Georgia COAM gift card rules, in plain words

September 27, 2026 · Coam Tracker · 3-minute read

Short answer: since July 1, 2026, a Georgia store with Class B machines can redeem a winning ticket with a gift card. The law sets six rules for that card. Follow them and the card is a legal redemption. Break one and it is not.

The six rules

• 1. The card can only hold COAM wins. The money on the card comes from a winning ticket. Nothing else goes on it.
• 2. It gets loaded at the store. The store owner, a worker, or a self-serve machine loads the card, on the store's own property.
• 3. The customer can use it later, away from the store. The card does not have to be spent on the spot.
• 4. The store may honor its own card. A customer can bring the card back and spend it at the store that gave it.
• 5. It can never become cash. Not cash, not change, not currency. The Georgia Lottery said it again on September 16, 2026: a gift card can never be used to get cash — not in whole, not in part. No cash back at the register either.
• 6. Reloadable or non-reloadable — both are allowed. A non-reloadable card is loaded once and spent down. A reloadable card can be topped up on a later visit. The store picks.

What the card can buy

The law itself only says what the card can never become: cash. The Georgia Lottery adds one more rule in its Location License Holder Guide for store owners: “No alcohol, tobacco, or firearms can be redeemed as COAM prizes.” Its gift card FAQ says the same about the card: “The COAM gift card is not allowed for purchase of alcohol, tobacco, or firearms.”

So the safe reading is simple — the card buys things in the store, except alcohol, tobacco, and firearms. And it should never be a step toward cash: no cash back, no money orders, no prepaid cards, no money transfers.

Do I need a special company to do this?

The law does not name any company. It names the rules. A store can use its own gift card as long as the card follows the six rules above. The Georgia Lottery’s notice says a store that is not already set up with gift cards should “independently research” how to offer them — that is the owner’s choice to make.

Who is responsible?

The store. The location license holder is the one who must follow the redemption rules, and the one an inspector asks. That is why the records matter: which ticket, which card, how much, when, and who did it.

Reloadable vs non-reloadable — which one?

• Non-reloadable: one ticket, one card. Simple to track. The card is done when the money is spent.
• Reloadable: one card per customer, loaded again each time they win. Fewer cards, but the store must track every load on that card.

Either way, every load must be a COAM win, and every load should be written down.

Where this comes from

• O.C.G.A. § 50-27-71.1 — the gift card rules in the law itself
• Georgia Lottery COAM Division, “COAM Prize Redemption Changes Effective July 1, 2026”
• Georgia Lottery COAM Division, “COAM Gift Card Redemption Guidance Letter,” September 16, 2026
• Georgia Lottery COAM Division, “Location License Holder Guide” (no alcohol, tobacco, or firearms as prizes) and “Gift Card Program FAQ”
• House Bill 353 (2023–2024 session, signed May 6, 2024)

This page shares general information about Georgia law from public sources, with links. It is not legal advice. Coam Tracker helps you keep records. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the Georgia Lottery Corporation or GAMOA.