Gambling Income

Categories: Accounting

In a moment of pure insanity, you decide to withdraw all the funds from your checking account, fly to Vegas, walk into Caesar's Palace, and put it all on 27.

Miracle of miracle, it hits. You won. But...you're not the only one. The IRS is now on a lucky streak as well.

Yeah...any winnings you make from gambling ventures counts as income, which means that you have to hand over a cut to your backer, i.e. Uncle Sam. If you keep careful records, you can deduct your losses from your winnings, so that the amount owed is less. And hey, if you lose more than you win in a calendar year...congratulations! You don't owe the government anything. But...you should also probably give up on Pai Gow.

Find other enlightening terms in Shmoop Finance Genius Bar(f)