The Nonprofit FAQ

Is the cost of a raffle ticket deductible?

If I buy a ticket in a lottery run by a charitable organization, is the cost of the ticket deductible? John Taylor replied: Purchasing a "chance" to win something does not count as a charitable deduction, period. The fair market value of the purchaser's chance to win a prize is equal to the price of the ticket. Hence there is no donation, only a purchase. Lotteries, raffles and other games of chance are strictly regulated by both federal and state laws. Senior management must carefully review all legal questions before participating in any fundraising (or for that matter other) activity that contains any feature that might be construed as gambling or operating a gambling game. Richard Vandenberg ([email protected]), President of Vandenberg Systems Inc. (http://www.vansys.com), providers of Lottery Management and Ticket Processing Software (Unit 200, 2930 Spring St, Port Moody, BC V3H 1Z7. Tel: +1-604-461-6615 Fax: +1-604-461-6665), wrote to the NONPROFIT list on October 4, 1999, to say: As a little side notation, anyone interested in raffle or lottery management can join the 'Lottery Management' list, which exists specifically to get people running raffles together to help each other. See http://www.vansys.com/lmsub.htm for subscription information. Updated 10/4/99 -- PB