One very, very lucky person could walk away with a significant sum of money courtesy of the Mega Millions lottery, which currently boasts a $600 million jackpot. The next drawing is set to take place soon, so you will need to prepare in advance of the event if you want your chance to win a piece of the prize. According to CNBC, after no ticket matched all six numbers that were drawn on Friday night, the next Mega Millions drawing will be held on Tuesday.
The $600 million Mega Millions drawing that will take place on Tuesday will mark the 8th-largest jackpot in lottery history. Even though they boast a $600 million jackpot, that will not be the total that the winning individual (or individuals, if there are multiple winning tickets) will walk away with. CNBC noted that lottery officials are required to withhold 24% of big wins for federal taxes. When it comes to the latest Mega Millions jackpot, if the winner chooses the cash option, which most winners choose instead of the annuity, it would total around $442.4 million. The 24% that the government would withhold would shave off $106.2 million off of the price’s total before you would receive it.
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The publication reported that you could owe even more on top of that $106.2 million that would be going towards the federal government. At the moment, the top marginal income tax rate is 37%. As a result, if there are no reductions to the winner’s taxable income, then another 13% (or $57.5 million) of the total would be due to the IRS at tax time come April 2022. In total, that would mean that $163.7 million would be going to the IRS from that Mega Millions total. While there would be many financial aspects that you would have to consider if you did win the prize, CNBC noted that you probably shouldn’t get your hopes up too high that you would win. The publication reported that the chance of hitting the Mega Millions with one ticket is 1 in 302 million.
Mega Millions isn’t the only lottery game that boasts a lofty total at the moment. The Powerball jackpot is currently estimated at $470 million. The Powerball drawing will take place on Saturday night. When it comes to the Powerball, the odds are slightly better that you can end up winning in comparison to your odds with the Mega Millions. According to CNBC, your odds of winning the Powerball with a single ticket are 1 in 292 million.
