ChamTax is a free calculator that shows the actual after-tax take-home amount for US Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots, including nonresident withholding. Here's what actually happens, step by step, when someone who isn't a US citizen or resident wins — and when (if ever) any of the tax withheld can be claimed back.
Last updated: 2026-08-17
$1,000,000 win, nonresident alien
You don't need US citizenship or residency to claim a US lottery prize — anyone who legally bought the winning ticket can collect, including tourists and other foreign nationals. When you claim a large prize, the lottery commission will ask for photo ID, and for the paperwork it's required to file with the IRS, you'll typically need a US taxpayer identification number — either a Social Security Number or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), applied for with IRS Form W-7 if you don't already have one.
The IRS requires a flat 30% federal withholding on gambling and lottery winnings paid to nonresident aliens. This applies at the moment you're paid, no matter what tax treaty your home country has with the US. That might seem to skip over treaty benefits some countries are entitled to, but in practice state lottery commissions are set up to process one-time prize claims quickly — they don't run the kind of pre-payment treaty paperwork (like Form W-8BEN) that, say, a bank handles for recurring dividend or interest payments to a foreign account holder. So in practice, nearly every nonresident winner has the same flat 30% withheld first, and any treaty-based reduction has to be claimed afterward, not at the counter.
After you're paid, the lottery (acting as the "withholding agent") is required to send you Form 1042-S, an IRS information return reporting the US-source income it paid you and the tax it withheld. You should receive this by March 15 of the year following your win. Keep it — it's the document you'll need if you want to file a US tax return to claim any part of the withholding back.
Whether you can get any of the 30% back depends entirely on the specific tax treaty between the US and your country of residence — and for most countries, the honest answer is that there's no refund path at all. Some tax treaties, though, are written broadly enough that gambling and lottery income falls under a general "other income" article that assigns taxing rights only to your home country, which can support a refund claim by filing Form 1040-NR (the nonresident US tax return) and attaching your Form 1042-S. This is treaty-specific and not something to assume — see your specific country's page on this site for what its treaty actually says, and confirm with a qualified tax professional before filing.
See your country's actual withholding and treaty outcome
Open the calculator →It's tempting to assume "there's a tax treaty, so some of this comes back" — but for the majority of countries this calculator covers, that's not how it plays out. Many treaties either don't cover gambling/lottery winnings at all, explicitly reserve taxing rights for the US on this type of income, or your home country simply adds its own tax on top of the 30% instead of offering a credit against it (double taxation, not a refund). Only a small number of treaty relationships have language that can realistically support a US refund claim, and it always depends on the exact treaty text — not a general assumption about "having a treaty." This calculator's country-specific pages note where that applies.
Yes. You don't need US citizenship or residency to claim a US lottery prize — anyone who legally bought the winning ticket can collect, including tourists and foreign nationals. The lottery commission will ask for photo ID and, for larger prizes, a US Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) or Social Security Number, since they're required to report the payout to the IRS.
State lottery commissions process one-time prize claims, not the recurring dividend/interest payments that typically go through pre-approved treaty paperwork (like Form W-8BEN) before payment. In practice, nearly all lottery winners have the flat 30% nonresident withholding applied regardless of their country's treaty position, and any treaty-based reduction has to be claimed afterward on a US tax return rather than at the counter.
Form 1042-S is an IRS information return that a US withholding agent — here, the state lottery — issues to report US-source income paid to a foreign person and the tax withheld on it. You should receive one by March 15 of the year after you're paid, and you'll need it to file a US nonresident tax return if you want to claim any refund.
It depends entirely on your country of residence's tax treaty with the US, and for most countries covered by this calculator the answer is no — the 30% is a final tax with no refund path, or your home country simply adds its own tax on top. A small number of countries have treaty language that can support a refund claim on Form 1040-NR. This isn't tax advice — check your country's page on this site or consult a tax professional to see where you stand.
This page is general information only, not tax or legal advice, and does not broker or facilitate lottery ticket purchases. Every treaty and situation is different — consult a qualified tax professional before relying on any refund claim.