Monday, March 30, 2009

[vpFREE] Re: Help! IRS says I owe money

Even with this improved definition of "session" accounting, it is still probably a good idea to insure that your net win equals or exceeds the total of your W2-G's. If you read the memorandum literally it advises you to recognize a wagering gain or loss when tokens are redeemed. Given that most W2-G type events are immediately paid in cash (and the credits debited from the machine) it seems logical to me (and perhaps this is what the IRS assumes) that a W2-G type event is in and of itself a wagering gain because there has been a conversion from tokens to cash or a check if you choose to go that route.

Assume for example over the course of play at a machine you insert $500 into the machine and manage to hit a $1200 W2-G (a hand pay in cash) then continue playing until the credits go to zero. Rather than count this as a +$700 session, I suspect you would count it as two discrete sessions. A -$500 session indicative of the amount of money exahnged for credits that were all subsequently lost and a +$1200 session, the W2-G event whereby the casino immediately exchanged your tokens or credits for cash.

The above scenario is probably representative of 99%+ of W2-G transactions. For those cases where you are playing at high enough stakes whereby someone makes a hand tally of all W2-G type events without an actual hand pay or redemption of credits for cash, there might be a better case for stating a session win is less than the aggregate W2-G's issued.

SB

--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "mrickcpa" <mrickcpa@...> wrote:
>
> You should be aware of a new memorandum from IRS Chief Counsel. It says in part:
>
> "....The better view is that a casual gambler, such as the taxpayer who plays the slot machines, recognizes a wagering gain or loss at the time she redeems her tokens. We think that the fluctuating wins and losses left in play are not accessions to wealth until the taxpayer redeems her tokens and can definitively calculate the amount
> above or below basis (the wager) realized. See Commissioner v. Glenshaw Glass Co., 348 U.S. 426 (1955). For example, a casual gambler who enters a casino with $100 and redeems his or her tokens for $300 after playing the slot machines has a wagering gain of $200 ($300 - $100). This is true even though the taxpayer may have had $1,000 in winning spins and $700 in losing spins during the course of play.
>
> Likewise, a casual gambler who enters a casino with $100 and loses the entire amount after playing the slot machines has a wagering loss of $100, even though the casual gambler may have had winning spins of $1,000 and losing spins of $1,100 during the course of play...
>
> http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/pub/irs-utl/am2008011.pdf
>
> Hope this helps.
>
>
> mrick
>
>
> --- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "caseydog73" <caseydog73@> wrote:
> >
> > Has anyone else dealt with this problem?:
> >
> > - In 2007, I kept a pretty good gambling journal, which showed winning days totalling about 32K and losing days about 38K. I filed a 1040, noting the 32K in earnings but itemizing 32K (only up to my winnings).
> >
> > - Well, today I receive a letter saying I owe $1,700! They added up the W2-G's and it comes to 38K, above the 32K I reportedly won. This part is true, HOWEVER, they only see teh w-2G's and not the losses that came immediately after being paid those jackpots. I mean, it's possible to win a 4K royal jackpot and then within hours blow that entire sum back playing $5 VP. So net for that day is zero, not 4K.
> >
> > I can file a response, they say, with documentation. Should I file my complete journal for that year with an explanation on the cover sheet? Or can I take it to an IRS office?
> >
> > Or am I screwed?
> >
> > Help!
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
>


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