[Shoe]

There is not a 35 hour per week requirement. However, this is definitely a grey area and 35+ hours per week would definitely help your case to file as a pro.

The first year I filed as a pro, I had worked about 6 months full time, and had about 6 months of poker playing full time. My tax advisors reviewed my documents (I don't know the exact number of hours I played but it was all documented), and found a similar case to mine where you are allowed to have a full time job and still file as a pro.

I believe the only requirements the IRS lists on their website is that you need to prove that you are putting in a significant amount of time where the sole purpose of that time is for profit (i.e., not for fun/hobby). If you are playing a lot of hours and that is your main/sole source of income, you can definitely file as pro.

Otherwise, do kids who work part-time at McDonald's get to file that income as a hobby because they only worked 20 hours per week? That arbituary 35 hours per week could be used as a guideline, but is by no means written in stone. Hell, most of the "full-time pro's" here don't even get 35 hours per week in.

Edit: adding to what broiler said, I'm not sure if the case he referenced is the same one my accountant found or not. Also, you may want to consider time spent studying the game, reading these boards as time spent towards your profession.