dmarc117 Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071019/ap_on_go_ot/irs_poker WASHINGTON - They're not bluffing: Tax collectors will start requiring poker tournaments to report the winners' take. Casinos and other sponsors of poker tournaments will be required to report winnings of more than $5,000 to the Internal Revenue Service beginning March 4, 2008, the tax agency said Friday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Country Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071019/ap_on_go_ot/irs_poker No change in what is taxed, just a change in that casinoes are now required to report poker tournament winnings of $5000 or more over the buy in. Harrahs properties (I think it was Harrahs, whichever group now owns Caesars) for the longest time would report any tournament cashout (not winnings, cashout) of over $600 and withhold the taxes much like the orignal bill was asking for. Guess the IRS thinks poker players aren't honest enough to report their winnings (oh well, the real money is in the cash games anyway, and that doesnt get tracked by anyone but the player) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Like Soup Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 No change in what is taxed, just a change in that casinoes are now required to report poker tournament winnings of $5000 or more over the buy in. Harrahs properties (I think it was Harrahs, whichever group now owns Caesars) for the longest time would report any tournament cashout (not winnings, cashout) of over $600 and withhold the taxes much like the orignal bill was asking for. Guess the IRS thinks poker players aren't honest enough to report their winnings (oh well, the real money is in the cash games anyway, and that doesnt get tracked by anyone but the player) Don't you have to report over $1500 in winnings when gambling? How is poker different that they report anything over $5K? Not picking, I don't know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Country Posted October 19, 2007 Share Posted October 19, 2007 Don't you have to report over $1500 in winnings when gambling? How is poker different that they report anything over $5K? Not picking, I don't know. Current laws IIRC are that the establishment must only report winnings over I believe $1200 from a machine (I thought it was $600 but somewhere recently I read $1200). This is why when you win over that amount the chip runner or whomever has the paperwork there for you to sign off on that is reported to the IRS. This is why oftentimes jackpots are set up so that they pay off just under the minimium reporting requirement (The reason that I thought it was $600 is that several poker rooms set their high hand jackpots to pay off $599 so that they did not have to do the IRS paperwork, so perhaps it is different minimums for different games) A player theoretically must report ALL winnings regardless of amount, whether the gaming establishment reported them or not, as they have not been taxed yet. The first iteration of this law was going to have the establishment hold out 25% of the winnings in addition to reporting to the IRS. Now they only withhold the money if the player refuses to give their information for the IRS paperwork (If I read it correctly) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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