How are tax laws changing for gamblers in 2026? Here’s what to know

New changes to gambling taxes are set to take effect on Jan. 1. Those include a new limit on the slot-win reporting threshold and reductions for gambling loss deductions.

The One Big Beautiful Bill signed into law by President Donald Trump in 2025 includes two provisions that affect gamblers starting in 2026.

The changes apply to gambling income, which includes slot machine, lottery, horse race and casino winnings. The IRS said it also includes cash winnings and the “fair market value of prizes, such as cars and trips.”

Here’s what to know:

Slot machine tax threshold raised

In the past, casinos were required to shut down slot machines and issue players a tax form to fill out on jackpots of more than $1,200.

Now that threshold has been raised to $2,000, Covers reported.

The limit hasn’t been raised since 1977, although casinos had proposed raising it to a $5,000 threshold.

Gambling loss deductions reduced

Tax laws previously allowed gamblers to deduct up to 100% of their gambling winnings as losses with itemized deductions.

That drops to 90% of their winnings for the 2026 tax year, Kiplinger said.

The change could generate up to $1.1 billion in tax revenues in the next decade, the Joint Committee on Taxation said.

But Republicans and Democrats in Congress have drafted legislation to undo the change, Bankrate reported.

“There is enough concern that there is a reasonable chance that this provision will be undone before it goes into effect,” Kasey Pittman, managing director of tax policy at Cherry Bekaert, an accounting and advisory firm, told the publication.

This story was originally published December 30, 2025 at 10:15 AM with the headline "How are tax laws changing for gamblers in 2026? Here’s what to know."