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Question regarding 2017 taxes

Discussion in 'Miscellaneous Vegas Chat' started by TriggerMN, Mar 12, 2018.

  1. TriggerMN

    TriggerMN Las Vegas is Spanish for...the Vegas

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    Sorry if this has been answered previously. My CET statement for 2017 shows a net profit. For the sake of ease, let's just say I show a net win of $10,000. Let's say I have $25,000 in W2G forms. Can I take the difference ($15,000) as a gambling loss deduction when I itemize?
     
  2. Goldenknight

    Goldenknight Palladium

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    Honestly that's what I did. I can't say whether it's correct or not. I've spoken with plenty of folks who have done the same thing without issue. Had I not done it I would have been in the book for over $25k in taxes.

    People talk about gambling diaries and stuff being required, but I've also seen examples where the IRS simply requested a win/loss statement as proof. I guess like anything else tax related it just depends on who you run into. Diaries can exec be created after the fact, so if that really became an issue you can address it later.

    I requested a detailed report from my local which was much more in depth. Had coin in at slots, table buu ins, daily win loss, etc all brown down by specific dates and times
     
  3. Goldenknight

    Goldenknight Palladium

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    That only worked for federal though, Illinois and 9(I think) other states don't allow that as a write off.
     
  4. MNSlotLover

    MNSlotLover Ainsworth Whisperer
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    Maybe I read this wrong......did you intend to say your win/loss statement showed a loss of $10k? You have to add your W2G’s to your income, then when you get to itemized deductions, you can claim your losses up to the amount of your winnings. I’m not a tax professional, so I would recommend you consult one, but that’s the way I have done it for several years. 2017 was the first time I didn’t have enough losses to cover my W2G’s so it kicked up my adjusted gross income.
     
  5. DRPinVa

    DRPinVa As always, inspired by MrsDRPinVa
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    That's a good thing, right????;););):D
     
  6. TriggerMN

    TriggerMN Las Vegas is Spanish for...the Vegas

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    I want to imply that I have $25k in W2G's. My total win/(loss) is +$10k. So I have to claim the $25k in wins, but can I take a loss of $15k when I itemize, because my net win ends up being $10k?

    I think @Goldenknight has the answer we are looking for. I'm happy to hear that he's also had the same question answered by others. Like he said, it will make a significant difference in what we have to play in this year.
     
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  7. MNSlotLover

    MNSlotLover Ainsworth Whisperer
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    Absolutely! I do hate having to pay the income taxes, but yes, it’s nice to have a winning year!
     
  8. DRPinVa

    DRPinVa As always, inspired by MrsDRPinVa
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    One of these years, I'll find out what that feels like.....I have faith...
     
  9. rymetymeuk

    rymetymeuk Bronze

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    I got a full 3 yr audit and win/loss was accepted as gambling loss proof.
     
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  10. Chuck

    Chuck Palladium
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    That's the correct math. And that's how I'd do it, report $25k as winnings (because the sum of W-2G amounts has to match up) and $15k as losses, leaving your net win amount as the amount exposed to taxes.

    I'm not afraid to use W/L statements as proof, because my audit risk aside from W2-Gs is basically non-existent.

    In fact, if besides the CET action, I had no W2-Gs from MGM (or some other joint or chain) and a W/L showing a net loss of $10,000 or more there, I'd add that to the deduction side of the ledger and offset the whole $25,000.
     
    #10 Chuck, Mar 13, 2018
    Last edited: Mar 13, 2018
  11. MNSlotLover

    MNSlotLover Ainsworth Whisperer
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    So....if a person had $50k in w2g's and the total of their various win/loss statements was ($40K), their losses would in reality be $90k, of which they could write off $50k. Sound right?
     
  12. Sindustry

    Sindustry Palladium
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    Correct. Your W/L includes the W2Gs...unless you did not have your players card in the machine at the time. So, assuming you used your card every time, the ($40k) loss already has the 50k in W2Gs factored in.
     
  13. Chuck

    Chuck Palladium
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    Well, yes and no. Their net loss is $40k.

    Sindustry is correct that the net on a W/L statement includes W2G wins. So no matter what amount of W2Gs you have, if your net win is zero or less, you can offset all of the W2G amount.

    Let's say your first spin of the year is a $50k win and you finish net minus $40k:
    • You lost back the $50k from the handpay(s) (that gets you to a net of zero, at which point you can offset all of the win)
    • And you lost another $40k on top of that.

    Did you lose $90k? Yes, but only after starting $50k up. Your net loss is the amount you're out of pocket.

    When you have W2Gs and finish above zero for the year, you subtract the amount of your net win from your W2G total, and the result is the amount you deduct as losses.

    You had $50k in W2G and your net W/L was + $1. How much should you be taxed on? $1. In order to make that happen, you'd use $49,999 as the deduction amount.

    You could have actually been up $75,000 (let's say from tables) or down $75,000 at some other point along the way during the year, but you just net everything out at tax time. You have to make sure your W2G total on your tax form matches what casinos reported, that's the main thing.
     
    #13 Chuck, Mar 13, 2018
    Last edited: Mar 13, 2018
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  14. MNSlotLover

    MNSlotLover Ainsworth Whisperer
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    I think I have my head wrapped around it. Thanks for the clarification!
     
  15. rymetymeuk

    rymetymeuk Bronze

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    Just a quick funny (not for him!): I talked to a Mirage host a couple of years ago who told me a guy won over a million dollars on dec 31st (not sure the year), lost it on Jan 1st and of course had to pay taxes on the win in his taxes. what a terrible situation!!!
     
  16. MNSlotLover

    MNSlotLover Ainsworth Whisperer
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    Oh Boy.......a new definition of Your Doing It Wrong!! :confused:
     
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  17. gms2281

    gms2281 Member

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    Do you know what flagged your returns to get audited in the first place?
     
  18. IrishDave

    IrishDave Chairman
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    Just a reminder for those of us less fortunate than Trigger. For the feds you can only offset wins, you can't go below zero and write off losses. E.g. Your total loss for the year is $50K and your W-2Gs are $20K. You report the $20K of gambling winnings from the W-2s on the 1040, but you can only deduct that same $20K on Sch A. You can't deduct the other $30K of losses.
     
    aprilroncincy and MNSlotLover like this.
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