What triggers W-2G forms for gambling taxes
Last update: February 27, 2026
When you hit certain jackpot amounts, the casino will give you a W-2G form. This is true of both land casinos and regulated online casinos. The way you handle the W-2G forms is covered in my detailed article about how to figure gambling taxes. What we'll cover in this article is how you get issued the W-2G in the first place.
Jackpot amounts that trigger the W-2G
The casino will give you a W-2G form for certain jackpots:
- $2000 on a slot machine or other electronic game, starting in 2026 (for jackpots hit in 2026, for reporting on April 15, 2027). The threshold amount will be indexed to inflation going forward. Prior to this it was stuck at $1200 since 1977, yikes. This is why older slots often had a top jackpot amount of $1199, so if you hit, neither you nor the casino have to hassle with a W-2G). The law authorizing this is IRS Code §6041(a).
- For other games, here are the pre-2026 limits. There is no word yet on whether these amounts are changing.
- Keno: $1500
- Poker tournament: $5000
- All other games (including horse racing), $600, when the winnings are at least 300 times the bet (IRS)
Whether the original bet is subtracted from the win to see if you hit the $2000 limit.
If you bet $25 on a slot machine and hit for $2000, you get the W-2G. You don’t subtract the $25 from the $2000 win for a $1975 win. Yes, you didn’t win $2000, you won only $1975, but this is the way the IRS wants to handle it. Tough titties.
Whether you subtract the bet amount from the jackpot
depends on what kind of game you’re playing:
- For slot jackpots, you don't subtract the bet from the win, as per above. You bet $2000 on a high limit machine, hit for $2000, meaning you've just broken even, winning nothing, but you'll get a W-2 anyway. Yay IRS. <sarcasm>
- For keno and poker tournaments, you do subtract the bet from the win. If you buy a $1 keno ticket and hit for $1500, that's considered only a $1499 win, so you don't get a W-2G. For poker tournaments, the win is reduced by the buy-in amount.
- For all other games, it's up to you whether you subtract
the bet from the win.
(IRS)
Other details
The casino will ask you for your ID and social security number when they give you a W2-G. That’s normal, so don't freak out when they do. If you don’t show ID you won’t get paid. The IRS requires that casinos get two forms of ID, at least one with a photo. (W2-G instructions 1/26)
You get the W-2G only for single wins that pass the threshold. If you have many small wins that total more than $2000, you don't get the form.
If you have a bunch of $2000+ wins in a day, the casino can choose to report all the wins on a single form, rather than on a bunch of separate forms. The casino can also choose to base this on a “gaming day” rather than a calendar day, since many casinos start their financial day between 3:00-6:00 a.m. rather than at midnight.
If your jackpot is $5000 on certain games like sports bets and lotteries (but not slots or table games), the payer will 24% for withholding (just like the withholding taken from your paycheck, which applies towards the taxes you owe on your 1040). If you don’t give your SSN or TIN, then the 24% kicks in also. (IRS 1/26)
If you buy or cash more than $10,000 in chips in one day, the casino will do a CTR (Cash Transaction Report) form for the IRS (not for you).
1099 forms
Most gamblers won’t get these. The casino
will issue you a 1099 form if you win something without making a
specific bet, such as a bad beat jackpot in poker, or winning a
prize in a drawing that you entered for free (by earning tickets
playing some other game). Add any 1099 wins to the total of
your session wins for the year, as per our gambling
taxes article.