Congrats on the win! Yeah gambling winnings are tax-free in Canada according to Paragraph 40(2)(F) of the Income Tax Act. Lucky you – in the US they’d grab 30% of that right off the top. Canada treats gambling winnings as “windfalls” so you don’t have to report recreational wins to CRA. Just don’t put it in a savings account and earn interest on it because THAT gets taxed. But the original 12k? All yours buddy, no questions asked. The government here actually makes sense sometimes lol.