Thread: My dad is going to be on "who wants to be a millionare" tomorrow

thats a real pain in the bum, you do all the hard work and win all that money and then they keep it for months whilst gaining all the intrest on it, dam i would ask for my money plus any intrest they have made. Dam Goverment. Rant over, Phew.....

Anyway hope he won loads and enjoyed it,

[QUOTE=JerseyLawyer;73248]You don't pay capital gains taxes on something like that. It's garden-variety income. (Actually, capital gains are better, becasue they're taxed at a lower rate than income).[QUOTE]

I see...you can tell I have never won any money anywhere...

What kind of taxes apply to when you make a pile of money off the market? I was under the (obviously false) impression that this was what capital gains was, and then incorrectly assumed it would apply to gameshow winnings as well. My aunt made around 500k over the course of 15-20 years, and when she sold out she only walked away with 330ish or so. Broker's fees maybe? I dunno. Still a nice side profit.

I believe that Capitol Gains is property you own that increases in value, ie. your house. You only pay the capitol gains tax when the items in question are sold. Most financial income is taxable, like game show winnings. That's why the guy that won the first Survivor series got charged with tax evasion. He didn't report the $1 million, which he should have paid regular income tax on.

[QUOTE=TomlinAS;75145][QUOTE=JerseyLawyer;73248]You don't pay capital gains taxes on something like that. It's garden-variety income. (Actually, capital gains are better, becasue they're taxed at a lower rate than income).

I see...you can tell I have never won any money anywhere...

What kind of taxes apply to when you make a pile of money off the market? I was under the (obviously false) impression that this was what capital gains was, and then incorrectly assumed it would apply to gameshow winnings as well. My aunt made around 500k over the course of 15-20 years, and when she sold out she only walked away with 330ish or so. Broker's fees maybe? I dunno. Still a nice side profit.

You pay capital gains on long term investments - held for a year or more was the rule last I checked, though they change the tax code like you and I change our socks, and I'm not a tax lawyer and have no desire to be. Most commonly, people are subject to capital gains when they sell their house, though under certain circumstances, if you use the money to buy another house it's not subject to tax.

Game show winnings are regular income, just like gambling winnings, or the paycheck you collect at your job. Get ready to pay that lovely 38% (it could be different now) top income tax rate, too.