What Counts as the Player's Winnings
From the player's position, the tax question begins with a definition: what is the winnings received from a person engaged in the gambling business. The eighth article of the Tax Code of Georgia determines: winnings received from a person engaged in the gambling business is income determined by the positive difference between the amount received and the amount placed by the physical person — the player — from gambling and profitable games on one ticket, token, coin and/or other means.
This definition contains two important details. First: winnings are a positive difference — the growth between what was received and what was placed. Second: the definition is set at the level of a unit — one ticket, token, coin or other means, so the positive difference is determined separately on each such unit. When a player records results, it is precisely this unit-based accounting that must serve as the foundation.
Such an approach may at first glance seem like extra work, but it is precisely what protects the player from two errors: in a cumulative view, a person often forgets that results on different units stand separately in the eyes of the Code; and conversely, that in calculating the positive difference only the data of the respective unit must be included. Properly arranged notes answer this question at a glance and turn the calculation of the liability into a transparent procedure.