Can we legally buy tickets for the Powerball Lottery ?
Can we legally buy tickets for the Powerball Lottery ?
Author
Discussion

SimonTheSailor

Original Poster:

13,024 posts

259 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
Can somebody outside of America which is in the USA legally buy a ticket for the Powerball lottery ?

Found a website that says it will buy your ticket for you, send you a scanned copy of it and then keep it securely for you until you arrive with armed guards to claim it.

Anybody know if yoh can/are allowed to ?

marshalla

15,902 posts

232 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
SimonTheSailor said:
Can somebody outside of America which is in the USA legally buy a ticket for the Powerball lottery ?

Found a website that says it will buy your ticket for you, send you a scanned copy of it and then keep it securely for you until you arrive with armed guards to claim it.

Anybody know if yoh can/are allowed to ?
If only there was some sort of network-based information about this : http://www.powerball.com/pb_contact.asp


(hint : NO)


LarryUSA

4,377 posts

287 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
According to the link above, you can:

[i]CAN A NON-RESIDENT WIN POWERBALL?

If you legally purchase a Powerball ticket, you can play the game and you can collect prizes. You do not have to be a citizen or a resident to play the game. You can be a tourist. That said, some states do have rules that seem to imply that a winner must produce evidence of citizenship or a federal SSN, but there are other ways to hold back taxes for a winner who does not have a U.S. SSN. Occasionally, some state lawmaker talks about limiting wins to U.S. citizens, but no laws have passed so far. [/i]

So, buy yourself a 1st Class plane ticket over here, buy one and wait for the cash on Thursday.

Alternatively, tell me the numbers you want and I'll buy one for you tonight. If the numers come up, I'll deduct the $2 fee and send you the winnings via Western Union.

rfisher

5,067 posts

314 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all

bigandclever

14,414 posts

269 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
rfisher said:
Technically, you don't enter the Powerball ... you bet on the outcome.

Of course, if you match the numbers you still win. But your payout is spread over 30 years, which is a bit of a bugger.

LordJammy

3,114 posts

220 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
But I want my billion dollars noooooww.

SimonTheSailor

Original Poster:

13,024 posts

259 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
Ha ha ha !! Not so obvious now is it smarty pants !!

LarryUSA

4,377 posts

287 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
bigandclever said:
rfisher said:
Technically, you don't enter the Powerball ... you bet on the outcome.

Of course, if you match the numbers you still win. But your payout is spread over 30 years, which is a bit of a bugger.
Or you can take a lump sum but you'll lose 40% or so to tax.

Jimmy Recard

17,551 posts

210 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
Lottoland lets me choose numbers if I want to. Or is there something in the small print that says that I can't actually claim it unless I was in the US at the time I chose the numbers/the numbers were drawn?

anonymous-user

85 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
Jimmy Recard said:
Lottoland lets me choose numbers if I want to. Or is there something in the small print that says that I can't actually claim it unless I was in the US at the time I chose the numbers/the numbers were drawn?
Youre betting rather than playing. You bet on the outcome and they pay the equivalent of what the prize would be. Just a way of getting round it. 292 million to 1 chance of winning the Powerball so theyre happy to take your money.

Toaster Pilot

14,867 posts

189 months

Monday 11th January 2016
quotequote all
MDMA . said:
Youre betting rather than playing. You bet on the outcome and they pay the equivalent of what the prize would be. Just a way of getting round it. 292 million to 1 chance of winning the Powerball so theyre happy to take your money.
How do they stay viable if someone actually wins £900 million though?

soad

34,741 posts

207 months

Tuesday 12th January 2016
quotequote all
Powerball tickets cannot be purchased via mail or the internet, except from the website of Powerball's recommended lottery ticket service, which purchases legal tickets on your behalf.

