DC Lottery
District of Columbia Lottery Tax Calculator
The District taxes its own residents’ lottery prizes at up to 10.75% and withholds at that top rate — but federal law bars it from taxing anyone who lives in Maryland, Virginia or anywhere else.
Verified · tax year 2026
District of Columbia prize — results
Take-home
58.8% kept of $1,000,000
Annuity · 30 payments
Year 1 — → year 30 —
| Cash received | $1,000,000 |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | −$320,000 |
| Tax to District of Columbia | $0 |
| District of Columbia tax | −$91,525 |
| Local income tax | $0 |
| You keep | $588,475 |
| Federal withholding (24%) | −$240,000 |
|---|---|
| State withholding | −$107,500 |
| Check you receive | $652,500 |
| Still owed when you file | $64,025 |
Data: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 · state agencies, verified · what this leaves out
Residents: withheld at the top rate
D.C. Code § 47-1812.08(l) requires the DC Lottery to withhold District tax at the highest rate in the rate table — 10.75% — from any prize that federal law also withholds on. On a $1,000,000 prize the DC withholding is $107,500, while the District’s graduated tax on that prize for a single resident with no other income is $91,525, so part of the withholding comes back as a refund.
The District’s brackets run 4%, 6%, 6.5%, 8.5%, 9.25% and 9.75%, with 10.75% only above $1,000,000; there are no separate joint brackets.
Commuters from Maryland and Virginia
The Home Rule Act (D.C. Code § 1-206.02(a)(5)) forbids the Council to tax the personal income of nonresidents, and the DC Lottery’s FAQ tells out-of-District winners that their own jurisdiction decides. A Maryland resident who wins $1,000,000 on a DC ticket therefore pays Maryland — about $58,385 in state tax plus a county tax — and nothing to the District, provided the documentation the statute asks for is given so the 10.75% is not withheld.
DC Lottery prizes must be claimed within 180 days, and delinquent child support can be taken from the payment.
District of Columbia at a glance
| State income tax on winnings | Up to 10.75% |
|---|---|
| Rate table used | 2026 (rates for tax years after 2021) |
| Lottery | DC Lottery |
| State withholding at claim | 10.75% over $5,000 |
What District of Columbia winners should know
- The Home Rule Act forbids the District from taxing a nonresident’s income, so a Maryland or Virginia resident who wins a DC Lottery prize pays DC nothing and is taxed by the home state instead.
- District residents are withheld at the top 10.75% rate, which matches the rate on every dollar above $1 million of taxable income.
- DC Lottery prizes must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing; delinquent child support can be deducted from the payment.
District of Columbia sources
- DC Individual and Fiduciary Income Tax Rates — Office of Tax and Revenue
- D.C. Code § 47-1812.08(l) — Withholding from lottery winnings — Council of the District of Columbia
- Player FAQs — DC Lottery †
- D.C. Code § 1-206.02(a)(5) — Limitations on the Council — Council of the District of Columbia
Agency: DC Office of Tax and Revenue. † read through a browser session (why). How the math works.