Mobile Lotto sales to begin next week on trial run

▲ People line up to purchase lottery tickets at a store in Seoul, in this Jan. 1, 2026, file photo. (Yonhap)

lottery-mobile sales

Mobile Lotto sales to begin next week on trial run

By Kim Han-joo

SEOUL, Feb. 6 (Yonhap) -- The government will begin allowing mobile lottery ticket sales next week to expand access across generations and improve convenience, the Ministry of Planning and Budget said Friday.

Lotto tickets, one of 12 state-issued lottery products, will be available for purchase on mobile devices starting Monday under a pilot program for the first half of the year, the ministry said.

The plan was finalized at a meeting of the national lottery commission chaired by acting Budget Minister Lim Ki-geun.

Under the plan, mobile Lotto purchases will be limited to weekdays and capped at 5,000 won (US$3.41) per person per draw, the ministry said. Mobile sales will also be limited to no more than 5 percent of total lottery sales from the previous year during the trial period.

"This reform is expected to significantly contribute to redefining lottery culture as an easy, everyday form of sharing and donation by improving convenience and the perceived value of lottery purchases while also strengthening welfare support for vulnerable groups," Lim said.

The ministry said it will review the results of the pilot program and prepare for a full rollout of mobile lottery sales in the second half of the year.

The commission also approved a plan to revise the statutory allocation system for the lottery fund to improve the efficiency of resource distribution, the ministry said.

The statutory allocation system, introduced under the lottery act in 2004, requires 35 percent of lottery proceeds to be distributed to 10 designated organizations to protect the revenues of former lottery operators after the issuance system was unified.

"Because the allocation ratio has remained fixed, the system has been criticized for being rigid and inefficient, and for failing to reflect changing fiscal needs and conditions," a ministry official said.

Under the new plan, the fixed statutory allocation of 35 percent of lottery proceeds will be made more flexible within the ceiling, the ministry said. The change is intended to strengthen the effectiveness of performance evaluations while allowing remaining funds to be used to support vulnerable groups.

Lottery sales have more than doubled since 2004, while the lottery fund has grown 3.5 times, becoming a key source of funding for government programs supporting disadvantaged groups, according to the ministry.

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