   GOVERNMENT LOTTERIES   [ CAP. 292.        1
CHAPTER 292 
GOVERNMENT LOTTERIES ACT
To provide for the holding of government lotteries.
(3rd July, 1981) *
Enacted by ACT XXIV of 1981, as amended by Acts: XIII of 1983, XXVI
of 1986, XXVII of 1988 and XVI of 1997.
Short title.
Interpretation.
"agent" means a person appointed by the Director to promote the
sale of tickets outside Malta;
"Department" means the Department of Public Lotto; 
"Director" means the Director of Public Lotto and includes any
person designated by the Minister to perform any function or duties
pertaining to the Director;
"financial year" shall have the same meaning as is assigned to it
in the Constitution;
"lottery" means each single actuation of any scheme promoted
and conducted under the provisions of this Act and of any
regulations made thereunder for distributing prizes which are won
by chance by stakers participating in such a scheme;
"Minister" means the Minister responsible for finance;
"seller" means a person appointed by the Director to sell tickets
in Malta;
"staker" means a person who purchases or holds a ticket; 
"ticket" means a ticket participating in a lottery held under the
provisions of this Act;
"winning ticket" means a ticket bearing the letter and/or numbers
drawn in a particular lottery.
Initiation of the 
government 
lottery.
3. Subject to the provisions of this Act and of any regulations
made thereunder, the Minister may authorise the Director to
promote and conduct a government lottery in accordance with such
directions as the Minister may deem fit to give for such purposes
and, without prejudice to the generality of the above, may authorize
the Director to do all such preparatory acts as the Director may
deem necessary for promoting and conducting any such lottery.
Powers to make 
regulations. 
Amended by: 
XIII. 1983.4, 5; 
XXVI. 1986.2.
4. The Minister may make regulations to give effect to any of
the provisions of this Act, and in particular, and without prejudice
to the generality of the foregoing, such regulations may prescribe:
( a ) the number of lotteries to be held during any year and
the day, time and place of the draw in any government
lottery;
* See  Government Notice No. 367 of 3rd July, 1981.
  2      CAP. 292. ]                GOVERNMENT LOTTERIES
( b ) the procedure to be followed in the conduct of any
such lottery;
( c ) the number and the value of the prizes to be allotted in
respect of each draw and the mode of payment of the
prizes;
( d ) the powers and duties of any person whose presence is
required during the draw;
( e ) the price at which any ticket which may be used in any
such lottery may be sold, and the tickets and other
documents which may be used in any such lottery;
( f ) the number of tickets to be issued for sale in any
particular draw;
( g ) the time within which and the manner in which prizes
may be claimed or paid;
( h ) the manner in which and conditions under which
unclaimed prizes may be disposed of;
( i ) the punishment, not exceeding a fine ( multa ) of one
hundred liri which may be awarded for any
contravention of any regulation made in accordance
with the provisions of this Act;
( j ) any matter which is to be or may be prescribed under
this Act and to make any further provision in respect
of such matter as he may deem appropriate.
Appointment of 
sellers and agents.
5. (1) The Director may cause lottery tickets to be sold
through any public officer employed in the Department and may
appoint sellers and agents for such time as may be specified in the
instrument of appointment and may give such directions and
impose such conditions as the Director may deem fit in relation to
the duties of such persons, the time for the remittance of the
proceeds of the sale of tickets, the returns, forms and reports which
may be made and the information which may be requested of such
persons by the Director in the execution of his functions under this
Act.
(2) The Director may in his discretion refuse any request by
any person for appointment as seller or as agent and may without
incurring any liability and without giving any reason, revoke any
such appointment at any time:
Provided that the person in relation to whom such refusal or
revocation refers may apply to the Minister for consideration of his
case.
Objects sent by 
post at risk of 
sender.
6. Remittances, tickets and any other matter connected with a
lottery, which are sent through the post shall travel at the risk of the
staker.
Director to be 
notified of winning 
ticket.
7. (1) Notice of a winning ticket shall be given to the
Director within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed
by the Minister by notice in the Gazette.
   GOVERNMENT LOTTERIES   [ CAP. 292.        3
(2) The winning ticket shall be presented to the Director for
examination in accordance with his instructions.
(3) The Director shall issue a receipt in respect of every
winning ticket so received by him.
Power of Director 
to refuse ticket as 
valid.
8. (1) The Director may require from the holder of a winning
ticket such proof as he may deem necessary to establish the identity
of that person.
(2) The holder of a ticket purporting to be a winning ticket
shall not be entitled to a prize if the Director is satisfied that such
ticket -
 ( a ) contains any alteration, correction, erasure or abrasion
of the number and/or letter printed thereon, or
( b ) is mutilated, reconstituted, unreadable or misprinted,
or
( c ) fails in any of the Department’s confidential validation
tests:
Provided that where the Director is satisfied that two or more
genuine tickets have the same winning number in respect of any
particular prize in a particular draw, that prize shall be apportioned
equally among the holders of such winning tickets.
