Quote:
Originally Posted by zippymoose
Interesting. Thanks for your speedy reply. So in your eyes (or just as a fact) currently in Canada poker is not taxable?
Since you have so much experience in this I guess I might ask another question. Not to get a long drawn out discussion since this thread is about taxes, but just an opinion. What is your outlook on online poker for the future as a source of income for a skilled player? I have started to take the game seriously and would like to be a pro one day. Currently working on goals and learning at the micro stakes. I see a lot of negativity regarding the future of it. Is this negativity justified or just blabbing of pessimists and people trying to be "realistic".
Currently I am an engineer and have a decent job so it's not like I am trying to drop out of college and play with no backup plan.
Thanks for any insight.
My opinion is that poker in and of itself is not taxable, but that it could become taxable in special circumstances. What those circumstances are is what is up for debate at this time.
It seems that there needs to be some extreme level of risk reduction or a very extended time of positive results before poker could be considered as of a business.
It also seems that someone such as yourself would have a hard time thinking their own play is taxable unless they're engaging in something extraordinary.
I originally thought that I was an extreme outlier that would be subject to taxation. More recently it has come to light that what I thought was extreme in my case was still not enough.
As far as online poker goes as a potential source of income, that's a tough one. I believe that there are very few people who have the skill to do so at this time, and that many of those who do will not be able to continue showing profit after a couple of years from now.
This is coming from many millions of hands of experience, as well as much time spent coaching very smart players.
I have a pretty good idea that most people who are very smart and "get it" will not succeed at poker beyond a relatively short period of time.
The distinction of being a "pro" is an interesting one. Does one become a professional as soon as they show some wins at the table?
It seems that to truly be considered a poker professional would require the knowledge of what makes one's self a winning player both now and years into the future when games have changed.