Lottery Age Limit to Increase to 18 in the UK

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National Lottery games will no longer be available to anyone under the age of 18 from 22nd April 2021. This change will prevent 16 and 17-year-olds from being able to take part as had previously been allowed.

You can still take part before the change date if you are under 18, and if you win a prize there will be no issues with claiming it. As long as you come forward within 180 days of the relevant draw, you will be paid out. Even if you have won a free Lotto Lucky Dip, this can be claimed after the change date.

The change applies to all National Lottery games, whether you enjoy draw games such as EuroMillions, Thunderball or Set For Life, or like to buy scratchcards. You will not be able to play at retail stores or take part online.

The increase in the age limit comes off the back of a government review last year, which concluded that the minimum age to enter National Lottery games should be the same as the legal age for other forms of gambling in the UK, which is 18.

The review considered the importance of protecting young people and the findings were fully supported by the National Lottery. Steps have since been taken to ensure the changes can be implemented on 22nd April.

Anyone over the age of 18 will be able to carry on playing as normal, with the rules and procedures otherwise staying exactly the same. It is only National lottery players of 16 and 17 who are affected. If you use betting or concierge services to take part in games, the law already required you to be at least 18.

Youngest National Lottery Winners

You can win lottery prizes at any age if you purchase a ticket. The odds are exactly the same regardless of how old you are.

A number of lottery players have become famous over the years for the fact that they have won at a tender age. Callie Rodgers was Britain’s youngest jackpot winner when she landed £1.9 million in 2003.

Rodgers, who was just 16, soon gave up her £3.60-an-hour checkout job. Within months there were reports that she had spent £300,000 on clothes, make-up and tattoos, £85,000 on sports cars and bought two houses - a bungalow for herself and a new home for her mum.

Jane Park, from Midlothian in Scotland, won £1 million on the Millionaire Maker in 2013 at the age of 17. She has splashed out on cars, holidays and cosmetic surgery, and continues to be the subject of regular media stories due to her jet-setting lifestyle.

Both Park and Rodgers, however, have previously expressed doubts about whether they were too young to win such vast awards. The age of play is now rising, so the youngest winners of the future will be older than before. Take part online or by visiting an authorised retailer.