Washington authorizes qualifying business promotional contests and excludes them from gambling, subject to statutory conditions and prize-advertising rules.
Planning a free giveaway or photo/video competition open to Washington 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.
Washington’s promotional-contest authorization
RCW 9.46.0356 authorizes qualifying business promotional contests and excludes them from gambling. It includes conditions on consideration, additional entries and equipment, and preserves the prize-advertising requirements in chapter 19.170.
Use the statutory conditions for the promotion you actually plan. The authorization is specific to a qualifying promotional contest; it is not a declaration that every paid game or charitable fundraiser is exempt.
Sources: Washington RCW 9.46.0356.
Prize advertising still needs review
Washington chapter 19.170, Promotional Advertising of Prizes, separately governs covered prize offers, including disclosures and misleading representations. The promotional-contest authorization does not remove those obligations.
For free photo/video entries, explain the selection method and voting stages, eligibility, dates and ties. Treat these as practical administration steps and assess any element of chance rather than assuming every public-vote format is purely skill-based.
Sources: Washington Promotional Advertising of Prizes.
Registration and campaigns open to other states
For ordinary free commercial sweepstakes, the familiar prize-value filing regimes are in New York, Florida and Rhode Island. That does not remove Washington's disclosure and conduct rules described above, or special rules for a different industry or format. See the registration guide and its sources for that distinction.
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.
Nearby sweepstakes law guides
Planning a promotion across state lines? Review the guides for nearby jurisdictions.
Revup
Revup helps you collect entries and manage promotion workflows. Match your campaign settings and official rules to the requirements of your actual promotion.
