A Single Lucky Ticket Win Record Mega Millions Jackpot at $1.537 Billion

There’s a winner! The Mega Millions jackpot was finally won on Tuesday night, and a single lucky ticket holder in South Carolina can claim a tremendous lottery jackpot – $1.537 billion ($878 million cash).

The winning numbers are: 5-28-62-65-70, Mega Ball: 5

Officials had forecast a U.S. record $1.6 billion prize, but ticket sales came in slightly below expectations. Still, the final total did set the Mega Millions record.

“The moment we’ve been waiting for finally arrived, and we couldn’t be more excited,” said Gordon Medenica, director of the Mega Millions Group and head of Maryland Lottery and Gaming. “This is truly a historic occasion.”

The jackpot had been rolling since July 24, when a California office pool of 11 co-workers shared a $543 million prize. Three other jackpots have been won this year – $451 million on January 5 (Florida), $533 million on March 30 (New Jersey), and $142 million on May 4 (Ohio).

South Carolina, however, is one of several states that does not require lottery winners to publicly reveal their identities. The winner or winners can quietly claim the annuity, or more likely the cash option of $877.8 million, and disappear.

For the next drawing on Friday, October 26, the jackpot resets to its starting value of $40 million ($22.8 million cash).

Lottery players can now turn their attention to Wednesday night’s $620 million Powerball prize. It’s been more than two months since Powerball saw a grand prize winner, when New Yorker Nandlall Mangal was the sole winner of $245.6 million.

How to Play Mega Millions and Powerball Online and Outside of the US ?

Provided below are the rules for how foreigners can play Mega Millions and Powerball:

•  Tickets for Mega Millions and Powerball are for sale by lottery retailers  in 43 US States, in the District of Colombia and in the U.S Virgin Islands.
• To obtain tickets outside of these jurisdictions, foreigners can use online lottery operators, to locally purchase an official lottery ticket on their behalf.
• All reputable retailers will require you to register and provide billing information before purchasing tickets on your behalf.
• Once the tickets have been bought, the online retailer will make scans of both the official ticket and the receipt.
• To avoid online scams be sure that the site you are using is legitimate. For a comparison of three online retailers already reviewed by InternationalLottery.org read here.
• After the draw, the winning numbers are published online.  Retailers will generally only contact you if you have won.
•  You can then choose to either have the winning ticket sent to you, or to authorize the retailer tocollect the winnings on your behalf.
• If you elect to do the latter, you will then be prompted to verify your identity for security and tax reasons.
• If you win a significant amount or even perhaps the jackpot, it is likely that you will have to personally claim your prize at the local Mega Millions and Powerball office.
• At this time the agent may assist you in making the necessary legal arrangements to collect your prize.

Can Foreigners Win Mega Millions and Powerball?

•  Yes, foreign citizens can legally win Mega Millions and Powerball. 
• The tax for a non-US citizen is a flat 30% of the winnings.
• Additional tax treaties may also apply depending on your citizenship.

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