Tools
Do Lottery Tickets Expire? US Pick 3 & Pick 4 Ticket Expiration Checker – Claim Deadlines for NC, FL, GA, NJ, VA, SC, NY, PA, OH, KY & Every State
Most states give 180 days or one year from the draw date. Choose your state and draw date for the exact last day.
Claim deadlines by state (Pick 3 / Pick 4 and other draw games)
| State | Claim deadline (draw games) | Retailers pay up to | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona AZ | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | lottery.net Other source |
| Arkansas AR | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | myarkansaslottery.com State lottery source |
| California CA | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | calottery.com Other source |
| Colorado CO | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | coloradolottery.com Other source |
| Connecticut CT | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | ctlottery.com Other source |
| Delaware DE | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | delottery.com State lottery source |
| District of Columbia DC | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | dclottery.com State lottery source |
| Florida FL | 180 days from the draw date | $599 | floridalottery.com State lottery source |
| Georgia GA | 180 days from the draw date | $600 | galottery.com State lottery source |
| Idaho ID | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | idaholottery.com State lottery source |
| Illinois IL | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | lottery.net Other source |
| Indiana IN | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | hoosierlottery.com Other source |
| Iowa IA | 90 days from the draw date | not in our files | ialottery.com State lottery source |
| Kansas KS | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | lottery.net Other source |
| Kentucky KY | 180 days from the draw date | $600 | tristatehomepage.com Other source |
| Louisiana LA | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | louisianalottery.com State lottery source |
| Maine ME | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | mainelottery.com Other source |
| Maryland MD | 182 days from the draw date | not in our files | lottery.net Other source |
| Massachusetts MA | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | masslottery.com Other source |
| Michigan MI | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | lottery.net Other source |
| Minnesota MN | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | lottery.net Other source |
| Mississippi MS | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | mslottery.com Other source |
| Missouri MO | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | lottery.net Other source |
| Nebraska NE | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | lottery.net Other source |
| New Hampshire NH | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | mainelottery.com Other source |
| New Jersey NJ | 1 year from the draw date | $599.99 | njlottery.com State lottery source |
| New Mexico NM | 90 days from the draw date | not in our files | nmlottery.com State lottery source |
| New York NY | 1 year from the draw date | $599 | legalclarity.org Other source |
| North Carolina NC | 180 days from the draw date | $599.99 | nclottery.com State lottery source |
| Ohio OH | 180 days from the draw date | $599 | law.cornell.edu Other source |
| Oklahoma OK | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | oklottery.com Other source |
| Oregon OR | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | oregonlottery.org Other source |
| Pennsylvania PA | 1 year from the draw date | $2,500 | palottery.state.pa.us Other source |
| Puerto Rico PR | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | loteriasdepuertorico.pr.gov Other source |
| Rhode Island RI | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | rilot.com State lottery source |
| South Carolina SC | 180 days from the draw date | $500 | wach.com Other source |
| Tennessee TN | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | tnlottery.com Other source |
| Texas TX | 180 days from the draw date | $599 | texaslottery.com State lottery source |
| Vermont VT | 1 year from the draw date | not in our files | mainelottery.com Other source |
| Virginia VA | 180 days from the draw date | $600 | valottery.com Other source |
| Washington WA | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | walottery.com State lottery source |
| West Virginia WV | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | wvlottery.com Other source |
| Wisconsin WI | 180 days from the draw date | not in our files | lottery.net Other source |
How to use the ticket expiration checker
- Choose the state where the ticket was bought – its rules apply, not the state where you live.
- Enter the draw date printed on the ticket (for multi-draw tickets, check both the first and the last draw date).
- Read the last day to claim, the days left and the counting rule. Then check whether your numbers won with the number checker.
How it works and sources
Each state sets a claim period for draw-game prizes, counted from the draw date: usually 180 days (North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Virginia, South Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky …) or one year (New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania …). Day-based periods add that many calendar days to the draw date; year-based periods run to the same date the next year.
Deadlines come from each state lottery's published rules in our fact files, with a confidence flag and source link. North Carolina says a mailed claim must arrive by the deadline – the postmark does not count. Expired prizes cannot be paid; unclaimed money goes back to the state as its law says.
ThreeFour is not a lottery and cannot validate tickets. Verify with your state lottery before claiming.
Example: a North Carolina Pick 3 ticket from the Thursday, October 8, 2026 draw can be claimed until Tuesday, April 6, 2027 – 180 calendar days after the draw. Before you go, read how to claim a North Carolina lottery prize.
What Does the Ticket Expiration Checker Show?
The ticket expiration checker shows the last day to claim a Pick 3 or Pick 4 prize, the days left and the ticket's claim status, from the state that sold the ticket and the draw date.
You choose the state and enter the draw date printed on the ticket. The checker returns one sentence – "{State}: prizes must be claimed within {period}, so a ticket for the {date} draw can be claimed until {weekday, date}" – plus the days left and one of five claim statuses: - Valid: more than 30 days are left to claim. - Ends soon: 30 days or fewer are left. - Last day: the deadline is today. - Deadline passed: the claim period has ended and the ticket has expired. - Future draw: the draw date is after today, so the claim period has not started.
State notes appear under the result, such as North Carolina's rule that a mailed claim must arrive within 180 days. Lottery ticket expiration is checked for every US jurisdiction with a Pick 3 or Pick 4 game, and the checker is free with no account.
How Long Are Lottery Tickets Good For?
