Revenue declined during the pandemic but as the businesses and travel started to pick up over the past year, it jumped by 59 percent in 2022 to $16.5 million. State revenue from these tickets climbed to an estimated $10.4 million during the fiscal year 2019. (The state does not collect data on how many vouchers go unclaimed each year.) At that time, the state reported revenue of $3.1 million on $4.2 million of unclaimed vouchers. Revenue collected from expired tickets has increased every year since 2012, the first year the state began collecting revenue from unclaimed tickets. In Nevada, when it hits 180 days after a voucher’s issuance, casinos include 25 percent of the redemption value in its reported gross revenue for the month that it expired and remit the remaining amount to the Nevada Gaming Commission, which adds the funds into the state’s general fund. Unclaimed tickets in New Jersey and Pennsylvania expire after one and three years, respectively. Nevada’s expiration process isn’t unique. Sometimes that’s a pain, especially when it’s 30 or 40 cents. You have to go all the way to the cashier’s cage to cash them out. “That’s one thing I hated about the ticket vouchers,” Pierce said. When Pierce ends her gameplay and redeems her money at an ATM/ticket-in, ticket-out machine, she’s stuck with a paper ticket for the change value.

She likes the vintage penny and quarter games, the sound coins make and checking out the bonuses on the large new machines.īut one thing she doesn’t like - ticket vouchers. And gamblers left $22 million in unclaimed tickets in the fiscal year that ended June 30, according to state data.Ĭlorissa Pierce of Farmington, New Mexico, makes sure to play a mix of new and old slot machines when she visits Las Vegas. Per a 2011 law, the state collects 75 percent of any expired wagering voucher and the casino licensee can keep the rest. But where does the money go after a voucher expires? Players only have six months to use the voucher.

Instead of holding crisp bills, many tourists and locals have often found themselves irritated that they are stuck with a ticket voucher worth a few cents. The state, which gets 75 percent of unclaimed winnings, collected $16.5 million from a total of nearly $22 million in unclaimed winnings in the 2021-2022 fiscal year. (Steel Brooks/Las Vegas Review-Journal) Unredeemed cashout vouchers from Las Vegas casinos on Wednesday, Aug.

Finding money on casino floor