Pennsylvania Lottery

Overview

The Pennsylvania Lottery was created on August 26, 1971, after the General Assembly voted to create the Lottery, and premiered its first weekly drawing in March 1972. All of the Lottery’s net profits go toward services for older residents in Pennsylvania.

The Lottery is operated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In addition to Lottery´s headquarters, located in Middletown, Pennsylvania, it has 7 regional offices throughout the state: Philadelphia, Wilkes-Barre, Harrisburg, Clearfield, Pittsburgh, Eric, and the Lehigh Valley.

In 2017, after the fall in its revenues, a bill was passed that allows the Pennsylvania Lottery to sell lottery products online.

PA Lottery has a multi-functional mobile application that offers players fun, convenience, and information on the go, allowing them to buy tickets online or play the latest games. Additionally, by scanning the ticket’s barcode they can find out if they are a prize winner.

The Lottery provides players with a variety of forms of entertainment, with the chance to win from small to large prizes. Once the player registers on the website, he becomes a user of PA lottery services and has access to the resources available on the web. The site can be accessed through different mobile devices and tablets.

The games that lottery fans can play are Draw Games, Scratch-Offs, Keno, and Xpress Sports (Derby Cash Horse Racing and Xpress Car Racing). Among the online game are Pick 2, Pick 3, Pick 4, Pick 5, Wild Ball, Cash4Life, Cash 5, Match 6, Mega Millions, Powerball, Treasure Hunt, and Millionaire Raffle.

Pennsylvania – PA Lottery Management and How the Money is Handled

The Pennsylvania Lottery is operated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. According to state law, Revenue oversees Lottery through an executive director who is appointed by the Governor and reports to the Secretary of Revenue.

The Lottery supports programs that benefit elderly residents throughout Pennsylvania daily, allocating all their winnings for this purpose.

Thanks to the players, it has contributed more than $32 billion to social programs aimed at older adults in Pennsylvania.

Among the works supported by the Pennsylvania Lottery are local services provided by the 52 Pennsylvania Area Agencies on Aging, Senior centers & meals, Low-cost prescription assistance (PACE and PACENET programs), free and reduced-fare transportation, Care services, Property taxes & Rent rebates.

Expected Return for Pennsylvania Lottery

Pennsylvania State Lottery law states that at least 40% of the proceeds must be paid out as a prize. Currently, the Pennsylvania Lottery exceeds these amounts because it pays out 69% as prize money.

In addition, 6.7% of revenues are allocated to retailer payments, 2.5% to operating expenses, and the remaining percentage of revenues goes to social programs targeted to residents aged 65 and older.

When it comes to Return to Player (RTP), Pennsylvania Lottery online games are generous. All games in the collection have RTP rates ranging from 84% to 89.145%.

How to Play Lottery Games in Pennsylvania

Players must be at least 18 years of age. To play online, they must be located within Pennsylvania. Tickets can be purchased at any of the retail locations throughout the state of Pennsylvania, where players can also redeem printed or mobile coupons. They can also buy tickets online and play online.

Some of the games you can try your luck with are the following:

  • Keno: it is a fast-paced game that gives players a chance to win $100,000 or more. Drawings are held every 4 minutes. Keno can be played at any PA Lottery retailer that sells Draw Games.
  • The Price is Right: it is a $10 game that offers 3 progressive top prizes starting at $100,000. VIP Players Club members can submit non-winning tickets to participate in Lottery’s Second Chance Drawing for a chance to win up to $50,000.
  • Bonus Money: It is a $5 scratch-off game that offers 10 top prizes of $250,000. Each Bonus spot is played separately.
  • Lucky Stars: It is a $3 scratch-off game that offers 10 top prizes of $50,000. In addition, there is a Bonus to reveal a “shooting star” symbol with an instant prize of $30. Bonus is played separately.
  • Multiplier Mania: It is a $2 scratch-off game that offers 10 top prizes of $20,000.
  • 3-2-Won: It is a $1 scratch-off game that offers 10 top prizes of $5,000.
  • Super Dad: it is a $5 fast play game that offers 5 top prizes starting at $50,000.
  • Derby Cash Horse Racing: It is a fast-paced game that simulates the sport of horse racing. A new race occurs every four minutes and can be played at any PA Lottery retailer that sells Draw Games or watched live, in person, at select retailers, or watch the live drawing on the PA Lottery website.
  • Xpress Car Racing: It is a fast-paced game that simulates the sport of car racing. New races (draws) occur every 4 minutes and can be played at any PA Lottery retailer that sells Draw Games or watched live, in person, at select retailers, or watch the live drawing on the PA Lottery website.
  • iLottery: it is a whole new family of online Lottery games and interactive games. Prizes and play costs vary by game. When you play PA iLottery games and win, prizes are paid directly to your account.

