|
Most Recent Online Casino News
Untaxed Wins Lure Students to Online Gambling
Pat earns at least $200 a week. It just depends on the luck he has in
his poker game.The University of Nebraska-Lincoln political science and
communications studies major plays poker with a group of friends about
three times a week. Like other students, he doesn’t register his
winnings on a tax form.
Pat, who said he didn’t want his last name published, realizes he
could be punished for his actions.He could face punishment from UNL Student Judicial Affairs, state
legal officials and Internal Revenue Services agents.
But Pat won’t – and can’t –stop gambling.He gambles to pay for some of his student bills, insurance bills or
just for a night on the town.To him, the money is free and he has a good time winning it.
Donna Migazzi, an Internal Revenue Services spokeswoman, said Pat’s
gambling habits could be classified as a form of tax fraud.She said the IRS has a W-2G tax form which gamblers use to register
each winning, so the money can be accounted for and taxed.Lack of a tax record doesn’t deter the IRS from prosecuting those
hiding their gambling winnings.
“We have many vehicles to get information about unreported sources of
income,” she said.When people gamble at non-online casinos, a W-2G form is sent to the
gambler and an IRS agency, said Harrah’s spokesman David Strow.“We are very familiar with the W-2G form,” he said. “Anyone who works
at a casino should be aware of it.”
But a representative from Casino-on-Net, a gambling Web site, said
the site doesn’t use the W-2G form because some gamblers aren’t U.S.
citizens.The loophole is how Pat sneaks past taxing rules. Online casinos
don’t use the necessary tax forms, and he’s not about to fill out one
voluntarily.
Read the
entire article at:
Daily Nebraskan
2004 Online Casino News Archive
| 
