• Gambling Winnings On Tax Returns
• Alabama State Income Tax On Gambling Winnings
• Federal Tax On Gambling Winning

Gambling of $10,000 on the Alabama return and $20,000 in State A. In this instance, the credit allowed will be the lesser of tax at the Alabama rate on $10,000 or tax in State A on $10,000. Credit is allowed for tax on $10,000 only because this is the amount of income that otherwise would be subject to double taxation without the credit. How Much State & Federal Tax Is Withheld on Casino Winnings? If you are lucky enough to win when you go to the casino, you will not necessarily have to report the winnings on your tax returns.

You asked (1) whether legislation has been proposed recently to impose the state income tax on nonresidents' gambling winnings at Connecticut casinos; (2) if so, which legislators proposed the bills; and (3) whether other states with casinos impose their income taxes on nonresidents' gambling winnings.

SUMMARY

Under current law, nonresidents who have gambling winnings from Connecticut are subject to Connecticut income tax on those winnings only if they win the money in Connecticut's state-run lottery. Nonresidents' casino and pari-mutual winnings are not subject to the state income tax.

Bills to subject nonresidents' Connecticut casino winnings to the state income tax were proposed in 2005, 2007, and 2008. All three were sponsored by Rep. Shawn Johnston. All were referred to the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, which did not act on them. In 2002, the General Assembly passed a law to impose Connecticut income tax on nonresidents' casino winnings over $5,000, but it repealed the provision a short time later before it could take effect. The 2002 laws were included in large emergency certified budget implementing bills.

A computer survey of 16 selected states with both state income taxes and casino or pari-mutuel gambling found that 15 impose state income taxes on nonresidents' winnings in those states. Of the states surveyed, only New York follows Connecticut's example in excluding nonresident casino and pari-mutuel winnings from its state income tax.

CONNECTICUT INCOME TAX TREATMENT OF NONRESIDENTS' GAMBLING WINNINGS

People who are not Connecticut residents do not have to pay Connecticut income taxes on non-lottery gambling winnings in the state. By law, nonresidents owe Connecticut income tax only on Connecticut state lottery winnings exceeding $5,000. Winnings from all other types of gambling in the state are tax-exempt for nonresidents, including winnings from casino games, slot machines, pari-mutuel wagering, raffles, or other types of gambling occurring in Connecticut (CGS § 12-711 (b)). By law, such winnings are not considered to be derived from Connecticut sources for purposes of imposing the state income tax on those who do not live here (Department of Revenue Services, Informational Publication, IP 2005 (15), issued 10/20/05).

RECENT LEGISLATION ON NONRESIDENTS' CASINO WINNINGS

The distinction between nonresidents' Connecticut income tax liability for Connecticut lottery winnings and other types of gambling income has existed since 2001. PA 01-6, June Special Session, imposed the Connecticut income tax on a nonresident's winnings of more than $5,000 in a lottery run by the Connecticut Lottery Corporation. The change took effect on July 1, 2001 and applied to tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2001. Until that time, nonresidents were not subject to Connecticut's income tax on any Connecticut gambling winnings. The 2001 change was passed as part of a large emergency certified bill that included many tax changes.

In the May 9 Special Session in 2002, the General Assembly at first extended the income tax to also cover nonresidents' winnings over $5,000 from all other gambling activities that take place within Connecticut's borders, including at casinos on Indian reservations within the state (PA 02-1, May 9 Special Session, § 81). It changed its mind a short time later and passed another act to repeal the extension (PA 02-4, May 9 Special Session, § 17). Both sections were included in emergency certified bills implementing the state budget.

Since 2002, three proposed bills have been introduced to extend the income tax to the casino winnings of nonresidents. All were introduced by Representative Shawn Johnston of the 51^st district. The bills were:

● HB 5949 (2005 Session) - An Act Concerning Taxation Of Out-Of-State Residents' Casino Winnings (co-sponsor: Rep. Nafis, 27^th district)

● HB 6238 (2007 Session) - An Act Concerning Taxation Of Out-Of-State Residents' Casino Winnings

● HB 5408 (2008 Session) - An Act Concerning Taxation Of Out-Of-State Residents' Casino Winnings

All three bills were referred to the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, which took no action on them.

OTHER STATES

A computer survey of income tax provisions of 16 selected states shows that 15 impose state income tax on nonresidents' non-lottery gambling winnings from within their states (see Table 1). According to the American Gaming Association's (AGA) 2008 Survey of Casino Entertainment, 13 of these states have casino gambling at commercial or racetrack casinos, Indian tribal casinos, or in the form of video lottery terminals. The other three states have noncasino forms of pari-mutuel wagering, such as horseracing. The only state in our survey that does not tax nonresidents' winnings from these forms of gambling is New York. The remaining states tax winnings, although some require winnings to exceed a certain threshold or allow nonresidents to offset winnings with losses.

The state with the highest number of casinos according to the AGA survey is Nevada, which is not included because it has no state income tax.

Table 1: State Income Tax on Nonresidents' Non-Lottery Gambling Winnings

* Source: American Gaming Association

+ Source: State tax department websites

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Do you like to gamble? If so, then you should know that the taxman beats the odds every time you do. The Internal Revenue Service and many states consider any money you win in the casino as taxable income. This applies to all types of casual gambling – from roulette and poker tournaments to slots, bingo and even fantasy football. In some cases, the casino will withhold a percentage of your winnings for taxes before it pays you at the rate of 24 percent.

