Pull tabs are legal in Kansas, where the law refers to them as instant bingo and treats them as a form of charitable gaming. Only qualified nonprofit organizations that hold a current Kansas bingo license may sell them, and the activity is regulated and taxed by the Kansas Department of Revenue. The rules come from the Kansas Charitable Gaming Act, and players must be at least 18 to buy a ticket. Instant bingo tickets are physical pull-tab or break-open tickets, so tablet-style electronic pull tabs are not part of the Kansas framework.
Who can run pull tabs in Kansas
Kansas allows instant bingo to be conducted only by bona fide nonprofit organizations that are religious, charitable, fraternal, educational, or veterans groups. Before selling any tickets, the organization must obtain a bingo license from the Kansas Department of Revenue and keep it current.
The games are conducted by the licensed organization itself, and the proceeds are tied to the charitable, religious, or civic purpose of the group, which is the reason the state permits the gaming in the first place.
How instant bingo works and where to find it
An instant bingo ticket is a disposable paper pull-tab or break-open ticket. You pay a set price, open the tabs, and reveal numbers, letters, or symbols to see whether the ticket wins against a posted prize board or a bingo call. By law these tickets cannot use dice, normal playing cards, an instant ticket with a removable latex covering, or slot machines.
In practice, pull tabs show up at halls and clubs that hold a bingo license, which is why they are common at veterans posts and fraternal lodges. The tickets have traditionally been sold in connection with a licensed bingo session, so you are most likely to see them where an organization also runs regular call bingo.
Notable rules and recent changes
Since 2018, Kansas has allowed instant bingo vending machines. These machines only dispense a printed physical ticket that the buyer checks by hand, and no more than two machines are allowed at each licensed location. They are not electronic games, and true tablet-based electronic pull tabs are not authorized in Kansas.
Selling pull-tab tickets outside of the licensed charitable gaming framework is illegal in Kansas. The minimum age to buy an instant bingo ticket is 18. Because the Kansas Department of Revenue administers these rules and they can change, organizations should confirm current requirements with the agency before running games.
Where can I play pull tabs in Kansas?
In Kansas you will find instant bingo pull tabs at licensed nonprofit venues such as VFW and American Legion posts, Elks, Moose, and other fraternal lodges, and church or charity bingo halls that hold a state bingo license.
Find a spot282 places to play pull tabs in Kansas