Who Pays Taxes on Poker Earnings? (POLL)

[Luv2DriveTT]

I pay taxes on everything online (because it is traceable if it ever gets that far), but nothing on my live play.

TT [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]

[BottlesOf]

bad form.

[Thythe]

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bad form.

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Is it really that bad of form? Yes, I pay full taxes on my poker winnings just to preface, but it is unjust. 10 people each earn $100 at their job and pay 30% in taxes. Then they each take the $70 they have left to the poker tables. 5 people go bust and the other 5 make $50 each (with $100 total going to the house). That $250 is taxed another $75 and the house gets taxed $30. Then they pay their dealers who play the same games and get taxed again. The situation is unacceptable.

Who gives the state its power to tax? The people of course. Who can take it back? In fact, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it.

Some people are just taking this opportunity to tell the government what they think.

My book keeper has me filing under self employed business owner. I get to write off 1/3 of my mortgage everything I eat, travel, airline, hotels, gas and I get to save .30 for every mile I put on my car and even $4,000 a year I put in my IRA. It all comes down to about 1/3 of what I make online that I save on deductions. Just find a guy who has never had an audit.

[Python49]

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Just find a guy who has never had an audit

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find them for what?

[BottlesOf]

I agree with much of what you wrote, but the "double taxation" you mention occurs in other areas and it is deemed legitimate by our government. Until there's a change, the law is the law, imo.

[ISF]

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Until there's a change, the law is the law, imo.

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All of these arguments seem pretty irrelivent. It just comes down to is the Probability of getting cought times the punishment worth more then the money you would save from not paying. For internet as it may be traceable this may be the case for many people. For occational live play one would need an increadible risk aversion level for this to be the case.
If you get utility from paying your taxes fine factor that in, but many dont.

[Luv2DriveTT]

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bad form.

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not really, this was the advice I was given by my CPA. Essentially if I pay taxes on everything that is reportable. Live cash & carry income for me is less than 10K, hence I don't report it. I see your point and technically your correct, but I'm just living by the IRS guidelines for gambling income. They know this is a big gaping hole in the tax code, if I was depositing my live play winnings then this would of course be a different situation.

TT [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]

[BottlesOf]

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I see your point and technically your correct, but I'm just living by the IRS guidelines for gambling income.

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No you don't. Either you are not living by the IRS guidelines (and I maintain my original reply if this is the case) or I don't understand the guidelines.

Can you explain how your under 10K cash and carry whatever is not taxable income?

[MrMoo]

I will be paying taxes on most of my winnings.

I rarely play B&M and when I have, I didn't keep track of the necessary info that I needed to report in my taxes. My winnings have been unsubstantial so I won't be reporting them.

I also will not be reporting my ring game play. After finding out I'm a losing player at 5/10 6-max I'm slightly above even for the year. I won't be reporting this because it will increase my gross income a little over $6,000. I justify not reporting ring game play because my net income for all of ring play is only a couple hundred dollars. While it may not be 100% legal, I don't feel my tax bracket should be increased by gambling that I didn't really "win".

I will be reporting all bonuses, rakeback, and tournament play. The amounts are significant enough that even if I wanted to hide it, I would be leaving a trail that would be found in the event I was audited.

I have gone up against the IRS before and lost. I don't look forward to doing it again. Essentially I was naive and used a "crooked" tax agency who wrote off a bunch of stuff that I shouldn't have. "Oh you work in computers, we'll just deduct your home computer and part of your room as work space". I didn't get audited. I got a notice saying that I owed x dollars. I could pay or they would audit me. I paid. They came after me slightly less than 3 years after I filed. Right before the deadline.