Page 11 - February 2015 • Southern California Gaming Guide

Will This Be a Very Taxing Year?
by Gail Anders
Did you win any jackpots at the casino in 2014? If your jackpot was $1,200 or more, the casino reported it to the IRS. And did you know that all gambling winnings are taxable income? Before you get anxious about how much tax you may have to pay on your casino winnings, read on. You may nd some help with the following gambler’s tax tips.
either app, but I hear from other casino players that they are very convenient. Or you can keep your log in the low- tech method in a notebook. Whatever way you keep a log doesn’t matter; as long as you keep one.
I set up my log each year with eight column headers: Date Played, Time, Casino, Casino Address, Game Played, Winnings, Losses, Proof. And I update my log after each and every casino visit.
Learning from Your Gambling Log
I also include two other columns in my gambling log. One for the amount of money I gambled each time I went to the casino, and the other for the amount
of money I left the casino with.
ese two columns are not for the IRS or tax
relief, but so I can be aware of how much I play. When I added these two columns several years ago, I was surprised to notice that sometimes I won jackpots and played them all back. So while keeping a log is a necessity for tax relief, it is also a great tool to be aware of how much and how you gamble, so you can potentially change your playing
habits.
Casino Win/Loss Statements
Coupled with your annual gambling log, casino win/loss statements are essential for tax preparation. Win/loss statements, issued by casinos, are
estimates of what a casino guest has lost and won during a calendar year based on players club tracking information. e statements can assist players with their tax lings, and
must be requested from the casino.
Be sure to get your win/loss statement from every
casino in which you won a reported jackpot – or even just played. e statements are usually ready by the beginning of each year. Some players use win/loss statements in place of a log. But as they are based on players club card tracking, they may not be comprehensive. e casino does not know if, on occasion, you played without your card.
If you don’t already have an annual gambling log, start one for 2015. It may prove to be an invaluable tool and save you some taxing payments. Coupled with your casino win/loss statements, both can help to make sure you keep as much as possible of your jackpot winnings.
Good luck in 2015. As one of my casino friends says, “May you have many W2-Gs this year!”
Gail Anders writes for magazines and online journals and lives in Laguna Beach and New York.
I am not a CPA or professional tax preparer, but I o er these tax tips for casino players based on my own tax experience and research. e information I present here has been bene cial to my own tax bottom line, and may be to yours.
If you haven’t begun preparation for your 2014 income tax ling, now would a good time to gather all your tax information. You have until April 15th to le both federal and state income tax returns. But you know
how quickly that deadline will come.
I have found two key elements helpful in preparing taxes if you are a casino player: Keeping a gambling log throughout the year, and getting win/loss statements from casinos you played in. Let’s start with how casinos report your winnings.
W-2G Form
preparer always reminds me that I may deduct gambling losses only if I itemize deductions.
If you are ever audited by the IRS (perish the thought!), and you have a log of your winnings and losses, you will have the basic records to show when, where, and how much you gambled and won or lost. Your logbook has to be as accurate as possible to be credible.
e IRS requires casinos to report on a W-2G
form all players’ jackpots of $1,200 or more on
slot machines or other casino games. e W-2G
lists your name, address and Social Security Number (SSN) plus other information regarding
your win. Casinos are required to send a copy
of all W-2Gs to the IRS, and to give players a
with their winnings clearly stated. e W-2G must be signed by the winner as proof that the correct SSN was submitted to the casino, and that they received their jackpot winnings.
When ling income taxes, individuals are required to list all gambling and jackpot winnings. Gambling winnings are taxable income. But here’s an important point: e IRS allows deductions of your losses up to the amount of your winnings. And, you can do this only if you have documentation of your losses. Keeping a gambling log, is the best and only way.
The Gambling Log
As I play in casinos each year, I keep the W-2Gs I receive from all casinos in one place along with any ATM receipts, or other receipts showing the funds I used to play. And I keep a gambling log of all my wins and losses.
For the past few years, I’ve won a little more than I lost. But because I had gambling losses to deduct from my winnings, I did not have to pay as much tax. My tax
To ensure its accuracy, be certain to include the following:
♦ e casino name and address of where you played
♦ e date and time-frame of when you played
♦ e type of game you wagered on: slots, blackjack, poker, etc.
♦ e amount(s) you won and/or lost for each session or game
♦ Indication of proof of your winnings or losses (W-2Gs, ATM receipts, etc.)
I keep my log on my laptop, in Microsoft Excel, but if you have a smart phone, there’s an easy way to keep track of your play. For the iPhone, you can keep a gambling log in the app Gamble Track. For Android system phones, there’s an app called Casino Tracker. I have not used
FEBRUARY 2015
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GAMING GUIDE
PAGE 11
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