English
EN

EuroMillions Rules

It is important to know the EuroMillions rules before you play. This will ensure the process of purchasing your tickets runs smoothly and you don't miss out on any prizes you are due. It eliminates confusion or uncertainty and allows you to enjoy the lottery fully. Take a look at the main guidelines for playing the game below.

For more details on buying EuroMillions tickets, visit the How to Play page.

General Rules

EuroMillions is run jointly by the national lotteries of nine participating countries, so some of the procedures are different depending on where you play.

However, the national lotteries govern the game together so the key rules are the same everywhere. Here are some of the main do’s and don’ts for EuroMillions,

  • Players must select five main numbers between 1 and 50, followed by two additional Lucky Star numbers between 1 and 12.
  • All players must be aged 18 or over, regardless of which country EuroMillions is played from. This law is standard across all participating countries and it is your responsibility to ensure you are legally eligible to purchase tickets and claim prizes.
  • It is also your responsibility to check the accuracy of your entry. The lottery operator will not accept liability for any losses that occur due to errors that have been made when filling out the playslip.
  • Simply by playing EuroMillions, players are entered into the supplementary games, UK Millionaire Maker and the occasional Europe-wide raffle, European Millionaire Maker.

Your eligibility to play EuroMillions is based on your age, rather than your nationality. The rules for foreigners are exactly the same as the regulations for citizens of a participating country. Go to the Playing Abroad page for more information about taking part in other countries.

Draw Deadlines

Each national lottery sets its own deadline for purchasing tickets, so that all entries can be processed before the draw takes place.

Draws are held in Paris at 21:00 CET (20:00 GMT/WET). As EuroMillions is a pan-European lottery, there are numerous time zones across the country and players in some of the participating countries face an earlier deadline by which to enter.

Here is a list of the different ticket sale deadlines for buying EuroMillions tickets:

Country Draw Deadline
FlagAustria 18:30 (CET)
FlagBelgium 20:00 (CET)
FlagFrance 20:15 (CET)
FlagIreland 19:30 (GMT)
FlagLuxembourg 20:00 (CET)
FlagPortugal 19:00 (WET)
FlagSpain 20:30 (CET)
FlagSwitzerland 19:30 (CET)
FlagUK 19:30 (GMT)

Prize Rules

Regardless of where you play, it is your responsibility to keep your ticket safe (if you have played in-store) and claim any prizes you win before the claim period is over. Here are some more of the conditions and requirements you should know about winning prizes.

  • You can only win one prize per line of EuroMillions numbers and only the maximum eligible prize will be paid out.
  • To win a prize, you need to match at least two numbers. The order the numbers are drawn in does not matter, but the Lucky Stars and main numbers are taken from separate sets. You cannot use a main number to match one of the winning Lucky Stars, or vice versa.
  • You can stay anonymous if you win a EuroMillions prize in any nation.

The table below shows how long you have to claim prizes in each country.

Country Claim Period
FlagAustria 3 years
FlagBelgium 20 weeks
FlagFrance 60 days
FlagIreland 90 days
FlagLuxembourg 60 days
FlagPortugal 90 days
FlagSpain 3 months
FlagSwitzerland 26 weeks
FlagUK 180 days

Prizes can only be claimed in the country where the winning ticket was originally purchased. The process for picking up prizes works differently in each nation. For details on what to do if you win a prize, see the How to Claim page.

Jackpot Cap

There are specific jackpot rules for what happens when the top prize reaches its maximum amount. It can stay at that value for up to four draws without a winner before the full amount is shared between winners in the next prize tier. See the Jackpot Cap section for more information.