We were in a casino in New Mexico last week and I hit a little jackpot for $1,485. They took over $500 taxes from me right there at the casino and gave me a receipt for the payment. How do Canadians reclaim the tax that is paid in the US? I have heard of a couple of ways, but am looking for the simplest and easiest method. I found a form on the IRS website for an ITIN which I am applying for. I suppose this question has been asked in the past but as you can see, I am a new poster.
Any help would be appreciated.
Advice on how to reclaim taxes paid
www.irs.gov
as you have already found the website - call or e-mail the IRS if you need more help. it is not necessary to pay a third party a % to do thgis for you - many companies offer this service - it is easy and you save the fee these companies charge
if there is a US Embassy near you they could also offer help - although a phone will get you clear and concise instructions.
Advice on how to reclaim taxes paid
Found this info. Form is on www.irs.gov site.
Canadian Tax Treaty
Gambling winnings of Canadian residents are subject to NRA withholding at 30% on the gross proceeds from gambling won in the United States. However, Article XXII of the Canada - U.S. Income tax treaty entitles residents of Canada who are taxable by the United States on gains from wagering transactions to deduct U.S. source losses from U.S. source wagering transactions. Canadian residents should file Form 1040NR to obtain a refund of U.S. taxes withheld from the gambling winnings, if applicable.
I am from Toronto. When I won my ';Jackpot'; in Vegas they deducted the $ and gave me the W5 (?) slip for tax purposes. I used the firm ';Refund management';
www.refundmanagement.com
1 888 272 5559
I too felt threatened by all the IRS forms. I did pay a small fee (can%26#39;t remember how much) But, if they wouldn%26#39;t have helped me I would not have even attempted it on my own. Somethings better than nothing.
I would be careful dealing with companies that promise to get your withholdings back. I have seen a couple of them and both just fabricated your losses in order to get the winnings back. In once case they didn%26#39;t even bother to ask if money was lost that would offset the win.
I can%26#39;t say anything about this specific company but I would just be sure to not allow anything to be filed on my behalf that I knew wasn%26#39;t correct.
The best thing you can do, especially as a slot player, is get the casino to give you a win/loss report which is almost always possible if you were playing on a player%26#39;s card. Provided you actually did lose more money than you won in the year you%26#39;ll get the refund no problem.
I always keep a log of my gambling when in Vegas, I%26#39;ve never won anything that would have been subject to withholdings so I%26#39;ve never had to find out if that would satisfy the IRS. Basically if they ask for something to substantiate your losses and you can%26#39;t come up with something you won%26#39;t get the money.
What%26#39;s your risk of having them ask for proof? Probably not very likely as I doubt the IRS is going to scrutinize $500 but there is always the possibility that they will and you will be SOL. I would certainly not want to have a tax return with fabricated losses filed in my name in that case.
Semanj,
Sorry, I don%26#39;t understand, how did they fabricate the losses if you have to submit the (I think it W5?-T5? form) from the casino to actually put in the claim? I don%26#39;t think grannytosix is speaking of her wins/losses but the actually money that was deducted from her win, at that time.
The only way to get money deducted from your win back is to show that over the course of the year you actually lost more money gambling in the US than you won. So granny won $1,485 on that jackpot. The US still has the right to tax that income and will keep the $500 unless she can prove that she lost at least $1,485 somewhere else. That way her gambling income would be $0 or less and the US would have no income to tax. If they have no income to tax, they%26#39;ll refund the $500.
I%26#39;ve seen a couple of these gambling refund companies simply slap some made up number for your gambling losses on a tax refund and then request the refund. You need bona fide losses in order to legitimately claim the refund, however. For example, if the $1,485 win was the only time granny gambled in the US, she isn%26#39;t likely to see a penny of that $500 withheld.
Semanj550
Sorry, must have been a long day for me but, when you win over $1200 on a single jackpot the US government automatically deductes 30 % from you winnings (on the spot). This amount is fully refundable to us as Canadians (but, if we can%26#39;t fill out the forms you pay someone to do it ). we can get reimbursed.
Nope, not automatically fully refundable. See the following:
irs.gov/businesses/鈥?0.html
Namely the following:
';Gambling winnings of Canadian residents are subject to NRA withholding at 30% on the gross proceeds from gambling won in the United States. However, Article XXII of the Canada - U.S. Income tax treaty entitles residents of Canada who are taxable by the United States on gains from wagering transactions to deduct U.S. source losses from U.S. source wagering transactions. Canadian residents should file Form 1040NR to obtain a refund of U.S. taxes withheld from the gambling winnings, if applicable.';
granny - hopefully the above posts will convince you to CONTACT THE IRS as they are THE experts on all things to do with US taxes.
Do NOT listen to anyone but the IRS.
for clarification - you did not ';pay taxes'; you had money witheld - a huge difference. The IRS will help you.
lol...I just realized that that exact paragraph I quoted was already quoted previously in this thread.
