Lotteries

The Lotteries Act 1964 Lotteries Act 1964 provides for a wide range of lottery-type activities such as Trade Promotion Lotteries, | Raffles, | Calcuttas, | Card Jackpot Raffles, | Lucky Envelope Raffles and Housie. Specific conditions apply to each type of lottery.

When is a permit required?

Generally, a permit is required when ACT residents are able to enter a lottery or when the lottery is advertised to ACT residents.

Any organisation or business advertising a lottery in the ACT that is not an exempt lottery must obtain a permit before the lottery can be conducted.

Definition of advertising:
In this context, "advertised" includes:

  • a notice or mention on television, radio or other public broadcast:
  • a notice or mention in a newspaper, magazine, pamphlet, leaflet, flier, direct mail (specific address), general mail (non-specific address), internet, e-mail, SMS, MMS, fax, billboard, sign, poster, banner or other publicly available printed material; or
  • any other method of communicating the conduct of the lottery to the public (excluding material forwarded directly to or made available to members only).

 

When is a permit not required?

Games of Skill
When the determination of the prize winner involves skill only (i.e. no element of chance is involved), an approval is not required. In this context, “skill” means any competition that involves a decision or input by the participant, such as guessing a sound or number or weight, submitting a description of an item or activity or describing or stating reasons for liking something.  Skill may also include any event or competition that is judged by people qualified in a field relevant to the event or competition.

Exempt Lotteries
A permit is not required for an "exempt" lottery. Exempt lotteries include:

  • a lottery where “prizes” or rewards consist totally of the granting of rebates, discounts or other allowances in respect of amounts payable, or the granting of refunds of amounts paid for goods sold or services performed in the course of carrying on that trade or business which are equally available to all customers; or
  • a lottery which comes within the definition of a private lottery as defined in the Lotteries Act1964 (where participation is restricted to members of the same association or who work or reside in the same premises and where there is no external advertising of the promotion).

Web site Lottery
If a lottery is conducted via a web site a permit is not required unless:

  • the web site is hosted in the ACT, or
  • the web site is not hosted in the ACT but the lottery is being advertised in the ACT in addition to the advertising on the web site.

How do I apply for a permit?

You must complete the application form relevant to the type of lottery you wish to conduct. If you are unable to determine what type of application form to complete please contact the Lotteries Officer on telephone 6207 0361.

The approved application form in its entirety must be completed and signed by the organisation responsible for the lottery, or their agent and be lodged with the Commission with the relevant fee and supporting documentation (such as rules or terms and conditions of the lottery).

An application may be posted (if paying by cheque), emailed or faxed (if paying by credit card) to the Commission at:

The Lotteries Officer
ACT Gambling and Racing Commission
PO Box 214
CIVIC SQUARE ACT 2608

Fax to:    02 6207 7390
Email to: lotteries@act.gov.au - (signature required on application form and payment authorisation)

Processing of the application will not commence without the payment of the determined fee.

Application forms and information are available below.

Applications are placed in a queue as received and are not processed in order of urgency. A period of 7 working days must be allowed for processing once your application and ALL the relevant data is received.

Fees
Payment must accompany your application and may be made by cash, credit card, cheque or money order. Click here for fee schedule. Lotteries fee schedule

 

What if I want to make changes to my approved lottery?

Any variation to the application or permit after the Commission has commenced its processing must be approved by the Commission and an Application for Amendment for Approval to Conduct a Lottery must be submitted. The application must be accompanied by determined fee for variation. The Commission must approve a variation to the promotion before any amendment can be implemented.



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