How much tax will be withheld from P700-M Ultra Lotto winner?

As of Monday, the prize pot of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office's (PCSO) 6/58 Ultra Lotto game has almost reached P700 million.

None of the thousands of bettors to the game got the winning combination of 58, 08, 34, 29, 35, and 38, allowing the pot to rise from P679 million to around P695 million for the next draw on Tuesday.

But as a Balitanghali report notes, even if a lucky, single bettor gets the winning combination, they will only receive P560 million.

The hefty cut is the result of Republic Act No. 10963 or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Law (TRAIN) law, which imposes a 20 percent tax to all winnings that exceed P10,000.

Due to the 20 percent tax on winnings, the government is expected to earn up to P1 billion a month. —Rie Takumi/JST, GMA News