(3) The decision of the Director in respect of any matters dealt
with under the provisions of subsections (1) and (2) of this section
is final.
Grand lottery 
tickets to have 
detachable portion. 
Added by: 
XXVII. 1988.2.
8A. The tickets of the grand lottery shall have an extended
detachable portion, hereinafter in this Act referred to as the
"detachable portion", bearing the same number as the ticket. The
staker may write down his name and address on the detachable
portion which may be delivered by hand or by post to the Director
before the relative grand lottery draw:
Provided that no liability shall attach to the Director in the
event that for any reason whatsoever the detachable portion is not
received by him or cannot for any reason be traced.
Payment of prize to 
winning ticket. 
Amended by: 
XXVII. 1988.3.
9. (1) The Director shall pay the prize due to a winning ticket
to the person who presents to him such ticket for that purpose: 
Provided that where, after the lapse of fifty working days
after a draw, a person produces to the satisfaction of the Director
sufficient proof to identify him as the rightful owner of a winning
grand lottery ticket, the Director may, in his absolute discretion,
pay the price to such person even if the winning ticket is not
presented:
Provided further that the Director shall summarily dismiss a
claim if the detachable portion of the winning ticket is not in his
possession.
(2) Where the Director is intimated by a judicial act that the
ownership of a winning ticket or the prize due is or is about to form
the subject of litigation, the Director shall lodge the amount of the
  4      CAP. 292. ]                GOVERNMENT LOTTERIES
prize due in the Registry of the competent Civil Court and such
prize shall not be withdrawn until the matter is fully determined by
the court or the dispute is otherwise settled. The Director shall
cause a copy of the schedule of deposit to be served on the person
in whose interest the judicial act is filed.
(3) Where any lodgement is made by the Director as provided
under subsection (2) of this section and no judicial action is
instituted by any interested party in the competent court on the
amount so deposited within ninety days from such deposit, such
amount shall be forfeited to Government.
(4) Any judicial fees and expenses incurred by the Director to
comply with the provisions of subsections (2) and (3) of this
section shall be deducted by him from the amount so deposited or
withdrawn, as the case may be.
Government 
Lotteries Fund.
Amended by:
XVI.1997.8.
10. (1) All monies received from the sale of tickets or
forfeited to Government under the provisions of this Act shall be
paid by the Director into the Treasury and shall be credited to an
account to be kept in that Department to be styled "Government
Lotteries Fund".
(2) There shall be paid out of the Government Lotteries Fund,
without any further appropriation other than this Act, the prizes, the
expenses of administration and all other charges connected
therewith.
(3) Any credit balance after the closing of the accounts at the
end of the financial year shall be paid into the Consolidated Fund.
(4) If at any time the money to the credit of the Government
Lotteries Fund is insufficient to meet, either wholly or in part, the
payment of prizes, the expenses of administration and other charges
connected therewith, such deficit shall be made good by temporary
advances from the Treasury Clearance Fund, by warrants under the
hand of the Minister.
(5) A statement of the receipts and expenditure of the
Government Lotteries Fund, shall, as soon as possible after the
close of each financial year and in any case not later than three
months after the close of such year, be forwarded by the
Accountant General to the Auditor General.
Prohibition of sale 
of tickets other 
than the 
established price. 
Amended by: 
XIII. 1983.4,5. 
11. Any person who sells any government lottery ticket at a
price either exceeding or less than that established under the
provisions of this Act shall be guilty of an offence against this Act
and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine ( multa ) of not less than
fifty liri and not exceeding two hundred liri.
Embezzlement. 12. Any seller or agent who misapplies any money entrusted to
him by reason of his functions under this Act shall be guilty of an
offence against this Act and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine
( multa ) amounting to treble the amount so misapplied, or to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both such
fine and imprisonment.
   GOVERNMENT LOTTERIES   [ CAP. 292.        5
Forgery of 
government lottery 
documents.
13. (1) Whosoever shall forge any ticket, counterfoil, receipt
or any other document issued in connection with a government
lottery shall be guilty of an offence against this Act and shall, on
conviction, be liable to imprisonment for a term of from thirteen
months to four years.
(2) Where the offence is committed by a seller or agent or
public officer performing duties in the Department, the punishment
shall be of imprisonment for a term of not less than two years but
not exceeding five years.
Higher punishment 
to be applied.
14. Where the fact which constitutes an offence under the
provisions of this Act also constitutes an offence under any other
law and is liable to a higher punishment under that law, such higher
punishment shall be applied.
Exclusive 
jurisdiction of 
Maltese courts.
15. All disputes arising on any matter to which this Act refers
shall be determined by the courts in Malta in accordance with
Maltese law to the exclusion of any other law.
Limitation of 
action.
16. The civil action on any matter relating to the award or
payment of any prize under the provisions of this Act or to any
draw, may not be instituted after the lapse of ninety days from the
date of the draw.
