The Ultimate Guide to Purchases and Redemptions at Sweepstakes Casinos

Making Purchases at Sweeps Casinos

Types of Purchases

Sweeps casinos feature some Gold Coins and Sweeps Cash/Coins variations. Think of these coins like this — gold coins are for “free play,” whereas Sweeps Cash/Coins can be redeemed for cash.

With Gold Coins, you’ll get them in various ways including welcome bonuses, daily log-in rewards, playing games, reward programs (if applicable), and purchase add-ons. For Sweeps Cash, you’ll get some as part of the welcome bonus, but the most common way is through purchasing Gold Coins packages with free SC coins attached for free.

With traditional online casinos, you’d make a deposit and wager that money, but at sweeps casinos, you buy currency packages, obtain that amount you get, and wager that. For example, a package could be $9.99, and you receive “x” amount of Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins. You’ll then either lose or acquire more and can withdraw them for real cash or gift cards.

You can toggle between the two currencies at sweeps casinos and use them as they’re available, each with unique minimum wagering amounts.

Casino Purchase Options

Now that we’ve discussed how you acquire Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins, how exactly do you make the transaction to receive them? You’ll find that there are ample options available to you including the following:

• Debit/Credit Card: The most commonly accepted types are Visa and MasterCard, but Discover and AMEX could also be available.
• PayPal: An online e-wallet that allows you to purchase currency with your PayPal balance or via a connected bank account.
• Bank Transfer: Log into your bank account on the purchase window to complete the transaction.
• Skrill: An e-wallet alternative to PayPal.
• Gift Cards (Paysafecard, Circle K, Dollar General, CVS): Purchase one of these gift cards from a retailer and input the code on the back of the purchase window.
• Cryptocurrency: Bitcoin is most commonly accepted, though this is an emerging field for payment.

Of these methods, cryptocurrency is the least common. It’s beginning to emerge more but there’s certainly a stigma surrounding it regarding online gaming – whether real money or sweepstakes casinos.

After making a purchase, the package you ordered will be available immediately in your virtual wallet for you to use.

Safety and Security

Even though this isn’t a real-money online gambling site overseen by a gaming commission, lottery, or gaming control board, there are still laws that sweepstakes casinos must follow including providing a safe and secure platform.

The best sweepstakes sites will have SSL certification, which is used to secure all data passed between the browser and website servers. This includes your payment information. A good indicator for this is, during the payment process, look at your URL bar and check for the padlock icon from the URL. If it’s there and you click on it, you’ll be notified that the browser/site is safe and secure.

Bonuses and Promotions

While purchasing Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins is the easiest and most direct way to receive them, there are a number of other ways, too.

• Welcome Bonuses: At Sweepstakes sites, you’ll receive both currencies simply for creating an account. The amount varies from site to site.
• Daily Log-In Rewards: Each day you log in, you receive Gold Coins and/or Sweeps Coins. For example, at Chumba Casino, this is 200,000 Gold Coins and 1 Sweeps Cash.
• Referral Bonuses: At some sites, you’ll receive either currency for sending your friend a unique link, and they sign up and make a purchase.
• Special Promotions: After creating an account, many sweeps casinos will send you emails about upcoming promotions, including email-exclusive offers or for playing a certain game.

Redeeming Your Wins

Understanding Redemption

We’ve reviewed how to purchase these currencies, but what about redeeming them? At a real-money casino, you deposit cash, wager cash, and win or lose cash, but what about here?

It works somewhat similarly.

After making a purchase, you’ll use those to play games and accumulate currency over time. There are limits you must meet in order to redeem Sweeps Cash, though. Most sites offer real-money cash payouts or gift cards to top retailers. For the gift cards, the amount is typically around 10-25 Sweeps Cash and is redeemable at a 1 Sweeps Cash to $1 USD ratio. The same ratio is for real cash, too, but almost always requires 100 Sweeps Cash. At some sites, you can redeem it through a bank transfer or e-wallet, such as PayPal or Skrill.

Casino Redemption Options

You’ll be happy to hear that you can redeem Sweeps Cash in many ways as you did when you made the purchase. This includes an online bank transfer, PayPal, Skrill, or even gift cards if you cannot meet the 100 Sweeps Cash requirement for cash redemption.

Processing Times

Processing times for redemptions differ from site to site, but you’ll typically want to allow up to 10 business days. For cash redemption, we’ve found that if an e-wallet such as PayPal is available, this is often processed relatively quickly and could be done the same day. After that, a bank transfer will typically hit your account shortly after the review process.

In our experience, this is usually completed much quicker, as mentioned above. Still, you must account for the site, reviewing the request to ensure the funds or gift card is being sent to the correct player. It usually processes quicker because it’s a more straightforward method to send funds shortly after the review, and there’s no waiting for a check to mail or a gift card to arrive.

At most sites, you’ll be able to monitor the status of your redemption, but be patient as the site needs to ensure they’re processing the transaction correctly for you.

Below, we’ll list the most common redemption methods and processing times, but remember, this can change from site to site.

• PayPal/Skrill: Same day or up to two business days.
• Online Bank Transfer: About two business days.
• Gift Card: Allow up to 10 business days.

Fees and Charges

Like processing times, fees and charges can differ from site to site, but we’re happy to report this isn’t usually the case at the top sites on the market today. There might be internal processing fees with some banks, but that has nothing to do with the site itself.

