Powerball, the lucrative lottery that has taken the United States by storm with a record jackpot of $1.5 billion US, is now causing a commotion in Canada as well.
Tonight’s draw is the reason for line-ups at some border crossings as thousands of Canadians take the drive to pick up a two dollar US ticket, and a chance to be the winner.
In an interview with CBC News, a worker at a North Dakota gas stop near the Manitoba border said at one point today it seemed like “about half of Canada” had driven down to buy Powerball tickets.
There may be a catch, however, in a little-known American law that prohibits foreigners from re-entering the U.S. with a lottery ticket.
“Immoral articles”
It’s called the “immoral articles” law and it stipulates that “all persons are prohibited from importing into the United Sates from any foreign country any… lottery ticket, or any printed paper that may be used as a lottery ticket, or any advertisement of any lottery.”
Meanwhile, a Toronto bakery was giving out Powerball lottery tickets with purchases of over $25 Cdn. this morning. When word spead a line-up formed, with people waiting in the bitter cold for the opportunity to get a ticket.
Against the sinking Canadian dollar, a winner here would have over $2 billion dollars, but would likely have to pay almost 30 per cent in taxes to the American government. In Canada lottery winnings are tax-exempt.
It remains to be seen if a Canadian winner will be able to collect. Odds are one in 292 million.
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