In West Virginia, the paper break-open tickets most people call pull tabs are regulated as charitable raffle boards and games, a subset of the state's charitable raffle law. They are legal, but only qualifying nonprofit and public service organizations may sell them, and those groups generally need a raffle license from the West Virginia Tax Division. The framework lives in Chapter 47, Article 21 of the West Virginia Code, with detailed operating rules in the Tax Division's legislative rule, 110 CSR 37. This page explains who can run pull tabs, how they work, and the key rules to know.
Who can run pull tabs in West Virginia
Pull tabs may only be sold by a bona fide, not for profit, tax exempt charitable or public service organization that has existed in West Virginia for at least two years before applying for a raffle license. Qualifying groups include organizations with IRS status under sections 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), 501(c)(8), 501(c)(10), 501(c)(19), and 501(d), along with volunteer fire departments, rescue units, churches, and similar volunteer community service organizations. In practice this covers veterans and fraternal posts, civic clubs, churches, and community service groups.
Most groups need a charitable raffle license from the West Virginia Tax Division before running any raffle game. An annual license costs $500, and a limited occasion license costs $50. New applications carry a mandatory 60 day filing period. A smaller organization that has existed for at least one year can run an exempt raffle without a license if no single prize tops $4,000 and total yearly raffle proceeds stay at or below $15,000.
How pull tabs work and where you find them
West Virginia defines a charitable raffle board or game as a board with folded printed slips pulled for a prize, or a series of paper cards with perforated break-open tabs whose face value is hidden to conceal numbers, letters, or symbols. The state's rules refer to these products as pull tabs or tip boards. A player pays a small amount, opens the ticket, and wins if the revealed symbols match a posted prize.
Because pull tabs are sold as part of a licensed raffle occasion, you typically find them at nonprofit and members club events rather than in ordinary retail stores. The raffle license authorizes the sponsoring organization to conduct these games, so they appear at that group's own events rather than on general retail shelves.
Notable rules and recent changes
A few rules stand out. Alcohol cannot be given as a prize at a raffle event, though it may be sold at one. West Virginia does not set an 18 or older age floor to play raffles the way it does for bingo, where persons under 18 may not play, so pull tab play is treated more leniently than bingo. Even so, individual venues may adopt their own house rules.
On the electronic side, West Virginia has not authorized in venue tablet style electronic pull tabs. The state did add an Online Charitable Raffles framework in Article 21A, which lets qualifying organizations run raffles through a licensed and registered online platform provider, with geo fencing so players are physically in West Virginia. That online path is a separate license from the in person raffle license and is not the same as electronic pull tab machines. This is legal information, not legal or gambling advice, so organizations should confirm current requirements with the Tax Division.
Where can I play pull tabs in West Virginia?
Pull tabs turn up at licensed nonprofit raffle occasions, including VFW and American Legion posts, Moose and Elks lodges, volunteer fire departments, churches, and civic and fraternal clubs.
Find a spot176 places to play pull tabs in West Virginia