Gambling winnings should NOT be taxed

[m2017]

In my country (Australia) ALL gambling winnings and profits are 100% tax free.

You don't have to declare it because it is considered a hobby.

In the USA and other countries gambling winnings are treated the same as income and gambling companies are required by law to withhold federal income taxes.

If I had to pay taxes I would quit gambling. The risk wouldn't be worth it.

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

You're lucky to live in Australia with tax-exempt gambling winnings, but not every country has similar legislation. As far as I know, in most countries prize money is taxed, because almost no government will refuse such a tidbit of taxpayers' money. My country is no exception and the burden of paying taxes lies on the gambler, who is obliged to pay 13% of the winnings received (for non-residents - 30%). That is, the gambler received the money, after which he declares and pays taxes.

[_act_]

People indirectly pay taxes without knowing it, when you enter a shop to buy something, you'll be paying value added tax on what you bought, also when you earn, the payee has deducted tax from the amount that you're entitled to receive and the government is the receiver of these taxes. I feel that in countries like Australia, where gambling is not taxed, their governments can still be collecting income taxes from the gambling companies, who will remit it from the percentages of gamblers bets. Tax is the major source of income of governments and they are therefore entitled to every income that is made in their country, whether directly or indirectly including gambling..

In countries like Australia where gambling is not taxed, not that the gambling platforms are not taxed. All gambling platforms that are operating legally in Australia are taxed by their government. The citizens are not taxed means if an Australian citizen won 200 Australian dollar, he will be given the whole 200 without deducting any tax. But as gamblers are losing and the gambling platform are able to continuing the progress of their platform, they also pay tax to the government. This is different from the value added tax that you are talking about.

[arwin100]

In my country (Australia) ALL gambling winnings and profits are 100% tax free.

You don't have to declare it because it is considered a hobby.

In the USA and other countries gambling winnings are treated the same as income and gambling companies are required by law to withhold federal income taxes.

If I had to pay taxes I would quit gambling. The risk wouldn't be worth it.

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

That should it be since this is not came from anywhere and we need to feel lucky without getting taxed since somehow we will get feel bad about it especially there are countries who asked huge tax to people especially for this kind of activities.

Its also important for the casino to consider to pay all the taxes and offer tax free reward since there are some platform or institution doing that. But not all implementing this that's why other winners think its waste money goes for tax which instead they enjoy but government take a huge share from them.

[EluguHcman]

Yes I feel the same way as you at times OP, but the
truth is that gambling casinos sites and companies do have to pay taxes because they are operating under commissions that is being approved the government.

That is to say the government has an access in scrutinizing the legitimacy of the company and understands that it an investment potentials of providing incomes to the gambling company owners and then gives them legal licence of establishment.

Where I feel upset is the taxations on gamblers who are not even sure of their winning or even to say they have made profit at a certain winning because your winning in the casino today may not really imply that you have made profit hence we looses more than winning.
We can also imagine the law damaging gamblers to pay taxes just on gaming for fun.

But while these taxes are being demanded, I think the regions where it is exercised would produce more of matured gamblers who are disciplined to their incomes and expenses.

[coin-investor]

In my country (Australia) ALL gambling winnings and profits are 100% tax free.

How I wish we were like Australia, our government is getting 20% of the profit of our winning

You don't have to declare it because it is considered a hobby.

Here in our country, it's our government's cash cow

In the USA and other countries gambling winnings are treated the same as income and gambling companies are required by law to withhold federal income taxes.

Same here in our country, the good thing is the government is transparent in showing where the money goes and this is for keeping and maintaining the government public hospital, the government cannot do it on its revenue so it relies on the taxes coming from gamblers.

If I had to pay taxes I would quit gambling. The risk wouldn't be worth it.

I don't think you can,  if you try to do that then gambling for you is making money and not a hobby

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

The winner when receiving his winning already deducted 20% of the taxes everything was recorded on the gambling platform, our government has seen huge profits coming from the gambling industry so the government so they monopolized it and so they are the ones running the majority of gambling platform here in our country.




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[danherbias07]

Only for the national lottery and the city cockpits, all those gambling activities do have tax included once you are going to receive it.

Well, those games are legal and controlled by the government so there's no escaping the taxation. I think in physical casinos it is different. They have already included all the taxes on your bets and you won't have to pay anything after you win unlike the other two that I mentioned where it will be explained why there's a tax and how much it was.

When it comes to online gambling, I think it's the same way as how it is with physical casinos. They are getting it all back through house edge or it is an invisible tax.

