seems like since rake paid is a serious work expense, you should be able to deduct it the same way people in business deduct all kinds of nonsense like airplane flights. anybody know anything about this?

Since what you report is based on the results of individual sessions (whether winning or losing) rake isn't included in the reported income and can't be deducted as such. In reality it is being deducted before you report the income.

For example, you go to a casino and buy-in for $500. When you leave you have $899 for a win of $399. During that time you've won (and lost) pots that have been raked, tipped the dealer and cocktail waitress, etc. All of those expenses are already deducted from your win, right?

yeahhh... welll.. the govt doesnt know that. point is if you pay thousands in rake you should be able to deduct it. im gonna find a way. i'll post a TR if i dont go to jail first.

Good plan...Nobody ever gets is trouble for taking deductions twice or making them up for there own benefit...

Gotta be the post of the year. Your already deducting the rake you pay, but your still not happy, so your going to find a way to cheat on your taxes to recover this?


You don't think the governement doesn't already read/understand rake on a poker site? Who is to say they aren't reading this post/forum. Who is to say some of them maybe are playing online aswell.

This question should be added to the forum sticky/FAQ on taxes. It comes up frequently.

The answer of course is no, you cannot deduct rake, because you don't include the amount of rake paid in your reported income.

I am a moderator of a poker forum (much much smaller than 2+2), and the membership there includes a Treasury Department employee. It is safe to assume he reads 2+2.

good thing none of my personal info is on 2p2. and maybe, just maybe, i was being slightly facetious

yay!


well.. if they did dont u think they'd regulate and tax the sin out of it?

They already do tax it. No need to regulate, they still get there money either way.

Who will now go on a personal crusade against an anonymous poster who said he might try to find a way to deduct rake (if he doesn't go to jail first). Wait...OMG he even admitted he knew it was wrong.

Man oh man, OP, you are screwed now.

I wasn't talking to you. I wasn't talking to the OP. I never suggested that I think the IRS or a random poker player on a forum somewhere on the internet will make it his personal crusade to bust the OP.

I simply confirmed from my own knowledge what DavidNB suspected. At least some government/Treasury employees understand rake on a poker site, read posts on poker forums, and play poker.

The OP suggested the IRS doesn't know the rake was already paid. We (crashjra and myself) are simply pointing out perhaps the IRS reads these threads for information.

Reporting paid rake doesn't really change anything. If you profitted 25K from poker in '08, and paid 12K in rake, you either reported winning sessions minus losing sessions equaling 25K, or you reported winning 37K from other players minus 12K in rake again equaling 25K.

IINM, the only thing this really affects is your AGI.

Just pay your ****ing taxes, and do it as correctly/legally as possible. Saying **** like "The government can't find out" or the "IRS has no way of knowing" and going ahead and willfully evading is lolstupid. It's like saying, "I don't need to wear a seatbelt b/c I'm not getting into an accident."

You only need to get ****ed one time before you're no longer a virgin.

And don't forget the longer you go on evading, you will owe exponentially more when you get caught, as penalty and interest accrue.

If you are adding up all your winnings of the pots you won before rake is applied than I don't see why you can't deduct rake.