Casino Winnings Are Not Tax-Free

Casino winnings count as gambling income and gambling income is always taxed at the federal level. That includes cash from slot machines, poker tournaments, baccarat, roulette, keno, bingo, raffles, lotteries and horse racing. If you win a non-cash prize like a car or a vacation, you pay taxes on the fair market value of the item you win.

By law, you must report all your winnings on your federal income tax return – and all means all. Whether you win five bucks on the slots or five million on the poker tables, you are technically required to report it. Job income plus gambling income plus other income equals the total income on your tax return. Subtract the deductions, and you'll pay taxes on the resulting figure at your standard income tax rate.

How Much You Win Matters

While you're required to report every last dollar of winnings, the casino will only get involved when your winnings hit certain thresholds for income reporting:

• $5,000 (reduced by the wager or buy-in) from a poker tournament, sweepstakes, jai alai, lotteries and wagering pools.
  
• $1,500 (reduced by the wager) in keno winnings.
  
• $1,200 (not reduced by the wager) from slot machines or bingo
  
• $600 (reduced by the wager at the casino's discretion) for all other types of winnings but only if the payout is at least 300 times your wager.
  

Win at or above these amounts, and the casino will send you IRS Form W2-G to report the full amount won and the amount of tax withholding if any. You will need this form to prepare your tax return.

Understand that you must report all gambling winnings to the IRS, not just those listed above. It just means that you don't have to fill out Form W2-G for other winnings. Income from table games, such as craps, roulette, blackjack and baccarat, do not require a WG-2, for example, regardless of the amount won. It's not clear why the IRS has differentiated it this way, but those are the rules. However, you still have to report the income from these games.

What is the Federal Gambling Tax Rate?

Standard federal tax withholding applies to winnings of $5,000 or more from:

• Wagering pools (this does not include poker tournaments).
  
• Lotteries.
  
• Sweepstakes.
  
• Other gambling transactions where the winnings are at least 300 times the amount wagered.
  

If you win above the threshold from these types of games, the casino automatically withholds 24 percent of your winnings for the IRS before it pays you. If you cannot provide a Social Security number, the casino will make a 'backup withholding.' A backup withholding is also applied at the rate of 24 percent, only now it includes all your gambling winnings from slot machines, keno, bingo, poker tournaments and more. This money gets passed directly to the IRS and credited against your final tax bill. Before December 31, 2017, the standard withholding rate was 25 percent and the backup rate was 28 percent.

The $5,000 threshold applies to net winnings, meaning you deduct the amount of your wager or buy-in. For example, if you won $5,500 on the poker tables but had to buy in to the game for $1,000, then you would not be subject to the minimum withholding threshold.

It's important to understand that withholding is an entirely separate requirement from reporting the winning on Form WG-2. Just because your gambling winning is reported on Form WG-2 does not automatically require a withholding for federal income taxes.

Can You Deduct Gambling Losses?

If you itemize your deductions on Schedule A, then you can also deduct gambling losses but only up to the amount of the winnings shown on your tax return. So, if you won $5,000 on the blackjack table, you could only deduct $5,000 worth of losing bets, not the $6,000 you actually lost on gambling wagers during the tax year. And you cannot carry your losses from year to year.

The IRS recommends that you keep a gambling log or spreadsheet showing all your wins and losses. The log should contain the date of the gambling activity, type of activity, name and address of the casino, amount of winnings and losses, and the names of other people there with you as part of the wagering pool. Be sure to keep all tickets, receipts and statements if you're going to claim gambling losses as the IRS may call for evidence in support of your claim.

What About State Withholding Tax on Gambling Winnings?

There are good states for gamblers and bad states for gamblers. If you're going to 'lose the shirt off your back,' you might as well do it in a 'good' gambling state like Nevada, which has no state tax on gambling winnings. The 'bad' states tax your gambling winnings either as a flat percentage of the amount won or by ramping up the percentage owed depending on how much you won.

Each state has different rules. In Maryland, for example, you must report winnings between $500 and $5,000 within 60 days and pay state income taxes within that time frame; you report winnings under $500 on your annual state tax return and winnings over $5,000 are subject to withholding by the casino due to state taxes. Personal tax rates begin at 2 percent and increase to a maximum of 5.75 percent in 2018. In Iowa, there's an automatic 5 percent withholding for state income tax purposes whenever federal taxes are withheld.

State taxes are due in the state you won the income and different rules may apply to players from out of state. The casino should be clued in on the state's withholding laws. Speak to them if you're not clear why the payout is less than you expect.

Gambling Winnings On Tax Returns

How to Report Taxes on Casino Winnings

You should receive all of your W2-Gs by January 31 and you'll need these forms to complete your federal and state tax returns. Boxes 1, 4 and 15 are the most important as these show your taxable gambling winnings, federal income taxes withheld and state income taxes withheld, respectively.

You must report the amount specified in Box 1, as well as other gambling income not reported on a W2-G, on the 'other income' line of your IRS Form 1040. This form is being replaced with a simpler form for the 2019 tax season but the reporting requirement remains the same. If your winnings are subject to withholding, you should report the amount in the 'payment' section of your return.

Different rules apply to professional gamblers who gamble full time to earn a livelihood. As a pro gambler, your winnings will be subject to self-employment tax after offsetting gambling losses and after other allowable expenses.

Alabama State Income Tax On Gambling Winnings

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About the Author

Federal Tax On Gambling Winning

Jayne Thompson earned an LLB in Law and Business Administration from the University of Birmingham and an LLM in International Law from the University of East London. She practiced in various “big law” firms before launching a career as a commercial writer. Her work has appeared on numerous financial blogs including Wealth Soup and Synchrony. Find her at www.whiterosecopywriting.com.