January 2, 2026
All I know about tax deductions for gambling losses comes from an episode of “The Odd Couple”, where Oscar is dinged for not paying enough taxes, and Felix comes to the rescue by finding the records of Oscar’s alimony payments in a box marked, “Gambling Losses.”
But I guess that’s a real thing: You can deduct 100% of your gambling losses from your taxes.
I found that out because there’s an article in today’s paper that says Vegas and other gambling sites are in an uproar because a new law will only allow 90% of losses to be deducted.
Heck, if I’d known I could write off my vices, I might have engaged in more. Do smokers get to write off cigarette taxes? Do drinkers get to write off alcohol taxes? CAN I WRITE OFF MY SUGAR ADDICTION?
But that’s not even the point of this post.
Derek Stevens, CEO of Circa Casino Resorts and also operator of a sports betting business, is concerned that U.S. casino customers might travel to Canadian casinos or gamble with illegal offshore betting sites to avoid the tax hit.
So, the real question for me (after, Why do people get to write off their gambling losses?) is, WHY DO PEOPLE WHO ARE BETTING OUTSIDE THE U.S., OR BETTING ILLEGALLY, GET TO WRITE OFF THE LOSSES AT ALL?
I think that THAT’S the part of the law that should be looked at.
2 comments:
I thought this was still the case even after the changing of the guard, so I looked it up on the IRS website.
"Gambling losses
You may deduct gambling losses only if you itemize your deductions on Schedule A (Form 1040) and kept a record of your winnings and losses. The amount of losses you deduct can't be more than the amount of gambling income you reported on your return. Claim your gambling losses up to the amount of winnings, as "Other Itemized Deductions."
Well, that helps. So, chances are, the people gambling illegally won't be able to write off the losses anyway. Unless.... When you report the gambling on Schedule A, do you have to say where the winnings came from or the losses occurred? And what about people who gamble out of the country? In other words, is Derek Stevens making sense, or not?
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