What it means
The department (the Department of the Lottery, s. 24.103(1)) sets rules for verifying and paying prizes. A prize that is not payable in installments cannot be assigned. To the extent a prize has not been assigned or encumbered under s. 24.1153, it may be paid to the estate of a deceased prize winner or to a person designated by an appropriate court order. A prize payable in installments over time may be assigned only by court order under s. 24.1153.
Ticket holders have 180 days after the drawing or the end of the game to claim a prize, or 60 days for instant games. Unclaimed prize money goes 80 percent to the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund and 20 percent to future prizes or special promotions. Before paying a prize of $600 or more, the department transmits any outstanding state-agency debt or child support to the claiming agency and pays the balance, with past due child support first. No prize is paid to a person under 18 unless the winning ticket was lawfully purchased and gifted to the minor. Payment for that minor goes to an adult family member or the legal guardian as custodian. (§ 24.115(1)(b))
- A prize other than one payable in installments is not assignable. (§ 24.115(1)(a))
- Unless assigned or encumbered under s. 24.1153, a prize may be paid to a deceased winner's estate or a court-designated person. (§ 24.115(1)(a))
- A prize payable in installments is assignable only by court order under s. 24.1153. (§ 24.115(1)(a))
- Ticket holders may claim prizes for 180 days after the drawing or game end, or 60 days for instant games. (§ 24.115(1)(f))
- Unclaimed prize money goes 80 percent to the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund and 20 percent to future prizes or promotions. (§ 24.115(2))
- Prizes of $600 or more are subject to offset for state-agency debts and child support, with past due child support paid first. (§ 24.115(4))
Text of the statute (2026)
(a) The right of any person to a prize, other than a prize that is payable in installments over time, is not assignable. However, any prize, to the extent that it has not been assigned or encumbered pursuant to s. 24.1153, may be paid to the estate of a deceased prize winner or to a person designated pursuant to an appropriate court order. A prize that is payable in installments over time is assignable, but only pursuant to an appropriate court order as provided in s. 24.1153.
(f) Holders of tickets shall have the right to claim prizes for 180 days after the drawing or the end of the lottery game or play in which the prize was won; except that with respect to any game in which the player may determine instantly if he or she has won or lost, such right shall exist for 60 days after the end of the lottery game. If a valid claim is not made for a prize within the applicable period, the prize shall constitute an unclaimed prize for purposes of subsection (2).
(2)(a) Eighty percent of all unclaimed prize money shall be deposited in the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund consistent with the provisions of s. 24.121(2). Subject to appropriations provided in the General Appropriations Act, these funds may be used to match private contributions received under the postsecondary matching grant programs established in ss. 1011.32, 1011.85, 1011.94, and 1013.79. (b) The remaining 20 percent of unclaimed prize money shall be added to the pool from which future prizes are to be awarded or used for special prize promotions.
(4) It is the responsibility of the appropriate state agency and of the judicial branch to identify to the department, in the form and format prescribed by the department, persons owing an outstanding debt to any state agency or owing child support collected through a court, including spousal support or alimony for the spouse or former spouse of the obligor if the child support obligation is being enforced by the Department of Revenue. Prior to the payment of a prize of $600 or more to any claimant having such an outstanding obligation, the department shall transmit the amount of the debt to the agency claiming the debt and shall authorize payment of the balance to the prize winner after deduction of the debt. If a prize winner owes multiple debts subject to offset under this subsection and the prize is insufficient to cover all such debts, the amount of the prize shall be transmitted first to the agency claiming that past due child support is owed. If a balance of lottery prize remains after payment of past due child support, the remaining lottery prize amount shall be transmitted to other agencies claiming debts owed to the state, pro rata, based upon the ratio of the individual debt to the remaining debt owed to the state.
Excerpts are the subsections the summary relies on. Read the full official text of § 24.115.
History. s. 15, ch. 87-65; s. 1, ch. 88-8; s. 91, ch. 95-147; s. 1, ch. 96-310; s. 7, ch. 96-341; s. 2, ch. 99-184; s. 1, ch. 2001-158; s. 1, ch. 2005-84.
How it applies
When a prize winner dies, subsection (1)(a) allows payment to the winner's estate, to the extent the prize has not been assigned or encumbered under s. 24.1153. Assignment of installment payments requires a court order, so an informal transfer of those payments is not an assignment the statute recognizes. The offsets in subsection (4) apply to a prize of $600 or more before payment to a claimant. The department is discharged of all liability upon payment of a prize (§ 24.115(3)).
Where this shows up
Pages on this site where § 24.115 does real work:
Questions people ask
Sources
- Fla. Stat. § 24.115 (2026), Florida Senate (Assignment and estate payment: a prize may be paid to the estate of a deceased prize winner.)
- Fla. Stat. § 24.1153 (2026), Florida Senate (Court-ordered assignment of installment prizes.)
Last checked: October 17, 2026
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