Here’s an update that should mean more convenience for you as a player: The Iowa Lottery is deploying new self-service kiosks that include debit card readers.
We’ve had touch-screen kiosks in the field since 2017, but until now, the machines have only accepted cash as payment. The kiosks are in the lottery’s busiest locations to give players there another option for making lottery purchases. The machines dispense tickets in scratch games, lotto games and InstaPlay games.
During the next handful of weeks, most lottery self-service kiosks in Iowa will be replaced with new machines that include a debit card reader. (There are some machines that won’t be retrofitted due to the age of those devices. You can still use those kiosks, you’ll just need to have cash when buying tickets at them.)
The first of the new kiosks have been installed this week in the Des Moines area. The new machines accept cash, debit cards and gift cards, but not credit cards. It’s illegal in Iowa for lottery tickets to be purchased with credit.
Below are some Q-and-As to help answer questions about the card readers on the new kiosks.
Q: Can the card readers on lottery self-service kiosks accept credit cards?
A: No. It’s illegal in Iowa for lottery products to be purchased with credit. Credit blocking is in place to prevent the kiosks from accepting a credit card for a lottery purchase.
Q: Can the lottery self-service kiosks accept gift cards and debit cards?
A: Yes, but as is the case with any electronic payment system, the kiosks may not accept all cards due to the specific computer processing involved in that transaction.
If your gift card or debit card can’t be read by the lottery kiosk, you’re welcome to contact the financial institution that issued your card. Or, you can use a different form of payment at the kiosk.
Q: Can the lottery self-service kiosks accept mobile wallet payments like Apple Pay and Google Pay?
A: In many instances, yes.
Electronic wallet apps including Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay use wireless communications between the user’s mobile device and the self-service kiosk to access the card information stored in the user’s mobile wallet. If you’ve stored a debit card in your mobile wallet and selected that card for the transaction on the lottery kiosk, the transaction should complete successfully. But if you’ve selected a credit card by default in your mobile wallet, the transaction will fail.
If your mobile wallet app does not work at the lottery kiosk, you’re welcome to use a different form of payment.
Hi, Debbie. The point your raised is addressed in the blog. Under Iowa law, it is illegal for lottery tickets to be purchased on credit. Credit cards can therefore not be used at the lottery's self-service kiosks. It would take a change in the law for that to be allowed.
Posted by: Mary Neubauer | March 07, 2022 at 08:47 AM
Hi, Paul. I double-checked this to be sure I had the correct information for you: Players have always been able to use a play slip to buy tickets for drawings in advance while using the lottery's self-service kiosks. Those plays utilize the multidraw option and allow you as the player to buy plays multiple drawings in advance. It's convenience feature and a lot of players like it. However, you cannot skip a drawing by using the multidraw option on the playslip. You can only buy for consecutive drawings in advance. I hope that information answers your question.
Posted by: Mary Neubauer | March 07, 2022 at 08:45 AM
Bout time. Some other states like Michigan their kiosk accept s credit cards. Waiting for Illinois and Iowa to jump on board.
Posted by: Debbie Steele | March 05, 2022 at 11:06 AM
Will the new machines be able to process play slips for advanced drawing dates?
Posted by: Paul Mathenia | March 04, 2022 at 12:37 PM