The legal age to buy lottery tickets in California is 18. California Government Code Section 8880.52 prohibits selling a lottery ticket or share to anyone under 18 and prohibits anyone under 18 from buying one, and it makes both acts misdemeanors.1California Legislative Information. California Code GOV 8880.52
What the 18-Year Rule Covers
The age floor applies to every product the California Lottery sells. Scratchers, SuperLotto Plus, Mega Millions, Powerball, daily draw games — all of them. It also reaches vending machines and self-service terminals, which the Lottery Commission is required to safeguard against use by minors.1California Legislative Information. California Code GOV 8880.52
Online services tied to the Lottery, such as the 2nd Chance promotions, work the same way. Account holders must be 18 or older, and the Lottery uses age and identity verification to confirm eligibility.2California State Lottery. FAQs If the Lottery later finds that an account holder is underage or supplied false information, it can suspend or terminate the account and refuse to pay any prizes.3California State Lottery. Terms of Service
Criminal Penalties for Selling or Buying Under 18
Section 8880.52 is specific about who can be charged. Any person who knowingly sells a lottery ticket to someone under 18 is guilty of a misdemeanor. Any person under 18 who buys a ticket is also guilty of a misdemeanor.1California Legislative Information. California Code GOV 8880.52
Under California Penal Code Section 19, a standard misdemeanor carries up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.4California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 19 In practice, a first offense by a teen buyer rarely leads to jail time. A clerk or retailer who sells repeatedly to underage customers faces heavier consequences, and the Commission also has authority to deny or revoke the retailer’s lottery sales contract on top of any criminal charge.
Can an Adult Gift a Lottery Ticket to a Child?
No. The California Lottery has stated that giving lottery tickets to minors “in any way is against the law.”5California State Lottery. Gift Responsibly This Holiday Season That covers all products, Scratchers included, and the fact that an adult paid for the ticket does not make it legal to pass to someone under 18. Holiday stockings are the common scenario, but the rule is the same year-round.
What Happens to a Winning Ticket Held by a Minor
Even a winning ticket is unredeemable in a minor’s hands. Government Code Section 8880.321 blocks the Lottery from paying any prize on a ticket purchased by a minor.6California Legislative Information. California Code GOV 8880.321 The statute reaches further than the minor, too: anyone who knowingly claims or attempts to claim a prize using a ticket bought by a person under 18 is guilty of a misdemeanor. An adult who hands a child cash to buy a ticket and then walks in to claim the winnings is in criminal territory.
Every ticket and every ticket-dispensing machine in California must carry a conspicuous notice that selling to minors and paying prizes to minors are both prohibited by state law.1California Legislative Information. California Code GOV 8880.52
What Retailers Have to Do
The statute puts an affirmative duty on retailers and their employees to “establish safeguards” against sales to anyone under 18.1California Legislative Information. California Code GOV 8880.52 In day-to-day terms, that means checking a valid, unexpired government-issued photo ID when a buyer’s age is in doubt. The California Lottery operates more than 23,000 retail locations, and each is bound to these requirements through its sales contract.
The Commission runs compliance checks, including unannounced undercover operations to see whether a clerk will complete a sale without verifying age. Outcomes range from warnings to full contract revocation depending on how severe or repeated the violation is. Because the underlying sale is also a misdemeanor, the clerk who rings it up has personal criminal exposure separate from anything that happens to the store’s lottery license.
Other Gambling in California Isn’t All 18
The 18-year lottery minimum doesn’t carry over to every form of legal gambling in the state. A quick comparison for anyone who just turned 18 and assumes the door is open everywhere:
- Lottery tickets and prize claims: 18.
- Pari-mutuel horse race betting: 18, under California Horse Racing Board regulations.
- Bingo: 18, under California Penal Code Section 326.5.
- Card rooms: typically 21, enforced through city and county licensing.
- Tribal casinos: usually 21, though some admit 18-year-olds depending on the tribal-state compact.
Someone who is 18 can legally buy a Scratcher at a gas station and still be turned away at the door of most card rooms and casinos on the same afternoon.