The prize pool<\/a> should be bigger, but a percentage of every buy-in is kept to cover the organizing expenses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Similarly, when you win a cool million in a\nWSOP event, how much money do you actually get to keep after the taxman has taken\ntheir bit? <\/p>\n\n\n\n Unlike rake<\/a>, which is the same for everyone, taxes can vary greatly depending on many factors – most importantly, the country you come from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It can all be a bit confusing, but if you’re\nserious about playing the WSOP, you should know the answers to all these\nquestions and plan accordingly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you want to play poker<\/a> in any serious capacity, you\u2019ll have to pay rake \u2013 and a lot of it \u2013 especially if you prefer live poker. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Running live games costs money. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Organizers<\/a> have to pay for the dealers, cards, chips<\/a>, and various other expenses, plus make some money for it all to make sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The World Series of Poker is no exception to\nthis rule. Somebody has to pay for the festivities, and you are that somebody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But how big is the rake in WSOP tournaments?<\/p>\n\n\n\n First of all, how much you\u2019re going to pay in\nrake depends on the buy-in. Bigger buy-in events are raked at a lower\npercentage, so you technically get a better value from these. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The total fee is split between the rake and the\ndealer fee. The overall amount subtracted from the buy-in is split into two\nportions, the bigger of which goes to the WSOP, and the smaller bit is reserved\nfor the dealers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, with that explanation out of the way, what\nnumbers are we looking at exactly?<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the 2019 WSOP, the rake for lower buy-in\ntournaments ($1,000 – $3,000) was 10 percent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, in the $1,000 Mini Main Event,\nthere were 5,521 entries, so the WSOP charged a grand total of $552,100 in\nrake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is, of course, a substantial number, but\nyou should also keep in mind that organizing a festival such as the World\nSeries of Poker costs a lot of money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For $5,000 buy-in tournaments, the rake was 7 percent,\nwhile all championship events ($10K buy-ins) were raked at 6 percent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So, a much bigger percentage of the money paid\nby the players was left in the prize pool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, for the high roller events ($25K and\nhigher), the rake is 5 percent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Some tournaments, such as One Drop and other\ncharity events, will have an added fee, as the portion of the buy-in is\ndeducted for the charity in question as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the end, the WSOP rake ranges between 5-10\npercent<\/strong>, and the higher you go, the less rake you will pay. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Over the past few years, there\u2019s been some\ndiscussion about whether players should pay the rake at the WSOP and if the\nWSOP should create some kind of a kick-back program to give a portion of the\nrake back to the players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The argument for this idea is that the World\nSeries has outgrown its initial status, and it is now a staple event, similar\nto other sports competitions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, unlike most athletes, poker players\ndon’t get any type of incentive for their participation and are even charged\nmoney.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is definitely some merit to this idea,\nbut it\u2019s highly unlikely that the WSOP will do away with the rake any time\nsoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There would need to be much more interest from\nthe sponsors, who\u2019d have to be willing to cover all the organization costs for\nthat to happen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s pretty much what happens in other\nsports, where sponsors are happy to dish out a lot of money in exchange for\nadvertising opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps if poker is finally accepted as a real\nsport, and the situation on the US online scene changes substantially,\nsomething like this might happen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But I wouldn’t hold my breath for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It’s often said that two things are certain in\nlife: death and taxes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In poker, it seems like the only thing you\ncan’t avoid is the rake. Taxes aren’t really set in stone, but it takes some\nskill to get the best deal possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As you all know, many WSOP tournaments feature\nmassive prize pools, and winners walk away with huge, truly life-changing\namounts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But the amount actually won is often\nsubstantially smaller after paying all the taxes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, the 2014 WSOP Main Event runner-up Felix Stephenson won $5.1 million for his efforts. But, being from Norway and listing his occupation as a professional poker player<\/a>, he had to pay taxes in excess of 50 percent<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Martin Jacobson, the fellow pro who defeated\nStephenson in the heads-up skirmish, won $10 million. Originally from Sweden,\nJacobson had already been living in the UK for a long time, meaning he would be\ntaxed according to the UK laws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, how much did Jacobson had to give up of his\neight-figure win? The answer is zero! In the UK, poker winnings are not\ntaxable<\/strong>, so Martin got to keep the entire sum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As you can see, this can be a rather\ncomplicated situation, especially for the non-US players. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The list of countries included in the tax\ntreaty isn\u2019t that long, so many players find themselves in a situation where\nthey simply have to give up 30 percent of their winnings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The ideal scenario for big winners is if they\nhave a residency in one of the countries where gambling is not taxed and has a\ntreaty with the US. <\/p>\n\n\n\n These include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not a very long list for sure, and this isn\u2019t\nvery helpful information if you happen to be from one of many other countries\nthat require poker players to pay taxes on their winnings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So if you strike gold in the Main Event and win\na huge amount of $10+ million, will you really have to give up 30 percent or\nmore, or is there still some hope?<\/p>\n\n\n\n The simple truth is that once you win some\nmoney at the WSOP, there is really no way around paying taxes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You’ll be on the line for whatever amount is\napplicable, and it won’t matter if you relocate afterwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It would be great if you could move to the UK\nafter winning a few million and take advantage of that generous zero percent\nrate \u2013 but it\u2019s not possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, if you have serious plans for a poker\ncareer, this is something you should really think about in advance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Where you decide to live can have a huge impact\non your overall returns and can even be a determining factor between being a\nwinning and a losing player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re a full-time pro who grinds the WSOP\nevery year, having to pay 30 percent or more on your winnings will have a huge\nimpact on your ROI. <\/p>\n\n\n\n You don\u2019t just have to beat the rake and\ntraveling expenses, but taxes as well, and at a certain point, you simply reach\nan unrealistic number.<\/p>\n\n\n\nRake In WSOP Events \u2013\nHow Big Is It?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Debate Around Whether Players Should Pay The\nRake <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
WSOP And Taxes \u2013 What\nHappens If You Win Big?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"person](\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/wsop-winner.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nWhen it comes to the WSOP winning and taxes,\nthere are basically three ways players get taxed:<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Relocating To Avoid Paying WSOP Taxes<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n