Can a 50/50 raffle be sold online in New York?

Yes, with the same Gaming Commission approval as any other online raffle. A 50/50 is a cash raffle: the prize is a share of what the tickets bring in, and New York treats it as a raffle in every respect, including the licensing categories, the 180-day sales window, the physical drawing and the Internet/Mobile application. The one thing the rules single out is the ticket: a 50/50 may use two-part admission-style tickets with matching serial numbers, and online every sale still carries its own number.

Last reviewed October 2026 Sources: 9 NYCRR 4620.22, GML 186 and 189, the Raffle Guidelines, the Queen of Hearts FAQ

Is a 50/50 a raffle under New York law?

Yes. The Commission says so directly, and the statute's definition of a raffle, people paying for tickets and a prize decided by a drawing among those tickets, describes a 50/50 exactly. Everything that applies to a merchandise raffle applies here.

"Other examples of authorized raffles include traditional merchandise raffles and cash raffles, including “50/50” type raffles. Please note that only bona fide, non-profit “authorized organizations” as defined in Sections 186 and 190-a of the games of chance licensing law and in games of chance rule Sections 4600.1 and 4601.1 are eligible to conduct The Search For The Queen of Hearts raffles or any other raffles."

NYSGC Queen of Hearts FAQ (Rev. 8/2024), question 1

Does a 50/50 need a license?

The same thresholds as any raffle, measured in net proceeds. Under $5,000 from a single raffle and under $30,000 for the year, there is no registration, license or financial report, and the Commission's own example of that category is a weekly 50/50. Above those figures, a Games of Chance Identification Number plus a verified statement (GCVS-1) or a municipal raffle license (GC-5). One thing changes online: a Games of Chance Identification Number is required to apply for internet sales in every category, so even a small 50/50 needs one before it can go online.

"Example A: An authorized organization conducts a 50/50 raffle every Saturday night at its club during the calendar year on the 52 separate Saturday nights of the calendar year. The organization derives net proceeds of $200 from each separate 50/50 raffle. Requirements: There are no games of chance/raffle registration, licensing or financial reporting requirements."

NYSGC Guidelines for Conducting Raffles (Rev. 8/2024), examples of Category 2 raffles

The categories and forms are laid out step by step in Can a nonprofit sell raffle tickets online in New York?

What is different about 50/50 tickets?

Only the format. A 50/50 may use the two-part admission-style tickets everyone knows from the fire hall, and the rule exempts them from the usual list of things printed on a raffle ticket. What it does require is that both parts carry the same consecutively printed serial number, because that number is how the winner is verified. Sold online, each purchase is a numbered record tied to the buyer's account, which serves the same purpose.

"(1) Raffle tickets, with the exception of the two-part "admission-style" tickets utilized in the game commonly known as a "50/50 raffle" shall reflect the following: (i) name and, if required by section 4601.1(a) of this Title, the identification number of the authorized organization; (ii) the location(s), date(s) and time(s) of the drawing(s); (iii) the consecutively printed serial number of the ticket; (iv) the price of the ticket; (v) a list of the prizes offered; (vi) the statement: "Ticket holders need not be present to win."; and (vii) each ticket stub or receipt shall reflect the name, address and telephone number of the ticket purchaser, and the consecutively printed serial number of the ticket."

9 NYCRR § 4620.22(a)(1)

"(2) Each part of a two part "admission-style" ticket used in the game commonly known as a "50/50 raffle" shall bear an identical, consecutively printed serial number, to be used in verifying the winning ticket."

9 NYCRR § 4620.22(a)(2)

How is the prize set, and is there a cap?

The split is your organization's rule, and half of ticket sales is the custom the name describes. Neither the statute nor the Commission's raffle rule sets the percentage, and the Commission's documents describe a 50/50 only as a cash raffle. What the law does say is that no single raffle prize may exceed $300,000, and that the entire net proceeds of the raffle go to your organization's lawful purposes.

"(b) No single prize awarded by raffle shall exceed the sum or value of three hundred thousand dollars."

General Municipal Law § 189(5)(b)

What changes when the 50/50 is sold online?

Nothing that is special to a 50/50. The online rules apply as they do to any raffle: Commission approval of that raffle at least 60 days before the first online sale, verified purchaser accounts, buyers physically in New York, a licensed supplier's platform on a New York server, sales within 180 days of the drawing, and a physical drawing. The one practical point for organizations that run 50/50s again and again is that the application is filed per raffle, with a shortcut for repeat filers.

"This application must be completed for each raffle for which Internet/mobile device tickets sales are proposed. If a previous Internet/mobile device ticket sales application has been approved for the same authorized organization and Exhibits 11 through 17 would be unchanged, please so indicate in lieu of resubmitting such Exhibits."

Internet/Mobile Raffle Ticket Sales Application (Rev. 9/2024), Completing This Form, item g

How the physical drawing works with online tickets is covered in Can you draw a raffle winner online in New York?

Where RFFL fits

RFFL runs 50/50 raffles as their own raffle type. Buyers and admins see an estimated prize calculated as half of total ticket sales, excluding any additional contributions, and your organization confirms the final amount after the drawing and pays the winner. Every online sale is a numbered ticket record, exportable for the physical drawing. The application, the drawing and the payout remain your organization's. Details are on the platform page, and Reggie can answer a question about your organization's situation.

Sources

NYSGC Queen of Hearts FAQ (Rev. 8/2024), linked from the Raffles page, question 1 (cash raffles including 50/50 type raffles)
9 NYCRR § 4620.22(a)(1) and (2) (raffle tickets; two-part admission-style tickets)
NYSGC Guidelines for Conducting Raffles (Rev. 8/2024), raffle categories and the Category 2 examples
General Municipal Law § 189, subdivisions 4 (use of proceeds) and 5(b) (single prize cap); General Municipal Law § 186, subdivision 3-b (definition of a raffle)
NYSGC Internet/Mobile Raffle Ticket Sales Application (Rev. 9/2024), Completing This Form, item g (one application per raffle)

This page is educational. It summarizes the rules as published by the New York State Gaming Commission and is not legal advice. Where this page and the Commission's documents differ, the documents control, and for your organization's own situation you should check with the Commission or your counsel.