There are many more games available in the Pennsylvania Lottery, they can be consulted on their website: www.pailottery.com

How to Buy Lottery Ticket and Claim Prizes in Pennsylvania – PA Lottery

Pennsylvania Lottery tickets can be purchased at lottery retailers. In the same way, players can play and buy them online.

The winner of a prize must print out the ticket, and sign it on the back, clearly stating the name and surname, address, and telephone number, if purchased in a retail store.

When a prize is won for an online purchase or online game, the prize is automatically paid into the player’s account. And can be withdrawn using various payment methods such as ACH, eCheck, PayPal, or Play+.

Many prizes can be paid immediately if a retailer can pay by cash, check, or money order. If they cannot, players must try a different retailer or claim their prize by mail.

Prizes over $600 will require the player to complete a Claim Form which is available from Lottery retailers or a Lottery Area Office, or on the Lottery’s website.

Prizes up to $2,500 may be claimed at a Pennsylvania Lottery retailer.

Prizes over $2,500 can only be paid by the Lottery. Mail a completed Claim Form along with the signed ticket to the address on the form.

Certain prizes must be claimed in person at Lottery headquarters in Middletown. Among these are:

  • Powerball or Mega Millions jackpot or top prizes
  • An annuity top or second-level prize for Cash4Life
  • An annuity prize for a Scratch-Off game

After the ticket is validated, the check will be mailed in approximately 4 to 6 weeks, although some may take less time.

The prize must be claimed immediately after the draw. All prizes expire one year.

How to Contact the Pennsylvania – PA Lottery

You can contact the California Lottery through the Customer Service Center at Lottery’s general toll-free number:1-800-692-7481 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday – Friday.

For help with Second-Chance Drawings, call 1-800-201-0108. For help with playing/buying online games, contact 24/7 Player Support at: [email protected] o 1-833-530-PLAY (7529).

If you know of or suspect any impropriety, please contact the PA Lottery Division of Security via email at [email protected] or call at 717-702-8026.

The lottery can also be contacted using the chat function available on the PA Lottery website.

If compulsive gambling is a concern for you, please call 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) for confidential assistance or visit pacouncil.com to access the helpline by text or chat.

You can also contact the Pennsylvania Lottery Headquarters, Monday – Friday (717-702-8000), 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., or any other PA Lottery office listed below:

  • Philadelphia (215-952-1123)
  • Wilkes-Barre (570-826-2091)
  • Harrisburg (717 702-8230)
  • Clearfield (814 765-0536)
  • Pittsburgh (412 770-2760)
  • Erie (814 835-2423)
  • Lehigh Valley (610 807-3319)

Website URL: https://www.palottery.state.pa.us/.

Email address: [email protected].

Social media:

Additionally, players can subscribe to the free RSS (Really Simple Syndication) service and get automatic updates from the Pennsylvania Lottery.

Summary to the Pennsylvania State Lottery

When you play the lottery with PA Lottery, you are playing legally. You can win prizes of different sizes and get the biggest prizes offered in each of its game modes. The jackpots have no limits so they can accumulate, reaching large numbers.

To play in the Pennsylvania Lottery you must be at least 18 years old. The prizes awarded by the lottery depend on the number of tickets sold and the number of winning tickets.

Prizes greater than $600 are subject to Taxes according to federal and state laws. Tickets with prizes greater than $5,000 will have the minimum amount of applicable taxes withheld.