Nearly $17 million was raised in fiscal year 2018 by licensed organizations through the sale of charity game tickets in Michigan. Charity game tickets are commonly known as pull tabs or break open tickets and are available to sell under all license types with the exception of a small raffle.
A qualified organization wishing to sell tickets and award prizes at an event can apply for a Special Charity Game License, which costs $15 per day for up to 4 consecutive days.
SPECIAL CHARITY GAME TICKET APPLICATION
Charity game tickets may also be sold in conjunction with a weekly bingo, Special Bingo, or Large Raffle License without paying an additional fee.
Qualified organizations that own or lease a location for the primary use of their members, such as veteran and fraternal clubs, may obtain an Annual Charity Game Ticket License to sell charity game tickets from 8am-2am, anywhere on the property of the licensed location. An Annual Charity Game Ticket License costs $200 per license year.
ANNUAL CHARITY GAME TICKET APPLICATION
Veteran and fraternal clubs prefer the use of a ticket vending machine for the sale of the traditional-style charity game tickets. Some licensed suppliers offer them for sale or lease.
Weekly bingo games have a fixed crowd where the same players will be around for at least a couple hours. The best type of charity game tickets to sell at weekly bingo games have HOLD tickets--tickets that are retained until all tickets in a deal have been sold. Then the biggest prize winners are determined with a bingo drawing or the opening of a seal card. Some of these games include instant winners and some do not.
For those with a smaller crowd (50 or less), the smaller games work better. (Also check out Pay Me Pack, whose tickets are split in to four increments of 200 each, which are easy to sell.)
Many bingos also sell Traditional Tickets, which do not contain HOLD tickets, just instant winners. (See Traditional Tickets category.)
Traditional tickets contain instant winners, both large and small, throughout the deal.
Locations with a fluid crowd (players coming and going at various times) do well with traditional tickets. This would include the bingo tent at a fair or festival as well as at the veteran and fraternal clubs, which typically sell the traditional tickets using a ticket dispensing machine.
Weekly bingos often include 50 cent and $1 traditional tickets to supplement their mix. These do not typically sell out in one session but carry over from one week to the next.
For special events where a fixed crowd will be around for at least a couple hours, event tickets can be loads of fun. All tickets are sold, then the top prize winner(s) are determined with a bingo drawing, the opening of a seal card, or a sporting event score.
Drawing of bingo balls or bingo cards--Derby Downs, Luckies, Lucky Bingo Balls, Milk Money, Pay Me Pack
Opening of Seal Card--Quick Draw
Sporting Event Score--Sports Squares
Sports Squares can be played under all gaming licenses except Small Raffles. This charity game can be played along with a team sport to allow your organization to raise funds while offering entertainment to players.
This schedule indicates the maximum amount that can be paid to a chairperson, recordkeeper, person preparing the financial statement, or other workers.
Organizations that sell charity game tickets should be aware of their federal tax responsibilities. Organizations that award a raffle prize greater than $599 or a bingo prize greater than $1,199 should be aware of player withholding responsibilities. These obligations are described in these links.