Requirements for Lottery Licence Applications
Requirements for Lottery Licence Applications
Alcohol & Gaming Commission of Ontario
United Way Work Place Committees
A precursor to any Lottery being conducted and/or operated for the United Way Campaign, in whole or in part, in any private sector work place is a written Letter of Agreement between the a) United Way and the b) Campaign Committee in a particular work place.
The written Letter of Agreement will facilitate the co-filing for an Application for Lottery Licence to the municipality as well as joint responsibility for the conduct and completion of the Lottery, through the Alcohol & Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO).
A lottery licence is required if: a price is paid for the event, a prize is offered and there is any element of chance involved. Examples include but are not limited to: 50/50 draws, bingo’s (there is a specific application for this type of lottery), and raffle’s for money or items, etc..
The Letter of Agreement must contain at a minimum the following information:
· The Committee name (e.g., RBC Bank Fundraising Committee for United Way)
· The Committee’s purpose(s)
· A clause stating that the committee will carry out their fundraising lottery project during the published campaign period of the United Way (September to December 31) campaign in the committee’s workplace, and that it will donate all net proceeds to United Way
· An organizational chart of the committee’s structure (e.g., president or chair)
· A provision providing for the replacement of the Chair, Secretary, Treasurer
· Effective date of the agreement
· The signatures of the chair of the committee and the appropriate campaign director or person authorized on behalf of United Way
The original signed Letter of Agreement must be provided to United Way (it takes approximately 6 weeks from date application received to get through the process of filing and receive the licence from AGCO).
Procedure for Filing an Application
1. The following must be sent to the municipality by United Way for them to issue a Letter of Approval;
· Covering letter of request
· The Letter of Understanding with the workplace, signed by the Campaign Chair
· A copy of the completed licence application
· A copy of the draft lottery ticket being used
· The fee cheque for $50 payable to the City of London to cover administration
2. The municipality then issue a Letter of Approval, returned to United Way.
3. Once approval letter received from the municipality, the following must then be sent to AGCO, by United Way for approval of the License;
· Original copies of all that was sent to the municipality with the exception of the $50 fee
· A cover letter of request to AGCO
· Original copy of the municipal letter of approval
· A cheque payable to the Minister of Finance for 3% of the total prize value of the lottery.
· AND, if the prize value exceeds $10,000, then AGCO requires a Letter of Credit, payable to the Minister of Finance from the workplace, equal to the prize value
4. The Licence is sent directly to the named workplace by AGCO, with a copy to United Way.
5. The Lottery event must only be conducted and managed within the workplace named on the licence. Participation in the lottery event is restricted to the employers and employees of the licensee only, and tickets may only be sold to the individuals working within that workplace.
Reporting results within 30 days of the Lottery are critical to the outcome of the lottery, the reputation of the Committee and United Way, and the legalities of being able to conduct the Lottery and subsequent Lotteries.
Stipulations and requirements for reporting upon the conclusion of the Lottery include:
· Names of all prize winners and values of prizes won
· Number of tickets offered and number sold
· Maximum prize pay out
· Prizes offered must exceed 20% of the value of the tickets offered for sale
· Proceeds must be forwarded to United Way immediately following the Lottery for deposit into the lottery bank account for reporting purposes
· All proceeds will be credited to the Committee’s workplace campaign
· No receipts can be issued for the money spent to be involved in the Lottery
Public, corporate and private sector places of employment are permitted to conduct and manage lottery events at their places of employment when overseen by the United Way and must obtain a lottery licence in order to comply with the Criminal Code of Canada.
See Chapter 2, page 84 of the Eligibility and use of proceeds Lottery Licensing Policy Manual, as provided by AGCO which highlights several of these points.
For additional details on the rules and regulations as provided on this information sheet, please visit AGCO’s website: www.agco.on.ca and source the Terms and Conditions of a Raffle event.
United Way London & Middlesex
409 King Street, London ON N6B 1S5
Ph: 519-438-1721 | Fx: 519-438-9938
unitedwaylm.ca |