In the United States, all lottery winnings and casino games winners are subject to Federal taxation (automatically reported to the Internal Revenue Service if the win is at least $600); many smaller jurisdictions also levy taxes. The IRS requires a minimum withholding of 25% of the prize (minus the wager) of any gambling win in excess of $5,000. However, the net for a major jackpot winner often is misleading; winners often pay additional to the IRS when they file their returns. U.S. lotto winners are taxed at the highest percentage; any winnings above $600.00 are taxed at 30%.
All lump-sum prizes listed below are reported as the pre-withholdings amount, as this is income the player “earned” and must report on their returns to be subject to taxation. Jackpot amounts are reported as the advertised annuity.
For various reasons, an annuity jackpot can have a higher cash value than a larger annuity with a lower cash value. Examples include the annuity structure of various games: while Mega Millions’ and Powerball’s annuity option each are 30 annual payments, Mega Millions’ annuity payments increase 5 percent yearly, while Powerball’s increase 4 percent yearly; this makes the Mega Millions’ annuity structure slightly more inflated.