If You Win the lottery, Can You Remain Anonymous in Canada?
There’s very little you can do to stay anonymous as a lottery winner. In fact, there’s nothing you really can do at all. The best thing you can do for yourself, is attempt to minimize the impact on your privacy once the announcement goes viral.
If you’d like to minimize the impact of being publicly called out for winning a life-changing sum of money, there are some steps you must take both before and after winning the lottery.
Safeguard Your Ticket
Sign and hide your ticket, and wait for a few days before cashing it in – check the rules of the lottery to see for how long you can wait to cash your ticket in. This period of time between the moment you win and the moment you cash in, is absolutely crucial in the next steps towards protecting your privacy to whatever extent you can. This is our biggest advice on how to stay anonymous after winning the lottery in Canada.
Know What to Expect
You aren’t the first person to win the lottery in Canada. A simple internet search of the lotteries from 2021 reveals a lot of information – for instance, that a couple from Noelville named Marc and Dorothy-Ann-Meilleur won a whopping $70 million in February 2021, after being lottery ticket buyers for several years as a couple.
Or, for instance, that the Lotto Max winner from 2022 was a man named Dale McEwin from Regina, who won $70 million – the largest jackpot in Saskatchewan and West Canadian province history. You would even learn that Adlin Lewis – winner of the first Lotto Max jackpot to hit the $70 million mark – and that he was a credit risk manager who went to work on the day he won the lottery. These are some of the biggest lottery winners in Canada’s history. So can you stay anonymous after winning the lottery in Canada?
The above information highlights the extent to which one’s privacy is affected when they win the lottery. We advise you to read up on past winners and the stories behind their victories – for the sole purpose of helping you evaluate the extent to which your privacy may be compromised beyond just a reveal of your name and photograph.
Doing your research can help you gain a thorough understanding of what to expect after winning the lottery – and then be prepared to mitigate the damage to your privacy if that’s what you want. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to enjoy the limelight after winning the lottery, but if you want to preserve your privacy and have a better chance of protecting your money, this is a major part of our advice for winners on how to stay anonymous. It is essential that you know what to expect, so that you don’t get taken aback once your privacy is threatened.
Many lottery winners wish to maintain their anonymity after their big win.
Exhaust your options
Lottery organizers typically don’t heed requests for privacy, because being transparent about winners is one of the bedrocks of the Canadian lottery system. However, if there is a significant threat to the public’s or your safety were your identity to be revealed, such as is the case with someone in a domestically abusive relationship, a maximum security prison inmate, or someone who is being subjected to extortion, the organizers will take heed and keep your victory anonymous.
It’s either these situations or that you’re an undercover operative of the law, in which case your identity clearly can’t be revealed for safety reasons. If that isn’t the case, be prepared for your identity to be revealed – but with the knowledge that your identity getting revealed won’t put you in immediate danger, which is why the organizers deem it safe to be revealed.
Hire Legal Counsel
While you should hire a variety of advisors ranging from estate planning to simple accounts, this team of advisors must be led by your lawyer – the leader of the team. An attorney can’t help you with establishing a trust fund and using that to claim your winnings, since Canadian organizers do not allow trust funds to cash out tickets.
However, they can help you with other options when it comes to the question of how to remain anonymous after winning the lottery in Canada. Or, at the very least, preserve some of your privacy – such as possibly collecting the winnings on your behalf, filing requests with the organizer for your anonymity, or even the extreme case of you pursuing litigation should you feel adversely affected by the rules and need relief from a constitutional authority.
Don’t Fuel the Fire
Whether your identity has already been compromised or you’re still preparing to cash in your ticket, tell as few people as you can about your newfound fortune. Unless your lottery winnings are a record breaking amount of money, there’s still a chance that the hype around your win will die down quickly and get confined to the depths of social media.
To improve your chances of this happening, tell as few people about your win as possible such as your closest confidants or family members only. On the off chance that you do manage to cash out while taking minimal damage to your privacy, don’t let it get ruined just because you told a few too many acquaintances after assuming your identity would go public anyway. Give your privacy a fighting chance, and resist the urge to tell anyone unless it’s absolutely essential.
Go Off the Radar
We don’t mean to suggest that you buy an island and live alone, hunting and foraging for your survival – not that kind of “off the radar.” When the news of your lottery winnings breaks, there is bound to be a ‘peak’ of some kind where the news gains maximum traction and thus spreads the most. This phase is the most damaging to your privacy, and can make you seriously ponder how to remain anonymous winning the lottery in Canada.
Our advice for lottery winners in Canada to stay anonymous is simple – do your best. Delete your social media for a few days, and give your nearest and dearest the opportunity to contact you securely. Take a modest vacation and celebrate your win, by going off the grid and having a mimosa or two. Change your phone number. These are just some of the things you can do for a few days to prevent people from contacting you once news of your payout breaks. In times like these, it is especially important to ensure that only your most important contacts have access to you while you wait for the news to die down.
Frequently Asked Questions
This article is a primer on what to expect in terms of your anonymity after winning the lottery in Canada. For more Canadian gambling options you can read our Canadian casinos page. While we hope it’s been helpful, here are answers to some other questions you may have.
How can I stay anonymous after winning the lottery in Canada?
You can’t remain completely anonymous winning the lottery in Canada, unless in extraordinary circumstances. The best you can do is mitigate the situation by hiring a team of competent lawyers and advisors who can then protect your constitutional right to privacy if required.
Do you have to pay taxes on lottery winnings?
No, lottery winnings are not taxable in Canada. Lottery winnings are considered windfalls and windfalls are not considered taxable income in the country. Income generated using your winnings, however, will be taxed. This is why we recommend hiring a financial consultant.
Do you have to go public after winning the lottery?
You don’t have to go public on your own, but must participate in PR events by the lottery organizers as mentioned in the terms & conditions. In rare cases, lottery organizations may waive off these duties from your contract, but not without a strong legal case. The best option is to keep a low profile for a few days.
