> Answers on our cash prize competitions: how to enter, the skill question, the free postal route, how draws are run and how tax-free prizes are paid. Source page: https://granddraws.co.uk/faqs Help centre # Frequently asked questions ## The basics **Is this gambling?** No. Under the Gambling Act 2005, a competition that turns on a genuine skill question, or that offers a free entry route of equal standing, is a prize competition rather than a lottery, so it needs no gambling licence. Every paid Grand Draws competition has both: a skill question you must answer correctly for your entry to qualify, and a free postal route with exactly the same chance of winning as a paid ticket. [Our guide to the rules](https://granddraws.co.uk/guides/are-prize-competitions-gambling) explains it in full. **Do I have to be a certain age?** Yes. You must be 18 or over and resident in Great Britain (England, Wales or Scotland) to enter a paid competition. Our October launch draw was advertised to UK residents and stayed open to Northern Ireland too. **How much does it cost?** It varies by competition. Paid tickets start from 9p each, bought in minimum orders of 25. If you would rather not pay, every competition can be entered [free by post](https://granddraws.co.uk/free-entry) , with exactly the same chance of winning. ## Entering & tickets **Why is there a skill question?** It is the legal backbone of the whole site. A genuine skill question is what separates a lawful prize competition from a lottery: answer it correctly and your entry qualifies, get it wrong and it does not count. [Our guide to skill questions](https://granddraws.co.uk/guides/what-is-a-skill-question) shows what they look like. **Is there a limit on tickets?** Yes. Every competition caps the number of entries one person can hold, so nobody can buy their way to a near-certain win. **How does the free postal route work?** Send a postcard with your details and your answer to the skill question to our free entry address. Postal entries go into the same draw with exactly the same chance of winning as paid tickets. [The free entry route page](https://granddraws.co.uk/free-entry) sets out the full method. ## Draws & prizes **What happens if a competition doesn't sell out?** It is still drawn on its closing date at 9pm and the full prize is awarded. We never cancel, postpone or shrink a draw because of low sales. **How are winners chosen?** Once a competition closes, the winning ticket is selected at random from all qualifying entries, in accordance with the laws of chance, by a provably-fair method that runs automatically at 9pm on the closing date. The randomness comes from drand, an independent public beacon nobody can predict, and both our commitment and the beacon round the draw will use are published before the competition closes. Draws are [published rather than streamed](https://granddraws.co.uk/guides/why-we-dont-livestream-draws) , so you never have to take our word for any of it: we contact the winner directly, publish the result in the [winners archive](https://granddraws.co.uk/winners) , and anyone can recompute and check any result at [/draw-check](https://granddraws.co.uk/draw-check) . **What do I win?** Cash, every time. Prizes are tax-free, because a UK competition prize is a windfall rather than income ( [our tax guide](https://granddraws.co.uk/guides/do-you-pay-tax-on-competition-winnings-uk) explains, with links to HMRC), there is nothing to ship and no voucher to redeem. The amount shown on the competition is the amount that reaches the winner's bank. **How do I get paid?** We contact the winner directly after the draw, confirm their identity and age, and transfer the cash straight to their UK bank account. We aim to pay within one working day of verifying the winner. Can't find an answer? [Get in touch](https://granddraws.co.uk/contact). --- Grand Draws is a UK skill-based prize competition operator. It is not a casino, not a lottery and not gambling. Every competition requires a correct answer to a genuine skill question and offers a free postal entry route on the same odds. 18+, UK residents only. Please enter within your means.