Mega Millions Jackpot Wins How Lottery Winners Can Protect Their Privacy

A player from Mega Millions in California turned a $ 2 bill into $ 530 million.

In the Friday night draw, only one ticket sold in San Diego was awarded to the six winning numbers. And while California is not a bad place to win – the state does not impose lottery winnings – the lucky person (or group of people) will not be able to remain anonymous.

California law requires that the names of lottery winners be made public. Yet, experts say, protecting your privacy is one of the most important ways to protect your boon from crooks and long-lost friends or relatives in search of a document.

The price reduction option – which is that of most lottery winners – rises to $ 345.2 million. Even after the 24% federal tax withholding of $ 82.8 million, the winner will have about $ 262.4 million (although additional federal taxes are due at the time of the tax).

The good news for this winner is that California provides a full year to claim the prize, which means you have plenty of time to plan a claim strategy. Experts recommend building a team of professionals experienced in manipulating lottery winnings and considerable benefits – a lawyer, an accountant and a financial advisor – to determine when and how to claim your winnings.

Here are tips for the big winners of the lottery to preserve their privacy.

Your first desire could be to share your exciting news with the world. However, the fewer people who know, the better. That's the case, whether you ask anonymously or not.

"Obviously, it may be impossible to prevent that from the immediate family, but news like this is going fast," said Jason Kurland, partner at Rivkin Radler, a law firm. based in Uniondale, New York. "Try to keep the circle of people who know as little as possible."

If you can not remain anonymous when you collect your winnings, close your social networking accounts in advance, said Kurland, a lottery winner aids specialist.

"The media will try to find as many images as possible of a winner, and social media is the first place to look," Kurland said. "You also want to make sure that there is as little personal information as your phone number or address."

While any snooper or determined crook could possibly track this information, you do not want to make it easy for them. If you have a landline phone, make sure it's not listed before you go to the lottery headquarters.

Even in states that allow you to collect your winnings anonymously, lottery officials may be legally allowed to reveal the city where you live.

"Everyone will look around to see who is spending more, who has left his job, who is taking a big vacation," Kurland said. "Winners should be able to take advantage of their new wealth, but if anonymity is a major concern, it can be difficult to find a balance."

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