A winning Pick 3 or Pick 4 ticket is good for 90 days to 1 year after the draw, depending on the state: 180 days in most states, including North Carolina, Florida and Georgia, and one year in New Jersey.
| Claim period | Jurisdictions | Count |
|---|---|---|
| 90 days from the draw date | Iowa (IA), New Mexico (NM) | 2 |
| 180 days from the draw date | Arizona (AZ), Arkansas (AR), California (CA), Colorado (CO), Connecticut (CT), District of Columbia (DC), Florida (FL), Georgia (GA), Idaho (ID), Indiana (IN), Kentucky (KY), Louisiana (LA), Mississippi (MS), Missouri (MO), Nebraska (NE), North Carolina (NC), Ohio (OH), Oklahoma (OK), Puerto Rico (PR), South Carolina (SC), Tennessee (TN), Texas (TX), Virginia (VA), Washington (WA), West Virginia (WV), Wisconsin (WI) | 26 |
| 182 days from the draw date | Maryland (MD) | 1 |
| 1 year from the draw date | Delaware (DE), Illinois (IL), Kansas (KS), Maine (ME), Massachusetts (MA), Michigan (MI), Minnesota (MN), New Hampshire (NH), New Jersey (NJ), New York (NY), Oregon (OR), Pennsylvania (PA), Rhode Island (RI), Vermont (VT) | 14 |
How long you have to claim a lottery ticket is set by the state that sold it, not the state where you live. The same deadline applies to the lottery winnings on that ticket: how long to claim lottery winnings and how long to claim the lottery ticket are one question. Iowa and New Mexico give the shortest time, 90 days. Fourteen states give a full year, including New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont share Tri-State games; their one-year deadline comes from the Vermont Lottery's rules. A ticket not claimed by the deadline expires, and its prize is no longer paid.
How Is a Lottery Ticket's Claim Deadline Counted?
A claim deadline is counted from the draw date, not the purchase date: the checker adds the state's claim period to the date of the drawing and shows the last day to claim.
- Start date: the draw date on the ticket. A ticket bought in advance starts its claim period on its later draw date.
- Days: a 180-day period ends 180 calendar days after the draw. The October 8, 2026 draw plus 180 days is April 6, 2027.
- Years: a one-year period ends on the same date one year later. A February 29 draw counts to February 28 of the next year.
- Today: the checker counts the days left from today's date in Eastern Time and sets the claim status.
A multi-draw ticket covers several draw dates, and each winning draw has its own deadline: enter the date of the draw that won. The checker does not move a deadline that falls on a weekend or a holiday, and claim offices keep their own hours, so claim well before the last day.
Which States Does the Ticket Expiration Checker Cover?
The ticket expiration checker covers all 43 US jurisdictions with a Pick 3 or Pick 4 game, and the table shows the claim rule and a worked date for the 10 launch states.
| State | Claim deadline | Last day for the October 8, 2026 draw | Claim guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Carolina (NC) | 180 calendar days from the drawing; mailed claims must arrive within 180 days | Tuesday, April 6, 2027 | how to claim a North Carolina lottery prize |
| Virginia (VA) | 180 days from the drawing date | Tuesday, April 6, 2027 | how to claim a Virginia lottery prize |
| South Carolina (SC) | 180 days from the draw date | Tuesday, April 6, 2027 | how to claim a South Carolina lottery prize |
| Florida (FL) | 180 days after the draw date | Tuesday, April 6, 2027 | how to claim a Florida lottery prize |
| New Jersey (NJ) | one year from the date of the drawing | Friday, October 8, 2027 | how to claim a New Jersey lottery prize |
| Kentucky (KY) | 180 days from the draw date | Tuesday, April 6, 2027 | how to claim a Kentucky lottery prize |
| Georgia (GA) | 180 days from the drawing date | Tuesday, April 6, 2027 | how to claim a Georgia lottery prize |
| Ohio (OH) | 180 days from the draw date | Tuesday, April 6, 2027 | how to claim an Ohio lottery prize |
| Pennsylvania (PA) | one year from the drawing date | Friday, October 8, 2027 | how to claim a Pennsylvania lottery prize |
| New York (NY) | one year from the draw date | Friday, October 8, 2027 | how to claim a New York lottery prize |
Lottery Ticket Expiration FAQ
These answers cover the deadline questions that come up once the checker shows a date.
Do lottery tickets expire?
Yes. US Pick 3 and Pick 4 tickets have a claim deadline between 90 days and 1 year after the draw, depending on the state – 180 days in North Carolina, Florida and Georgia, and one year in New Jersey. A prize must be claimed by that date.
Does the claim period start on the purchase date or the draw date?
The draw date. Pick 3 and Pick 4 claim periods are counted from the date of the drawing, so a ticket bought in advance for a later draw starts its claim period on that later draw date.
Does a postmark count toward a lottery claim deadline?
No – not in North Carolina, where a mailed claim must arrive within 180 days of the draw and the postmark does not count. Other states set their own mail rules, so check with the lottery before mailing a claim close to the deadline.
Where do you claim a winning Pick 3 or Pick 4 ticket?
Smaller prizes are paid at lottery retailers in the state that sold the ticket; larger prizes go to the lottery's claim centers or by mail. Each state sets the retailer limit – under $600 in North Carolina and $599 or less in Florida. New Jersey pays filed claims in 4 to 6 weeks.
Facts checked October 2026 against Each state lottery's published claim rules (launch_states_facts, P3_fact_sheet_games). Report an error