Tax Question : Claim Total Winnings or Cashout?

[elmo]

Kurn- I am filing as a pro. My accountant said that keeping records on a daily basis would suffice. Should I be looking for another accountant? I am claiming 100% of my winnings

[billyjex]

I will start record keeping, but I still have the problem of this year. IF I make a journal, and just make up the whole year until it adds up to ~$40k, think that'll fly? I mean, I'm just confused what I have to do for this year.

[lehighguy]

So I lose the $6500 deduction, isn't that in effect like $3k extra in taxes [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

I'm going to end up paying alot on the 25K I won huh. Figure 10k?

Can I declare myself a pro for last year right now. Maybe try to deduct pocker software and rent and my new moniter.

[droolie]

I've been keeping records of every deposit and every cashout.
On Dec. 31st I will cashout my entire online balance from all poker sites. The total cashouts are going as my earnings. The total deposits are my losses deductions.

If the IRS doesn't accept this I'm screwed but I'm hoping that if the proverbial crap hit the fan I could get some decent representation and probably survive an audit using this method. I plan on netting somewhere in the neighborhood of 15-20K this year but I do not intend on filing as a pro gambler as I have a regular F/T job with W2 and 1099 etc and a wife who files jointly with me. We have a house and kids and all that other crap on there too.

[Annulus]

im with you man. i have been playing online for over 3 years now. pretty much just broke even the first couple of years. win some and lose. i didnt know anything about poker and taxes.

this year is another story. after studying and many years of expieriences i have become a winning player this year. estimate winnings at 17K-20K. this includes hundreds of $33 and $55 sngs and a bunch of MTT. the problem is that i have no records what so ever. ill admit that i was very naieve about tax laws and gambling. now im starting to get stressed out.

one good thing that i have going for me is that i play at many sites, but i eventually cash-out all winnings through partypoker and IGM pay to my bank account. So, if i win some money at Paradise, i will cash-out to neteller and then deposit money at partypoker and then cash-out to my bank account. so, all my money being cashouted is through partypoker. I know that i can get my 1 year transaction history from partypoker. so, i not going to worry about "sessions" this year. I will find a good tax person and see what they say. sorry for rambling but did i make some sense?

[MicroBob]

my hunch is that the irs wouldn't be too happy...but that the trouble you would get in wouldn't be too excessive.

of course, you also have p-tracker I assume as further documentation.

[Kurn, son of Mogh]

It depends on the size of your other income. The top dollar federal tax rate in the US is 36%.

[genya]

link to IRS info about gambling:
http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/...108277,00.html

[CORed]

[ QUOTE ]
First of all, you can't just claim your net. That's expressly forbidden in IRS Pub 529 (how many times have I written this?)

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes, but my "session" at Party poker will run from Jan. 1, 2005 to Dec. 31,2005.