Texas Lottery plans to reopen claim centers June 1

Published 2:12 pm Thursday, May 14, 2020

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AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Lottery Commission plans to reopen all 16 claim centers around the state on Monday, June 1, 2020. Claims will be processed by appointment only and recommended safety and cleaning guidelines will be followed. The claim centers will operate under this method for an undetermined period of time and until further notice. Details on how to schedule an appointment, as well as safety precautions to be put in place, will be announced at a later date.

“We want to thank our players for their patience during these uncertain times, and we are appreciative of the number of players that claimed prizes via mail or delayed visiting a claim center to keep themselves, fellow players and our employees healthy and safe,” said Gary Grief, executive director of the Teas Lottery. “We will continue to monitor the developments of the coronavirus situation day-by-day, while working with state officials, as we determine next steps in our claim center reopening process. The health and safety of our employees and all individuals we interact with remains our highest priority.”

As a reminder, all winning scratch and draw game ticket prizes of up to $5 million may continue to be claimed via mail. The ticket must be postmarked on or prior to the claim expiration date and should be mailed to:

Texas Lottery Commission
ATTN: Austin Claim Center
PO Box 16600
Austin, TX 78761-6600. Please allow 4-6 weeks for mail-in claims to be processed.

For additional information, and for mail-in claim forms, please visit our website:
https://www.txlottery.org/export/sites/lottery/Winners/Claim_Your_Prize/index.html.

All Lotto Texas®, Powerball® and Mega Millions® grand or jackpot prizes regardless of the amount, all prizes paid out in annuity payments, and any prize greater than $5 million will continue to be processed by appointment only at the Texas Lottery Commission headquarters in Austin. To schedule an appointment for this type of claim only, please call 512-344-5049 or email ClaimantProcessingAlert@lottery.state.tx.us.

Prizes of $599 or less may continue to be paid by any Texas Lottery® retailer.

A ticket holder forfeits any claim to a prize for a draw game after the expiration of the 180th day following the draw date; and for a scratch ticket game after the expiration of the 180th day following the official “end of game” as determined by the Commission. These deadlines may be extended for a period of time for certain eligible military personnel. Unclaimed prizes revert back to the state for programs authorized by the Texas Legislature.

Beginning with the first ticket sold in 1992, the Texas Lottery has generated more than $30 billion in revenue for the state and distributed $64 billion in prizes to lottery players. Since 1997, the Texas Lottery has contributed $24.9 billion to the Foundation School Fund, which supports public education in Texas. As authorized by the Texas Legislature, certain Texas Lottery revenues benefit state programs including the Fund for Veterans’ Assistance. Since the first veterans’ themed scratch ticket game was launched in 2009, the Texas Lottery has contributed more than $134 million for programs supporting Texas veterans.