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Kalshi and prediction markets in West Virginia: taxes and legal status

West Virginia taxes gambling winnings and prediction market profits as income (2.11% to 4.58%). It allows gambling losses only in limited cases.

As of October 27, 2026, we found no lawsuit, order or enforcement letter from West Virginia's attorney general or Lottery Commission against Kalshi, Polymarket US, Robinhood, Coinbase or Crypto.com. Where it stands

Checked October 27, 2026 against West Virginia’s tax department, court dockets and regulator records.

West Virginia at a glance

Income tax
2.11% to 4.58%
Gambling losses
Limited
2026 federal 90% rule
Not stated yet
Prediction markets
No state action found

Income tax

How does West Virginia tax gambling and prediction market winnings?

West Virginia's rates run from 2.11% to 4.58% for 2026 (S.B. 392, retroactive to January 1, 2026). The 2025 rates ran from 2.22% to 4.82%.

Short-term gains are taxed like other income because the return starts from federal AGI.

Gambling losses

Can you deduct gambling losses in West Virginia?

West Virginia allows gambling losses as a subtraction on Schedule M, up to the amount of your winnings, and only if you itemized on your federal return. The 2025 IT-140 instructions say the subtraction is for West Virginia gambling only. Online losses need an account summary.

  • Gambling winnings are taxed. The West Virginia return starts from federal AGI, which includes winnings.
  • West Virginia does not recognize most itemized deductions. Gambling losses are the only itemized deduction taken from the federal return. You must attach pages 1 and 2 of the Form 1040, Schedule A, and your W-2Gs or 1099s.
  • West Virginiahasn’t said whether its return follows the federal rule that only 90% of gambling losses count from 2026.

Federal courts

What the federal courts and the CFTC have said

States say prediction market sports contracts are bets that their gambling laws cover, while Kalshi and the CFTC say they are swaps, a kind of derivative that only the federal Commodity Exchange Act and the CFTC regulate. The Third Circuit appeals court sided with Kalshi against New Jersey in April 2026, while the Ninth Circuit (Nevada, August 2026) and the Sixth Circuit (Ohio and Tennessee, September 2026) ruled for the states, all at the preliminary stage. The Fourth Circuit (Maryland) heard argument in May 2026 and had not ruled as of October 27. New Jersey's petition to the Supreme Court, Flaherty v. KalshiEX (No. 26-299), is waiting on Kalshi's response due November 9, 2026, and the Court has not yet said whether it will hear the case. On October 9, 2026 the CFTC proposed a rule defining event contracts as swaps.

  1. Apr 6, 2026

    Court · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit · KalshiEX LLC v. Flaherty (No. 25-1922)

    By a 2-1 vote, the appeals court for New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware upheld an order that stops New Jersey from enforcing its gambling laws against Kalshi's sports contracts for now. It found Kalshi likely to win its argument that federal law overrides the state. This is a preliminary ruling, not a final judgment.

    Third Circuit opinion, Apr. 6, 2026

  2. Aug 28, 2026

    Court · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit · KalshiEX LLC v. Assad (No. 25-7516)

    A unanimous three-judge panel upheld the order that lifted Kalshi's protection against Nevada, so Nevada may enforce its gambling laws against Kalshi's sports contracts. The court held that sports contracts are not swaps under federal law. It sent Kalshi's election contracts back to the district court. This is a preliminary ruling.

    Ninth Circuit opinion, Aug. 28, 2026

  3. Sep 2, 2026

    Court · Supreme Court of the United States · Flaherty v. KalshiEX, LLC (No. 26-299)

    New Jersey asked the Supreme Court to review the Third Circuit ruling. Kalshi's response is due November 9, 2026 after an extension. Many states, tribes, the NFL and others have filed friend-of-the-court briefs. The Court has not decided whether to take the case.

    Supreme Court docket No. 26-299

  4. Sep 16, 2026

    Court · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit · Blue Lake Rancheria v. Kalshi, Inc. (No. 25-7504)

    In a case brought by two California tribes, the court held the tribes are likely to win their claim that Kalshi's sports contracts offered on tribal lands break the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, and sent the case back to the lower court. A Lanham Act (false advertising) claim was rejected.

    Ninth Circuit opinion, Sept. 16, 2026

  5. Sep 25, 2026

    Court · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · KalshiEX LLC v. Schuler (Ohio) and KalshiEX LLC v. Orgel (Tennessee) (Nos. 26-3196 and 26-5235)

    A unanimous panel upheld a federal judge's refusal to block Ohio's gambling laws and threw out the order that had protected Kalshi in Tennessee. It held Kalshi's sports contracts are not swaps and, even if they were, federal law does not override the states' gambling laws. The cases go back to the lower courts.

    Sixth Circuit opinion, Sept. 25, 2026

  6. Oct 9, 2026

    Regulator · Commodity Futures Trading Commission

    The CFTC proposed a rule that would expressly define event contracts, including those on sports, politics, culture and weather, as swaps, which would place them under federal rather than state oversight. The public may comment for 30 days after Federal Register publication (91 FR 66022). It is a proposal, not a final rule. The same day the CFTC issued an interim rule excluding casino-style gambling products, such as sportsbook wagers and casino games, from the swap definition (91 FR 65969).

    CFTC press release 9310-26, Oct. 9, 2026

  7. Oct 26, 2026

    Court · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit · KalshiEX LLC v. Martin (Maryland) (No. 25-1892)

    No ruling yet. The appeal was argued May 7, 2026 and the parties were still filing supplemental authorities on Oct. 26, 2026.

    CourtListener docket, Fourth Circuit No. 25-1892

Your trades

Kalshi and Polymarket profits in West Virginia

The IRS hasn’t said how prediction market trades are taxed, so you pick one of four federal methods: capital gains, ordinary income, gambling or Section 1256. West Virginia starts from your federal figures, so the method you choose federally generally carries onto your state return. If you report as gambling, the loss rules above apply. The four methods, compared.

Questions

Questions about West Virginia

Does West Virginia tax gambling winnings?
West Virginia taxes gambling winnings and prediction market profits as income (2.11% to 4.58%). It allows gambling losses only in limited cases.
Can I deduct gambling losses in West Virginia?
West Virginia allows gambling losses as a subtraction on Schedule M, up to the amount of your winnings, and only if you itemized on your federal return. The 2025 IT-140 instructions say the subtraction is for West Virginia gambling only. Online losses need an account summary.
Is Kalshi legal in West Virginia?
As of October 27, 2026, we found no lawsuit, order or enforcement letter from West Virginia's attorney general or Lottery Commission against Kalshi, Polymarket US, Robinhood, Coinbase or Crypto.com. Platforms set their own state footprints, so check the app before trading.
Does the court fight change how my trades are taxed?
No. These cases decide whether a state can license or stop the platforms. None of them decides how your trades are taxed, and trades you already made still count in your tax year.

States with the same rule on losses: Massachusetts, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Utah. All states.

Tax facts checked against West Virginia’s own tax pages on October 26, 2026; legal status on October 27, 2026. Rules and cases change, so confirm with current instructions before you file.

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