Casino night fundraisers can be a fun and successful way to raise money for your favorite charity, school, or cause. It can take some time and special preparation to plan a successful casino night. It’s also important to understand your state laws when it comes to planning a legal event.

In most states, a casino night fundraiser that involves no exchange of money is legal. However, each state has different rules, and your planning committee should aim to understand all of your legal restrictions.

Whether you are planning a casino night to raise money for your favorite charity, or raising funds for your family’s bride and groom, it’s important to know that you are staying within the legal restrictions. While gambling may not be legal in your state, it doesn’t mean that you can’t plan a Casino Night for your friends, colleagues, and family to enjoy.

Gambling or Charity?

Most people associate casinos with gambling. Gambling is the exchange of money with a legal body that provides games of chance. When you are planning a casino night fundraiser, you are not providing anything except entrance to your event in exchange for money. 

If you are attempting to raise money for a cause, you simply sell tickets to your event and have your participants play with chips that come included with their entry cost. At the end of the night, your big winners with the most chips can exchange their bounty for a non-cash prize. 

The house keeps all of the profit from the ticket sales minus the costs for hosting the event and the prizes. This means that your profits can go directly to a charity and not a private entity like a casino.

Selling Tickets

The aim of your casino night fundraiser is to make money. You will not be permitted to allow your participants to bet their own money on the games that you provide. To raise money, you will need to sell tickets to your event. Once your guests arrive, you can provide them with playing chips to be used at the tables. If you want to increase your profits, you may also want to include a silent auction to your gaming events.

State Laws

Every state has different laws that govern gambling. To ensure that your fundraising event doesn’t run into trouble, your organizers should contact state and local boards to review the legal status of your event. You may need to contact your local municipal office to find out who you should talk to about your event. 

Tips for Planning Your Casino Night Fundraiser

1. Rent your table games from a reputable dealer
2. Hire professional dealers that can help explain the games to your guests
3. Plan food that is easy to serve to roaming guests
4. Gain permits for alcohol service
5. Purchase prizes for your top casino winners

Your casino night fundraiser could be a ton of fun for your guests and earn you a bundle for your charity. Follow these tips to help you organize a legal event that your guests will enjoy.