Vegas Withholding Tax

Lots of misinformation floating around
out there about the 30% tax on winnings
if you happen to get lucky in the USA.
Some say you cant get it back, others
say those Refund companies will get it
ALL back.

Here's the Short Truthiness Version:


The US charges a flat 30%
withholding tax on any US
source income. You can only
get back 100% of the taxes on
certain types of gambling income
(bingo, keno, slots).
Poker is not one of them.

If you’re planning on playing in a
big US tournament, you should
apply to the IRS for an Individual
Taxpayer Identification Number
(ITIN) using a W-7 form. This MAY
get your withholding tax reduced
to $0 on the spot, but (most) casinos
aren’t entirely familiar with these
procedures and may still withhold
the full amount. Then again, this
ignorance on their part MAY allow
you to avoid the Withholding Tax
simply by showing this piece of paper.

More likely though, to get your
withholding tax back you will have to
file a U.S. tax return and reduce
your taxable income sufficiently
so that you do not owe any taxes.
Then you will get a tax refund in the
amount of the original withholding.
So keep all your receipts so you can
claim the expenses you incurred
during the fiscal year of your winnings.
So basically you can claim flights, meals,
gas, hotel rooms, tournament buyins, etc
and get back a good chunk of what
was withheld.