Can Non-Kerala Residents & Other State Citizens Buy and Claim Kerala Lottery?

Can People Outside Kerala Buy and Win?

Every year, millions of tourists, pilgrims visiting Sabarimala and Guruvayur, business travelers, and interstate professionals visit Kerala. Many purchase lottery tickets from street vendors and railway stations. But what happens if someone living in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal, or Delhi wins a major prize?

Can a non-Kerala resident legally collect the prize money, or are the lotteries restricted strictly to Kerala residents?

The short answer is: Yes, absolutely. Any Indian citizen can legally claim and collect prize money, provided the physical ticket was purchased inside the geographic territory of Kerala.

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The Legal Distinction: Geographic Sale vs Buyer Domicile

Under the Lotteries (Regulation) Act, 1998 (Central Act 39 of 1998) and rulings of the Supreme Court of India:

1. Sale must occur physically in Kerala: The Government of Kerala does not permit its lottery tickets to be sold or marketed in other states. You cannot purchase tickets online, by post, or through interstate couriers.
2. No restrictions on buyer domicile: The law places no restriction whatsoever on the nationality or home state of the purchaser. As long as you physically handed over cash and received a paper ticket within Kerala borders (e.g. at an airport, railway station, bus terminal, or town street stall), your purchase is 100% legal.

Over the years, several of Kerala's highest bumper prizes—including the ₹12 Crore Vishu Bumper and ₹1 Crore weekly prizes—have been won by interstate travelers, migrant workers from Assam and West Bengal, and residents of neighboring Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

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How Out-of-State Winners Can Claim Prize Money

If you reside outside Kerala and discover you hold a winning ticket, you do not necessarily have to stay in Kerala for months to receive your payout. Here are your two legal options:

#### Option A: Submit Through a Nationalized Bank in Your Home City

You can submit your winning ticket through any Nationalized or Scheduled Bank (such as State Bank of India, Canara Bank, or Punjab National Bank) in your hometown:

1. Visit your local home branch with the original ticket, PAN card, Aadhaar card, and passport photos.
2. The branch manager issues a Safe Custody Receipt (SCR) and dispatches the ticket via secure bank transit to their main Thiruvananthapuram branch.
3. The Thiruvananthapuram branch presents the ticket to the Directorate of Kerala State Lotteries at Vikas Bhavan.
4. After verification and 30% TDS deduction under Section 194B, the Directorate remits the net amount directly into your bank account.

#### Option B: Visit the Directorate in Thiruvananthapuram Directly

For jackpots above ₹1 Crore (such as the Onam or Vishu Bumper), most winners prefer traveling directly to Thiruvananthapuram:

• Visit the Directorate of State Lotteries, Vikas Bhavan, 4th Floor.
• Submit the original ticket, attested KYC, and bank passbook.
• You will be issued an official government acknowledgement slip. Payouts are transferred via RTGS/NEFT within 15 to 30 banking days.

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Additional Documentation for Non-Kerala Residents

To prevent money laundering and ensure compliance with Central tax mandates, out-of-state claimants must furnish:

1. State Domicile Certificate / Resident Proof: A copy of your Voter ID, Passport, or Electricity bill proving your residential address in your home state.
2. Affidavit of Physical Purchase: A notarized declaration specifying where, when, and from which vendor within Kerala the ticket was purchased.
3. Active Indian Bank Account: Payouts can only be credited to an Indian bank account; funds cannot be sent to foreign NRE/NRO accounts directly without special RBI permissions for NRIs.

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The Strict Prohibition on Online & Cross-Border Couriers

Be warned: Many fraudulent websites claim to sell "Kerala Lottery Online for Out-of-State Buyers" and offer to courier physical tickets to your home in Mumbai, Chennai, or Bangalore.

Crucial Warning: Purchasing Kerala lottery tickets through unauthorized websites, WhatsApp brokers, or interstate postal couriers is illegal under the Kerala Paper Lotteries Act. If a courier-delivered ticket wins, the Directorate will investigate the supply chain; if found to be an unauthorized cross-border sale, the ticket will be confiscated with zero payout.

Always buy physical tickets in person whenever you visit Kerala. You can verify your ticket numbers daily on our Live Draw Results page or compare previous winning numbers in our Previous Results Archive.