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The Euromillions jackpot of almost 69 million francs was cracked on Friday.
On Friday, Euromillions played for a particularly well filled jackpot. Lo and behold: the millions are migrating to Switzerland! A lucky guy is richer by exactly 68,843,008.55 francs. The magic numbers for the million rain were: 4, 13, 25, 33, 37 with the stars 5 and 10.
On request, Swisslos states that the winner has not yet reported. But what does the lucky guy have to consider now? The most important questions and answers at a glance.
If I hit the jackpot, how do I get the millions?
If you handed in the lottery ticket at the kiosk, you have to check the numbers yourself or show the receipts. If you have played online, you will be notified by email.
However, the money will probably not be paid out immediately. If you win more than CHF 1,000, the lucky winners will receive a receipt for claiming their prize. You must then either send it by post to the address of Swisslos’ Basel headquarters or hand it in there in person. The money will later be transferred to the lucky guy.
It does happen that winners of millions of prizes come directly to Basel, where Swisslos has its headquarters. An appointment would then be made with them. The meeting would then take place outside the company headquarters, since there were also one or two interested eyes internally.
Once my numbers have been drawn, can I go straight to the kiosk and claim my prize?
The release for payment takes place at 10:30 p.m. From this point on, all prizes up to and including CHF 1,000 can be cashed in at the points of sale. Larger contributions go through Swisslos.
When do I have to report to Swisslos at the latest?
You have six months to do this. After that, the prize will be forfeited in favor of the purpose of Swisslos. According to Swisslos, it comes into the net profit, which is distributed in full across the cantons for charitable purposes. As a rule, lottery winners would report within two weeks.
How much tax do I have to pay?
The first million is tax free. From the rest of the profit, 35 percent goes directly to the Federal Tax Administration. This is regardless of whether the winner has already contacted Swisslos.
If the winner reports, he will receive a withholding tax statement and the remaining 65 percent of the prize will be paid out directly. On his tax return, he must state all the money as income. If everything is recorded correctly and the usual taxes have been paid, the withholding tax will be refunded to the winner.
Depending on the canton, the winner then has to deduct more or less taxes. The cantons of Zug, Obwalden and Nidwalden, for example, are tax-efficient. In Geneva, on the other hand, you would have to dig deeper into your pockets.
In the canton of Schwyz, however, it is estimated that more than 65 percent of the money would remain after all taxes were deducted. In the cantons of Basel or Lucerne, on the other hand, the winner has to pay significantly more than 35 percent of his sum. Incidentally, in the following years all the money must be declared as assets.
Who else should I inform about the million-dollar prize?
This is of course up to you. However, Swisslos advises that the circle of people who know about the prize should be kept as small as possible. You shouldn’t quit your job right away, but first think carefully about what you want to do now and what the money actually means. When asked, Swisslos also emphasized that “everything is done to ensure that winners remain anonymous”. (ced)