Florida game-promotion filings: prizes over $5,000, seven-day advance filing, $100 fee, full-value security and winner reporting.
Planning a free giveaway or photo/video competition open to Florida residents? This guide focuses on ordinary commercial promotions with free entry, including random drawings and submission contests using judges or public voting. Paid entries or votes, purchase-linked promotions, charitable raffles and regulated prizes need separate analysis.
Editorial review: . Sources are linked beside the guidance they support. This is an informational overview, not legal advice for a particular campaign.
Filing at a glance
- Prize threshold
- More than $5,000
- Timing
- At least 7 days before launch
- Filing fee
- $100
- Prize security
- Full-value trust or bond; qualifying waiver may apply
These details apply within the scope explained below; prize value alone does not determine whether every promotion is covered.
When Florida registration applies
Florida Statutes §849.094 covers defined game promotions connected with consumer products or services that include chance and a prize. For covered promotions with total announced prizes greater than $5,000, file the rules and prize list with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services at least seven days before the promotion starts. The filing fee is $100. An out-of-state sponsor can be covered when Florida residents may participate.
The threshold is more than $5,000, not $5,000 or more. Read the operator definition and statutory exceptions before applying it to a particular promotion. A genuinely judged contest without an element of chance does not trigger this provision merely because it offers a prize.
Sources: Florida Statutes §849.094; FDACS game promotions.
Security, rules and winner reporting
Covered promotions over the threshold need a trust account or surety bond covering the full prize value, filed at least seven days before launch. There is no $100,000 cap. FDACS may waive security for operators meeting the statute’s five-year compliance conditions; a waiver is not automatic.
Filed rules cannot then be changed. Report winners of prizes worth more than $25 within 60 days after winners are finally determined, using the statutory certified-list or newspaper-publication procedure. Keep winning entries for 90 days after the promotion closes. Build these tasks into the campaign calendar.
Sources: Filing, security and reporting: §849.094(3)–(6).
Free entry and fair administration
The statute prohibits requiring an entry fee, payment or proof of purchase to enter a covered game promotion. It also prohibits misleading advertising, arbitrary rejection of entries, rigged allocation of winning games and failure to award advertised prizes.
For a photo or video competition, explain whether judges, public votes or a combination select the winner. If chance enters the selection process, revisit the game-promotion analysis rather than relying on the word “contest.”
Sources: Promotion conduct: §849.094(2).
Registration and campaigns open to other states
A campaign open beyond Florida may also trigger other states' requirements. Compare the New York, Florida and Rhode Island filing rules before finalizing eligibility and launch dates.
The state-law directory links to all 50 states and DC. A “void where prohibited” line does not itself define your eligible audience or complete a required filing.
Before opening entries
Use these practical drafting and administration steps alongside the applicable state rules:
- Identify the sponsor, eligible entrants, entry period and advertised prize.
- Explain the free entry method and how winners are selected. For submissions, describe judging criteria or voting stages and tie handling.
- Make advertisements, the form and full rules agree; do not imply an entrant has already won.
- Plan verification, notification and fulfillment, and retain the rules and selection records.
Federal advertising standards also apply. The FTC warns against misleading purchase prompts and prize claims; see its advertising guidance. Tax reporting and channel-specific rules are covered in the national sweepstakes guide.
Revup
Revup helps you collect entries and manage promotion workflows. Match your campaign settings and official rules to the requirements of your actual promotion.
