Lottery Registration

If you want to hold a lottery or raffle to raise funds for charitable or other non-commercial purposes, you may need to apply for a small society lottery registration.

What is a Small Society?

A Small Society is defined as a non-commercial organisation which has been established and conducted for:

  • Charitable purposes;
  • For the purposes of enabling participation in, or of supporting, sport, athletics or a cultural activity; or
  • Any other non-commercial purpose other than that of private gain.

Remember, a Small Society must not be set up purely for the purpose of holding a lottery - it must have some other purpose.

What doesn't qualify as a Small Society lottery?

If your lottery or raffle:

  • sells over £20,000 of lottery tickets in a single draw, or
  • over £250,000 of lottery tickets in a calendar year,

You will need to apply to the Gambling Commission for a Lottery Operating Licence.

For further information go to the Gambling Commission website.

How do I apply for a Small Society Lottery Registration?

You must register your small society with the Council in whose area your principal office is located.

To register with this Council you must complete the Small Society Lottery Registration form below and return it to the Licensing Department at licensing@swdevon.gov.uk with the appropriate fee:

Pay the fee

You can find the fees on our Licensing Fees page.

Once granted there is an annual fee to maintain registration.

Lottery return form

The below lottery return form must be return to the relevant authority no later than the end of the third month after the date of the lottery. 

Are there any exemptions?

There are some lotteries which do not require permission.

Further information on these and Small Society Lotteries can be found at the Gambling Commission website and our Small Society Lottery factsheet.