Matching only the red ball: $4
Matching the red ball and one white ball: $4
Matching the red ball and two white balls: $7
Matching three white balls: $7
Matching the red ball and three white balls: $100
Matching four white balls: $100
Matching the red ball and four white balls: $10,000
Matching five white balls: $1,000,000
Matching the red ball and five white balls: Jackpot!

bigandclever

14,414 posts

269 months

Tuesday 12th January 2016
quotequote all
LarryUSA said:
bigandclever said:
rfisher said:
Technically, you don't enter the Powerball ... you bet on the outcome.

Of course, if you match the numbers you still win. But your payout is spread over 30 years, which is a bit of a bugger.
Or you can take a lump sum but you'll lose 40% or so to tax.
Not if you play through Lottoland. I know it's pedantic.

details said:
“MUSL Powerball-Jackpot” – the aggregate amount payable by the MUSL or any (co-) organiser in respect of all Winning Tickets in Prize Category 1 in US dollars and in respect of the relevant draw of the US-lottery MUSL Powerball, paid out in 30 growing annual amounts according to the official rules (i.e. with 4% p.a.), or, in a condition where no such Winning Tickets are announced, the amount that would have been payable by the MUSL or any (co-)organiser over 30 growing annual amounts (in case of the “annuity” option) had there been a Winning Ticket in Prize Category 1 in respect of the relevant draw.

bigandclever

14,414 posts

269 months

Tuesday 12th January 2016
quotequote all
Toaster Pilot said:
MDMA . said:
Youre betting rather than playing. You bet on the outcome and they pay the equivalent of what the prize would be. Just a way of getting round it. 292 million to 1 chance of winning the Powerball so theyre happy to take your money.
How do they stay viable if someone actually wins £900 million though?
They buy insurance.

Sportidge

1,035 posts

268 months

Tuesday 12th January 2016
quotequote all
bigandclever said:
Technically, you don't enter the Powerball ... you bet on the outcome.

Of course, if you match the numbers you still win. But your payout is spread over 30 years, which is a bit of a bugger.
That's still around £30m a year though.

I'm sure I'd cope..... hehe

ajprice

33,566 posts

227 months

Tuesday 12th January 2016
quotequote all
The small print and the tax bill - http://www.cnbc.com/2016/01/11/tallying-the-big-ta...

If you want the money as a lump sum, its $930m you only get the $1.5bn if you take it split into yearly payments for 29 years. Then, with big numbers like this, the US government automatically withhold some of that. Then there are the federal taxes, that could bring it down to $561.7m, then the local and state taxes could bring it down to $422.2m, depending on where in the US you live. Different states have different taxes.

Whoever wins it, their government is going to love them!


Not worth doing it hehe

RogerExplosion

1,130 posts

221 months

Wednesday 13th January 2016
quotequote all

notransistors

278 posts

186 months

Wednesday 13th January 2016
quotequote all
There are plenty of Canadians driving down to buy tickets. Anyone who wins will simply pay taxes, just like a Yank, perhaps a bit more. Taxes are mostly collected through witholding a portion of the winnings, sort of like your V.A.T.. Anyone can play. Anyone can win. I certainly would not trust a third party to purchase my tickets. If the ticket wins, they will disappear with it to their own private island.
I just spent $20 on tickets. Was easy to find a legitimate seller, as I live in NYC.

Olivero

2,157 posts

240 months

Wednesday 13th January 2016
quotequote all
I live in NYC and will be buying tickets tomorrow. It would be easy enough to buy a few more if people are interested. Haven't looked into setting up a syndicate, but it can't be too difficult. Paypal (or something similar) would work I guess.

If there is demand I can setup tomorrow, just let me know.

LarryUSA

4,377 posts

287 months

Friday 15th January 2016
quotequote all
One of the 3 winners have come forward and gone public:

http://abc7news.com/society/tennessee-couple-wins-...

When an incredulous news reporter asked why return to work, Lisa Robinson replied, "Why not?" Her husband added, "That's what we've done all our lives." rolleyes