant takes you through a series of questions and provides answers in claiming winnings (and deducting losses).
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Sometimes the payer (the one paying your winnings; e.g., the casino) must issue you a form (Form W-2G) with your winnings and any withholding for your taxes if your winnings reach certain levels, which vary by type of gambling. (The last instruction page of the Form W-2G lists threshold amounts of winnings requiring that the form be issued to you.) But even if you do not get a form, you do not get a free pass--you still need to legally report winnings topping over $600. As the IRS goes on to say on this subject: 'A payer is required to issue you a Form W-2G.pdf, Certain Gambling Winnings, if you receive certain gambling winnings or have any gambling winnings subject to federal income tax withholding. You must report all gambling winnings (including lotteries, raffles) on line 21, Schedule 1, Form 1040 as 'Other Income') including winnings that aren't reported on a Form W-2G.pdf. When you have gambling winnings, you may be required to pay an estimated tax on that additional income. For information on withholding on gambling winnings, refer to Publication 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax.'
Can I Deduct Losses?: You can deduct your gambling losses if you itemize on a Form 1040 Schedule A. You have to track all your losses and winnings and report them comprehensively, and you can only deduct up to the amount of gambling income you report. That is, you can use your gambling losses to offset your winnings for tax purposes, but you can't do more than offset your gambling income: gambling losses cannot be deducted from or be offset against other forms of income.
Unfortunately, the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act while enhancing the standard deduction also reduces certain itemized deductions, so the net effect is to make itemizing less attractive for many people—they end up doing better without itemizing. That being the case, whether it is worthwhile to try to itemize and deduct your gambling losses is unclear--but it is clear is that you must report (and pay taxes on!) your winnings.
Professional gamblers
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If you are a full-fledged, professional gambler who depends on gambling winnings as a livelihood to pay bills and put bread on the table, you report winnings (and expenses, such as meals, lodging, transportation, food) on Schedule C, Form 1040. The IRS more than likely will ask you to prove that gambling is your full-time, actual occupation, under a 1987 US Supreme Court decision establishing the professional gambler standard. Big bad wolf slot free.
Income from cryptocurrency
Suppose you 'gamble' by trading cyptocurrency--is any profit you make taxable? Yes, but not under the gambling taxation rules discussed above. Instead, trading in cryptocurrency, where you make money (hopefully!) by buying low and selling high (so exchanging, say, dollars for Bitcoins when Bitcoins are worth X, then trading the Bitcoins for dollars later, after the value of Bitcoins has risen and they are now worth X plus) is considered the equivalent of trading in any other commodities, such as gold or oil. The income you make is taxed like the income from any other commodities trading.
Taxing rules from Fantasy sports
Not a fantasy—whether it is one day or season long, you have to track your winnings and report to Uncle Sam when they top $600 or more. If you receive over $20,000, and are paid through PayPal, you will receive a Form 1099-K.
Season-long fantasy sports is not considered gambling; any income is taxed like income from any other 'job' you have. The treatment of daily fantasy sports (DFS) varies by state in terms of whether it is legal or not, and whether it is considered gambling or not. While you should check with your own tax preparer or accountant for how to report DFS income, it is a given that the income will be taxable and you will need to report it and pay taxes on it.
Then there are the State individual taxes
Your state may also want its share of your gambling income. There is no uniformity of how a state taxes gambling winnings (or will allow casual gamblers to deduct associated losses). Some do, some don’t. This is not surprising as states are tussling with what types of games constitute gambling and whether it is a legal activity in the first place.
If you are unsure how to report income accurately, check with your tax accountant or call your state taxing department for help. As with all state income tax issues, this is a question which must be answered state-by-state.
Taxation of gambling businesses
If you happen to be licensed by a state to provide gambling services--that is, to run a gambling business--for you, gambling is not 'gambling'. It’s your business. Income or profit from your operations will be treated like any other business income.
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If you had a successful night at the slots or poker tables, you're going to have to share some of the lucky proceeds with Uncle Sam. The Internal Revenue Service generally requires that you report your gambling winnings and losses separately when you file your taxes rather than combining the two amounts.
Record Keeping
As you gamble during the year, you need to keep records of your winnings and losses so that you can support whatever figures you report on your taxes. The IRS permits you to use per-session recording, which means that instead of recording whether you won or lost each time you pull the slot machine, you can simply record your total for the session. Your records should include the date and type of gambling, where you gambled and if you gambled with anyone else, such as a home poker game. If you win more than $600, you should receive a Form W-2G from the casino.
Taxable Winnings
Can You Claim Gambling Losses On Taxes
When figuring your gambling winnings, only include the winnings from each session rather than using losses to offset your gains. You have to include gambling winnings even if you didn't receive a Form W-2G from the casino. For example, if you gambled six times during the year, winning $100, $3,000, $4,000 and $6,000 but losing $5,000 and $2,000, your gambling winnings for the year are $13,100. This amount gets reported on line 21 of your Form 1040 tax return.
Gambling Losses
To claim your gambling losses, you have to itemize your deductions. Gambling losses are a miscellaneous deduction, but -- unlike some other miscellaneous deductions -- you can deduct the entire loss. The deduction goes on line 28 of Schedule A and you have to note that the deduction is for gambling losses. For example, if you lost $5,000 on one occasion and $7,000 on another, your total deduction is $12,000.
Gambling Loss Limitation
You can't deduct more in gambling losses than you have in gambling winnings for the year. For example, suppose you reported $13,000 in gambling winnings on Line 21 of Form 1040. Even if you lost $100,000 that year, your gambling loss deduction is limited to $13,000. Worse, you aren't allowed to carry forward the excess, so if you had $87,000 in losses you couldn't deduct last year, you can't use that to offset the gambling income from the current year.
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Can You Deduct Gambling Losses
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How To Deduct Gambling Losses
Based in the Kansas City area, Mike specializes in personal finance and business topics. He has been writing since 2009 and has been published by 'Quicken,' 'TurboTax,' and 'The Motley Fool.'