Official Party Regulars Thread

[SpecT]

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Not sure where to ask this but I know there are a few Australian players here that win big amounts of money from poker.
You all just ignore taxes right?

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yeh no taxes

im pretty sure it's reallly difficult to pay them even if u wanted to

[jimmyhat1000]

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[ QUOTE ]
Not sure where to ask this but I know there are a few Australian players here that win big amounts of money from poker.
You all just ignore taxes right?

[/ QUOTE ]

yeh no taxes

im pretty sure it's reallly difficult to pay them even if u wanted to

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rly, how so? does anyone know where we can find out info about this?

[Oki-Oki]

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[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Not sure where to ask this but I know there are a few Australian players here that win big amounts of money from poker.
You all just ignore taxes right?

[/ QUOTE ]

yeh no taxes

im pretty sure it's reallly difficult to pay them even if u wanted to

[/ QUOTE ]

rly, how so? does anyone know where we can find out info about this?

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Talk to Jay he seemed to know alot about his when it came up once

[Josem]

australian tax information: http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/sh...;Main=10059146

[fitnessfreak]

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Not sure where to ask this but I know there are a few Australian players here that win big amounts of money from poker.
You all just ignore taxes right?

[/ QUOTE ]

there is a good amount of case law on the issue of gambling as a business, and as someone else said most of it revolves around the ATO trying to prove that someone is not subject to tax when in the business of gambling. there hasnt been any case law on poker being classed as an income as far as i know, most of the cases relate to people betting on horse racing.

so while there might not be any case law relating to poker players directly, its pretty clear that the case law that does exist supports the view that poker winnings are not subject to tax.

[jimmyhat1000]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Not sure where to ask this but I know there are a few Australian players here that win big amounts of money from poker.
You all just ignore taxes right?

[/ QUOTE ]

there is a good amount of case law on the issue of gambling as a business, and as someone else said most of it revolves around the ATO trying to prove that someone is not subject to tax when in the business of gambling. there hasnt been any case law on poker being classed as an income as far as i know, most of the cases relate to people betting on horse racing.

so while there might not be any case law relating to poker players directly, its pretty clear that the case law that does exist supports the view that poker winnings are not subject to tax.

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if i ever get arrested im going to say "my laywer told me i didnt have to pay!!!"


thxs

[hemstock]

So do I get deuces privileges once I earn 30k regular party points or do I have to wait until the quarter of the month is over?

[Josem]

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so while there might not be any case law relating to poker players directly, its pretty clear that the case law that does exist supports the view that poker winnings are not subject to tax.

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I don't think that this is accurate.

The case law that I've read revolves around situations where players were losing. In the post linked from my previous link, the judges established six tests for a gambling "business" to pass.

I suspect that most pro players would be considered businesses under those tests. Thus, they would be subject to tax.

[ArturiusX]

They'll never allow the ATO to tax poker players. The racing body is way to strong, if any professional punter ever gets dipped into by the aussie government, heads would roll.

[fitnessfreak]

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so while there might not be any case law relating to poker players directly, its pretty clear that the case law that does exist supports the view that poker winnings are not subject to tax.

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't think that this is accurate.

The case law that I've read revolves around situations where players were losing. In the post linked from my previous link, the judges established six tests for a gambling "business" to pass.

I suspect that most pro players would be considered businesses under those tests. Thus, they would be subject to tax.

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whilst i dont recall the 6 tests specifically, and im too lazy to go and relearn the case law (been there, done that)i do rememeber that there was only one case where someone was deemed liable to tax from his business of gambling (in that case, horse racing), however, in that case he had a very organised system, including an office, employees and other elements which led the court to conclude that this whole system constituted a business. there was also another case where someone used to spend a large amount of time studying the races and form guides, etc, and had an employee who would go and place bets for him, but this was held not to be sufficient to constitute a business for tax purposes.
given that, i fail to see how a poker player who merely goes online or to a casino and plays cards could be deemed subject to tax, at least in the context of being in the business of gambling.

of course i have to disclaim my post by saying that i studied income tax law over 3 years ago and i never properly looked into the application of the case law to poker players. also there my be new authority on the issue that im not aware of, but when i talked about this w a few of my workmates at the law firm i used to work at, the general consensus was that a poker player's winnings/earnings would not be subject to tax based on the case law stated above.

take this fwiw, im not making this post in the capacity of a lawyer, more as a mediocre ex-tax law student who has a mild interest in this issue. if i ever get confronted with the prospect of paying taxes on my earnings i will delve into it further, but for now im continuing on the assumption that the ATO cant lay a finger on my moniez [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]