Potential Issues and Troubleshooting

In our experience, the most common issue we see with players trying to process a redemption is using methods that the player themselves doesn’t own. Some players will try to send their redemption to a PayPal account owned by someone else if they don’t have one, and that’s simply not allowed per most Terms and Conditions.

Another common issue is confirming your account. For most sites, you need to verify your account before starting a redemption, which often includes providing a picture of your government-issued ID. Some sites may have trouble processing them for a variety of reasons. If so, we recommend contacting customer support directly to rectify the issue.

Taxes

Understanding Tax Obligations

The common threshold for reportable tax income in the United States is $600, which could apply to sweepstakes casino redemptions. Also, depending on the State you live in, there could be an income tax you are responsible for as well. However, we strongly encourage you to contact a tax professional for more information.

Reporting Winnings

Upon withdrawing enough currency, you may receive a W-2G or 1099 form from the site that you must report on your yearly tax return. For more information, we encourage you to contact a tax professional.

Deductions and Losses

In redeeming Sweeps Cash, you will want to keep a record of many things, including the dates of the wager, winnings, losses, bank transactions, and more. Depending on your situation, you may be able to deduct some losses. A certified tax professional would be best suited to explore your situation with you.

State-Specific Tax Implications

In addition to a federal tax rate, there are States that have a State income tax. This differs from State to State including a flat rate, brackets for the amount of money made, and more. To find this information, you should visit your State’s tax website and search for things related to individual income taxes.

Seeking Professional Advice

Redeeming prizes from sweeps casinos might be something new to you. While you could redeem it for real cash, there are real-world tax implications involved you want to be aware of. We strongly encourage you to contact a tax professional if you receive a W-2G or 1099 form from a sweepstakes site.

Emerging Technologies and Their Impact on Purchases and Redemptions

Cryptocurrencies

As mentioned above, cryptocurrency is a method that’s slowly emerging in both new sweeps casinos and real-money casino space, but it’s not as universally accepted as bank transfers or other e-wallets. There are plenty of benefits to cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and others, such as the speed and efficiency that could be had for redemptions, accessibility, internal security, and more.

However, cryptocurrency has some downsides, including its innate volatility and how quickly the value could change for you. Also, regulatory issues are associated with it, which somewhat stonewall it from being a more promoted form of payment or redemption. There’s anonymity associated with it, which makes it difficult to track for taxation purposes. In using cryptocurrency, some States might lump the use of it into other tax ramifications, such as capital gains, which could open you up to increased tax rates.

Digital Wallets and Mobile Payment Platforms

Beyond cryptocurrency are other emerging digital wallets and mobile methods of payment such as Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and Google Wallets. These methods allow you to tie a credit/debit card to your device and use it virtually as payment. We haven’t seen this method available at many casinos yet, but it does streamline the process and allow you to use a payment method you typically would, just through a different medium.

Equipped to your device, they carry a heightened level of protection, too, as opposed to using your physical card and typing out the card information.

Blockchain and Transaction Transparency

While there are certainly others more qualified to delve into the specifics of blockchain technology, it’s essentially a decentralized ledger that’s correlated to various cryptocurrencies. You can see all transactions performed here while they’re also safe because of cryptographic techniques.

Transparency is important as it can never be deleted or altered and lives on the blockchain forever.

Should this type of technology become available to interface with sweepstakes casinos, not only will there be a living record of each transaction, but the speed could easily enhance from up to 10 business days.

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) in Purchasing

At online casinos and sweepstakes casinos today, we have live dealer games that give you as close to an in-person experience as possible without actually being there, and the next step could be Augmented or Virtual Reality.

These technologies could not only allow players to interact with the games more uniquely, but they could also tie funds to your account and make purchases from there as if you were at a sweeps casino in person.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Customer Support

While live chat customer service options are available at real-money online casinos, many sweepstakes casinos don’t. As AI technology improves, these sites could begin providing a 24/7 live chat that’s prompt, fast, and free of human error to streamline the purchase or redemption process.

Tips and Best Practices

1 – Making the most of your purchases (e.g., buying during promotions)

When purchasing currency at a sweepstakes casino, just know that there will be plenty of opportunity to get an increased amount of that currency, whether it’s for a welcome bonus or another promotion. You’ll often see packages at higher costs reduced mightily and this could be a perfect chance to stock up on Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins/Cash.

2 – Ensuring smooth redemptions (e.g., verifying account details)

After creating an account and purchasing, it’s easy to start playing immediately and winning some games. Before doing so, we strongly recommend verifying your account to ensure that, when those Sweeps Coins hit your account, you can start the redemption process quickly and easily without needing to go through that account verification process and add more time to your prize redemption.

3 – Staying updated with the latest offers and promotions

Each day you log into your favorite sweepstakes casino, we recommend heading to the promotions page to see if there’s anything new. You’ll often find that sites have weekend or daily offers that you could’ve missed but can enjoy now. You can also check your email to see if anything from these sites has been sent with exclusive coin offers.

4 – Setting a budget and playing responsibly

When playing at a sweep casino, treat it purely like entertainment. For example, when you go to the movies, you might spend about $20, enjoy the experience, and wait a week or so to play again. Think of sweepstakes casinos in the same way. After making purchases, enjoy that session and the budget you create, but don’t allow yourself to chase losses and purchase more.

Set a budget for each session and stick to it until you can play again, and never spend more than you can afford.