When you use your players card, the casino records your play, which on slots include your total amount of wagers, how much you were paid out, and with those two numbers your overall win/loss for the year. That leads to today’s question:
I understand that if playing at a certain casino for the year you are able to obtain how much money you used during the year for your taxes. Is this true?
Anna K.
It’s somewhat true. You can obtain a win/loss record from the casino. That documentation by itself is not considered sufficient in the eyes of the IRS.
First, let’s talk about getting the win/loss statements. Historically on casino websites there’s an area where you can sign in (or in the case of those smaller casinos, it may just be an info request). The bigger casino companies now let you download win/loss records electronically, so you can get the data easily.
In other cases, you’ll submit a request, and within some window of time they’ll reply back with the data. In some cases, you can also request this information in person at the casino, but whether that’s a service they can do on site in real time can vary by casino.
Now, to that “for your taxes” part, we’ve shared on Flip The Switch previously that the IRS explicitly says win/loss records are not sufficient proof.
The main reasons are that you have to report all your gambling wins and losses, and there’s a variety of reasons why win/loss statements alone may not show all of it. If you play without a card, it won’t show up. A player could forget they played at a casino and leave it off. The reasons go on.
The IRS says you need various elements of proof – ATM withdrawals, gambling logs, and so on are suggested to flesh things out. Win/loss statements would likely be a helpful reinforcement of those other items, but they are clear on its own it’s not enough.
Now, there will be players that tell you they’ve used it to file their taxes. That’s probably true. Where you’d get into trouble is in the case of an audit. If they audit you and you don’t have that backing up documentation, that’s where they could penalize you. So that’s why we advise against relying on win/loss statements alone.
And, we also advise players to talk with an accountant versed in gambling regulations when it comes to taxes. We’re not accountants, and this should not be considered tax advice accordingly, but instead information about what to be aware of when it comes to your taxes.
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