Small society lottery registration

Society lotteries are lotteries promoted for the benefit of a non-commercial society. A society can be considered non-commercial if it is established and conducted for:

  • Charitable purposes.
  • The purpose of enabling participation in, or of supporting, sport, athletics or a cultural activity.
  • Any other non-commercial purpose other than that of private gain.

A lottery is legally defined as small if ticket sales are no more than £20,000 and where the society’s aggregate proceeds do not exceed £250,000 a year.

Local Authorities are responsible for the registration of small society lotteries. Initial registration costs £40 with an annual maintenance fee of £20. We will remind you two months before the anniversary of the registration, we may cancel your registration if the annual fee payment is not received by the due date.

In order to accept a registration application we must be satisfied that your society is a properly constituted one that is raising monies for charitable / benevolent purposes. With this in mind we ask you to include with your application a copy of the terms and conditions of the society’s constitution (including details on how you intend to deal with the funds raised).

Conditions of application:

  • Your society must be non-commercial.
  • At least 20% of the lottery proceeds must be applied to the purposes of the society.
  • No single prize may be worth more £25,000.
  • Every ticket in the lottery must cost the same and must be paid for before entry into the draw is allowed.
  • After each lottery a society must submit a ‘return’ to the Council no later than three months after the draw took place.

For more detailed information and guidance, including age limits and ticket requirements please see the Gambling Commission’s Small Society Lottery Guidance.