[aioc]

In my country (Australia) ALL gambling winnings and profits are 100% tax free.

You don't have to declare it because it is considered a hobby.

Not all countries are like Australia, third world countries that tax their gambling industry need money to sustain their economy, like here in our country but we don't care much about taxation we aim at how to win to alleviate our finances

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

Taxation here in our country is automated.  our government is in dire need of money to sustain our economy so they made it automated, taxes on gambling are a necessary evil, and our government needs to do it as we are classified as a third-world country.

[acroman08]

In my country (Australia) ALL gambling winnings and profits are 100% tax free.

this must have feel good, reading and seeing lottery jackpot winners in the USA losing almost half or more than half of their winnings is just ridiculous.

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

they do tax gambling winnings but it needs to be a certain amount before they start taxing it. also from what I remember reading, you'll have to declare it yourself before it gets taxed but when it comes to lottery winnings, it is automatically taxed.

[Helena Yu]

Unfortunately gambling is subjected to taxable income in my country, but I rarely earn profit through gambling, so it doesn't bother me. Australia seems like the best country to live, the wage is high and there are many jobs opened, it just they have big insects and deadly animals.

Not all countries are like Australia, third world countries that tax their gambling industry need money to sustain their economy, like here in our country but we don't care much about taxation we aim at how to win to alleviate our finances

Meh, third world countries have a lot money and they don't have any financial problem because the government corrupt the money to enrich themselves. They're taxing gambling profit because they're greedy and want to earn more.

[Zanab247]

Government don't take tax from gamblers in my country either win or lose, because government is against gambling base on the way many people have used their property and other things to gamble, which is the reason our government use to encourage people not to spend what they can't afford to lose in gambling .

Since government cannot help you to recover your losses in the gambling, government should not impose taxes on gambling winning, because it will not allow the gamblers in that particular country to grow financially like the way other gamblers in other countries that are not collecting tax from gamblers are doing well.

Well, maybe there is a reason why such government imposed taxes in gambling winning which their gamblers are comfortable about it in that country, but such thing will not going to work in my country because of unemployment in the country.

[YOSHIE]

If I had to pay taxes I would quit gambling. The risk wouldn't be worth it.

I also thought the same thing, maybe I will close my gambling account and I have to start new tricks.
Or I will plant palm oil in large quantities and I will be civilized with green nature, I will leave the city full of glass.

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

For now I don't see anything strange in gambling, especially regarding taxes, whatever I win and I make a full withdrawal without a penny deducted, that's for now, I don't know what the future holds.
The point is that the tax exists, but it applies to the gambling industry only, but they do not deduct from the user's winnings.

[robelneo]

In my country (Australia) ALL gambling winnings and profits are 100% tax free.

You don't have to declare it because it is considered a hobby.

In the USA and other countries gambling winnings are treated the same as income and gambling companies are required by law to withhold federal income taxes.

If I had to pay taxes I would quit gambling. The risk wouldn't be worth it.

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

You should be thankful your country Australia is considered a First World Country, they don't need to tax gambling but there are countries that out of extreme necessity have to tax the gamblers.
So between the choice of banning gambling and taxing it, they choose the option that can help them generate funds, not all countries have the same views about gambling be thankful that your country does not tax your winning.
I'm ok taxing my winning as I can see where my taxes are going some people bet because they believe they are helping their government through their taxes.

[dezoel]

HHmm really? That's awesome. I really thought before that Australia is tight in tax, especially in gambling matters but I'm wrong. I realized that Australia is also one of the wealthiest countries in the world, right? And their economy or country must be well-developed already and there is nothing much that they can add into it, so they start to lighten things now when it comes to tax charges.

People there must be well-educated and well-disciplined too, so I can believe when they say that gambling there is only considered to as a hobby. If let say you had to pay taxes, it can be fine as long as you are a well-skilled gambler, or simply very lucky to win at all times. If not, it can still provide you an entertainment, so why not? I'm clueless about this matters in my own country but I have a strong feeling that it wasn't taxed here yet despite that our country is not that rich as yours.

[Dr.Bitcoin_Strange]

Gambling here is also tax-free. If I win, I usually withdraw the entire amount, and nothing is removed by the casino. But every cash transaction has a tax. For example, if I withdraw my casino account to my bank account, some percentage will be cut off as tax. The same thing is applicable when I make a transfer to anyone; I will be taxed for that amount. I don't know if that's how it is in every country, but I know that the government doesn't joke with tax. So, I will not be surprised that taxes are applicable to gambling in some countries. That's not what can make me stop gambling if the same thing is initiated here. 

