Will Winnings at Pokies Games Online be Taxed?

You have decided to play pokies for real money at an online casino. And you also have the winning attitude and most probably you win too! But one question that might come to your mind is will your winnings at the pokies play be taxed? Let us find out. Will winnings at pokies games online be taxed?

Most of the pokies players seldom think of this question while playing and straight away jump to play the pokies game online at the casino of their choice. Few players think about being taxed at their winnings but are not sure.

Winning at Poker Games are Not Taxed for Australian Players

For Australian players, the good thing for you to know is that your winnings at poker games are not taxed. You are not required to pay any taxes on your winnings. All gaming be it pokies or casino winnings are completely tax-free.

What if the winnings are coming out of another country where the gaming is taxed?

The most reputed online casinos are structured in their own way. For Australian players playing at such best online casinos like the Spin Palace Casino, you will not be required to pay any taxes on your winnings if brought into Australia even though they are coming out of another country. Even if you hit a Jackpot and win over a million dollars from an offshore casino site you need not pay a cent in tax and all the winning amount is yours to enjoy!

Though in many countries across the globe when you win a big jackpot or lottery, it is treated as part of your regular income, and you are taxed accordingly. This tax rate can be very high, and to make matters worse, your winnings are often doubly taxed due to dual federal and state taxes. More than 50% of your winnings go to the government in the form of tax.

Poker Players are Luckier

Australian pokies winners or lottery winners are luckier than a lot of other players around the world. Gambling taxation in Australia does not affect the average Australian winner directly as gambling taxation is effected on a corporate level, not an individual one. This is very different from many places around the world, As an example in the United States, the winner pays the taxes on the winning prize. Many countries that levy taxes on winnings winners will not tax small amounts.

The line between a small amount and a large amount is arbitrary and varies from country to country. In many states of the United States, it is around $600 and winners of that amount and less can take all their winnings tax-free. But after that line is crossed and the winnings become “large” or significant, the taxes can be a big amount.

Why Australians are exempted from taxes on winnings from casinos

The Australian government views such winnings differently than many other countries. And this is the cause of the different approaches to gambling taxation. Though many countries, like the United States, view such winnings as income, Australians view it as sheer luck. The rationale for this is simple. When people play and bet – whether on the pokies, or playing poker, or blackjack or craps or whatever. Most of the time, they lose. Betting on these games makes more money come out of the players rather than winnings. Also, when people do win, they usually don’t win large amounts. Therefore, players betting on these games and winning cannot be an income. Because it’s making people lose money more than making it.

Players’ winnings are not taxed as income is that “betting on these games” is not considered a profession in Australia. But it is considered a pastime or a hobby and a form of entertainment. Players mostly play for the enjoyment that it offers rather than the possibility of any winnings they might make.

Gamblers playing not for recreation but for money also are not taxed.

Such players work systems to reduce their losses and increase their winnings as much as possible and generally do considerably better than those more recreational players who do not pay attention to systems or patterns and just play, sometimes winning and sometimes (more often) losing. Even these types of “professional” players are not considered their profession. As if it was a profession, would the “professionals” be able to write off any of their losses on their taxes? Very unlikely.

In Australia winnings at casinos are already taxed. It is taxed at the corporate level in Australia, with online gaming sites and casinos paying the taxes and the individual avoiding them. So the governments collect taxes on the revenues of the casinos, pubs, and clubs which offer betting games.

In recent years, the states of Australia collected about $3 billion per year on revenues from pokies. This accounts for roughly 2/3rds of the taxes collected, out of a total of about $4.6 billion.

Playing Poker is popular at Casinos

In Australia playing pokies games and playing at Casinos is quite a popular trend. On average Australians spends nearly eight thousand dollars a year on betting– including online sites, in casinos, and on sporting events such as horse races or greyhound races, or football games.

Thus at the international level, this is well above average, and this incredible popularity of betting in all its forms creates quite a powerful lobby group that can fight any efforts by politicians to increase/create taxes on individual gambling winnings.

Even the Casino owners are always in favor of not taxing Australian players because if they will share their burden of tax on players they fear might lose the customers who visit their online casinos and are regular players.

So relax and be assured that your winnings on pokies games will not be taxed here in Australia!