Apply for a Lottery Permit
-
From: Department of Justice
- Published on: 2 February 2019
- Last updated on: 11 April 2025
What a Lottery Permit is
Lottery Permits allow the promotion of lotteries up to a maximum prize value of €5,000.
The promotion of a lottery under a Permit may be for:
- the benefit of community organisations, sports clubs, and charities
- the benefit of the promoter
A lottery includes all competitions for money or money's worth involving guesses or estimates of future events or of past events the results of which are not yet ascertained or not yet generally known. It is an offence to promote a lottery without a permit.
Types of lotteries include:
- raffles
- draws
- sweepstakes
- bingo
Lotteries promoted under Permit are usually conducted on a physical or land based basis. However, there is no prohibition on the promotion of the lottery online.
Stake limits
Tickets for a lottery promoted under permit may be sold for a maximum of €10 per ticket.
Prize limits
The total prize fund for a lottery under permit is set at a maximum of €5,000. This limit applies whether the lottery is promoted on a weekly or other periodical basis.
How to apply
An application for a Lottery Permit must be made to a Garda Superintendent for the district where the person promoting the lottery ordinarily resides. The application must be:
- made on the form specified
- accompanied by the prescribed fee, if any (there is currently no fee)
- made to the Garda Superintendent of the district concerned not less than 60 days before the first day on which it is intended to promote the lottery to which the application relates
A decision on whether to grant or refuse the Permit application will be made by the Superintendent within 28 days from receipt of the application.
Read further information on how the applications are assessed and the conditions which apply.
Cost of permit
There is currently no fee to apply for a Lottery Permit.