Small society lotteries

Small societies that want to run lotteries must register with the local authority where the society's head office is based. This may include raffles, tombolas

Lotteries that do not require a licence or registration.

Register a small society lottery

• Register a small society lottery (PDF, 61KB)

Applications can be submitted to the Licensing Team by email or post.

To pay the application fee, call the Customer Service Team on 0300 123 5015. Cheques should be made payable to Cheshire East Council

Fees

Fees are payable at the time of application.

• New registration: £40
• Annual renewal fee £20

Before you apply

You may need to provide:

• a copy of the society's constitution
• any terms of reference or conditions for the society
• a declaration confirming the society is a bona fide non-commercial society

Eligibility

To register a small society lottery, the society must be non-commercial and exist for:

• charitable purposes
• sport, athletics or cultural activities
• another non-commercial purpose that is not for private gain
  

The lottery must also meet all of the following requirements:

• ticket sales must be less than £20,000 for a single lottery
• annual ticket sales must be less than £250,000
• at least 20% of proceeds must go towards the society's purposes
• the maximum prize is £25,000
  

Gambling Commission operating licences

Lottery returns

After each lottery, the promoting society must submit a return to the council. This helps us check that legal limits have been met and that proceeds are being used for the society's purposes.

Lottery official return form (MS Word, 117KB)

Lottery returns must be submitted within 3 months:

• of the lottery draw, or
• for instant lotteries (such as scratch cards), from the last date tickets were available for sale
  

Returns must be signed by 2 members of the society who are aged 18 or over and authorised by the society.

If your application is refused

We may refuse an application if:

• the society is not non-commercial
• information in the application is false or misleading
• a person involved in promoting the lottery has been convicted of a relevant offence
• an operating licence held by the applicant has been refused or revoked within the last 5 years
  

If we intend to refuse an application, we will explain the reasons and give the society an opportunity to make representations.

The society can appeal to the Magistrates' Court within 21 days of receiving the decision