[AliMan]

In my country (Australia) ALL gambling winnings and profits are 100% tax free.

You don't have to declare it because it is considered a hobby.

In the USA and other countries gambling winnings are treated the same as income and gambling companies are required by law to withhold federal income taxes.

If I had to pay taxes I would quit gambling. The risk wouldn't be worth it.

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

Definitely the gambling operation withholds the taxes from winnings of a particular player, and without that money to be collected from them by authority; their operation couldn't prosper for a long period of time. That's the requirement to run the gambling business so they should comply it mandatorily. You can't shoulder that taxes your own self, and  I haven't heard gambling winnings deducted by taxation unlike the local goods and commodities which is really affected with huge tax implementation by the law. The citizen who played gambling isn't earning profitably but rather luck is only the main motive, not a consistent profit so it shouldn't be included on a person who bet for gambling as well.

[Viscore]

It differs from country to country, but if you ask me, I am not in favor of taxing gambling winnings unless it's a huge win like a lottery jackpot. In such cases, we can assume that overall, the winner will become profitable with that large amount.

However, taxing winnings in a casino is not acceptable to me. Casinos are profitable in the long run, and when we win, we usually come back to gamble again, risking losses. So, it doesn't make sense to tax our gambling winnings. It seems like the government is imposing a form of double taxation, which is a burden on us gamblers.

[Questat]

It differs from country to country, but if you ask me, I am not in favor of taxing gambling winnings unless it's a huge win like a lottery jackpot. In such cases, we can assume that overall, the winner will become profitable with that large amount.

I wouldn't mind too. However, in our country, winning from the lottery is tax free, so I could enjoy the winning 100%. About the taxes on winning, I don't remember we have that kind of tax being impose, I guess it's only impose on casinos and they'll have to pay taxes for their operation. If ever a gambler will pay taxes, that's more like an income tax, but it's not actually necessary to declare that, so the government won't know we are gambling, you know, when you re a gambler, you don't have a good reputation because some people are judgmental.

However, taxing winnings in a casino is not acceptable to me. Casinos are profitable in the long run, and when we win, we usually come back to gamble again, risking losses. So, it doesn't make sense to tax our gambling winnings. It seems like the government is imposing a form of double taxation, which is a burden on us gamblers.

I'm with you on that, how can we pay taxes when we are losing most of the time, paying taxes would only result to more losses.

[boyptc]

In my country (Australia) ALL gambling winnings and profits are 100% tax free.

You don't have to declare it because it is considered a hobby.

In the USA and other countries gambling winnings are treated the same as income and gambling companies are required by law to withhold federal income taxes.

If I had to pay taxes I would quit gambling. The risk wouldn't be worth it.

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

It varies I guess.

If the casinos will tell you that you've won a tax-free lottery jackpot then you won't doubt them as it comes from them. And any gain that someone makes whether it's from any hustle or gambling, I think they're all taxable and will be considered as income to an individual.

Again, this varies per country and really depends on how laws in your country's have been made. So, in Australia, check it out in which state are you so let's put that out and try to check the other areas if gambling gains are taxable there or not.

[Die_empty]

It differs from country to country, but if you ask me, I am not in favor of taxing gambling winnings unless it's a huge win like a lottery jackpot. In such cases, we can assume that overall, the winner will become profitable with that large amount.

However, taxing winnings in a casino is not acceptable to me. Casinos are profitable in the long run, and when we win, we usually come back to gamble again, risking losses. So, it doesn't make sense to tax our gambling winnings. It seems like the government is imposing a form of double taxation, which is a burden on us gamblers.

Gambling is seen as a source of income in my country hence wins in my country are taxed under general income tax laws. But while submitting your tax returns statement, gambling losses will be reported as expenditures. So gamblers would have to deduct their losses from wins before the taxable income will be determined. This method of taxation is fair because the government shouldn't just consider only wins, meanwhile, bettors have been incurring many losses. I am also of the view that gambling should be tax free because it is not a source of income. The government should see it as an entertainment that people engage in just for fun.

[Wapfika]

Does your country tax gambling winnings and if so do you declare it yourself or does the gambling operator withhold the taxes on your behalf?

Any service that you use is taxable especially if it’s involved money. You are paying tax when you purchased something or hanging out in the bar for leisure time. This is same principle on gambling since you are paying for it.

In my country, Gambling tax varies depending on the game which winning comes from. Lottery has the highest tax since it has huge prize and operated by the government itself. Casino charge taxes too for licensed operators.

Your only chance to avoid tax here is through playing on unregulated casino.