Did you win a lottery prize but are you undocumented? Do you have doubts about whether you can charge it for your immigration status? In Globe Live Media we explain it to you
One of the biggest draws in Powerball history takes place on Saturday night, where a $1.6 billion jackpot becomes the money accumulated so far. Regardless of the results and knowing if there is a winner or winners, at Globe Live Media we want to tell you what happens if an undocumented immigrant wins the lottery prize.
Actually, winning a lottery game, be it Powerball, Mega Millions or any other brand, does not prevent a person living in the United States as an undocumented immigrant from collecting a lottery prize. Furthermore, these games do not depend on a person’s immigration status.
So an immigrant has the same chance of winning and collecting his lottery prize as any other person. According to the official site of the Powerball lottery, it is not a requirement to live in the United States to participate in the draw, the only thing that is needed, in case of winning, is to present an official identification document that has been issued by the country of origin of each person.
This means that if you are a tourist in the United States and you get the fever to play the lottery, and it turns out that the ticket you buy is a winner, you can also cash it without any problem. What is important and a mandatory requirement is that you have bought the ticket in any of the 45 states of the country where Powerball tickets are sold. The same counts if you buy it in the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
An extra requirement that does not apply in all states of the country, only in some, is that the winners must present a tax identification number, which implies that you must have an address in the United States to be able to collect the prize. But, we insist, this is in some states, most of them do not demand this requirement.
Who can NOT collect a lottery prize?
People who are relatives of those who work in Powerball and/or Mega Millions, or any other individual who has any relationship with these companies, are excluded from this draw.