Both men make some significant financial mistakes that could get them into trouble with the IRS. Frank wins $1500 on a quarter slot machine. Meet George and Frank, two American friends who spend a weekend gambling at the Las Vegas Bellagio. If you have a question, here’s how to Ask The Taxgirl.Most gamblers hope to win money when they visit a casino, but many fail to think about the taxes they would have to pay on their winnings. Remember, I’m a lawyer and we love disclaimers. If you’re having trouble figuring it all out, make sure that you check with your tax professional.īefore you go: be sure to read my disclaimer. In a nutshell, the actual gambling is a lot more fun than the reporting.

And finally, you cannot deduct more in losses than you report in winnings even though you stated you lost more than you earned, your actual deduction is limited to the smaller of the two. You must be able to document your losses by type of loss, date, name and location of the gambling establishment and amount. There are some additional rules with respect to gambling losses. The form 1040-EZ isn’t equipped to handle gambling winnings or the forms W-2G (which are the forms issued to you when you win). “Casual gamblers” (in other words, nonprofessional gamblers) must report winnings on line 21 (other income) of a form 1040. You cannot use a form 1040-EZ to report gambling winnings. So, if you’re not filing a Schedule A, you cannot deduct your gambling losses. Unfortunately, while you must claim all gambling winnings on your return, you can only deduct your losses if you itemize. For 2009, the standard deduction is $5700 for an individual taxpayer – you need at least that much in deductions before it makes sense to itemize. Read the instructions carefully.Īll of that said, you have a bigger problem here which is that I am guessing you did not file a Schedule A because you do not have enough deductions to itemize. You file an amended return by using a federal form 1040X (downloads as a pdf). The statute of limitations for most individual tax returns is three years from the date the return is due or the date of filing, whichever is later see this prior post for more information about the IRS and statute of limitations. In most cases, so long as the statute of limitations has not run, you can file an amended return. How can I report my gambling loss of up to 2500.00 It was reported on a w-2g I did not file a sched. I got a notice from IRS that I owe an increase of 625.00.

I filed the 1040ez for 2009 and had gambling winnings of 2500.00.

Gambling winnings reported to irs