Lotto Changes from July 8, 2026: Two Draws per Game and Higher Prices

The change is already the second innovation at LottoPlus in the current year. At the beginning of the year, the draw had "disappeared" from television – since then, it has been drawn before the "normal" Lotto draw, and the numbers are then presented during the regular broadcast. With the double draw from July 8, another structural intervention is now being added.

Higher costs, lower payout

The amount of the prize payout will also be adjusted. As the Lotterien announced, the payout ratio for LottoPlus will fall from 48.8 to 45 percent, and for the classic Lotto draw from 48.8 to 48 percent. Players will therefore mathematically receive slightly less back from the total stake they pay.

Other July Changes Beyond Lotto

For tipsters, the change concretely means: for 30 cents more stake per ticket, from July there will be two chances to win instead of one. The Lotterien promote the model as a doubling of opportunities: "Einerseits hat man für 30 Cent mehr nun eben eine doppelte Chance auf Gewinne." The prerequisite, however, is that you actually place the LottoPlus checkmark – anyone who forgoes the add-on will continue to participate only in the classic draw.

Independently of Lotto, July will bring further changes for consumers in Austria. For example, the value-added tax on some basic foodstuffs will be reduced from ten to 4.9 percent. At the same time, orders from abroad will become more expensive: from July, a fixed customs rate of three euros will be charged per declared product category, and the previous exemption limit of 150 euros per shipment will be abolished.

Background: ORF Broadcast Has Been Changed Since January

This means the new regulation primarily affects buyers who regularly order parcels from platforms such as Amazon, Temu, Shein or AliExpress. Anyone who declares several different product categories in one parcel will pay the fixed amount accordingly multiple times. The change applies from July 1, 2026.

With the double draw for Lotto, the Austrian Lotterien are responding to the broadcast of the draw on ORF that has been changed since the beginning of the year. The shift of the draw to the pre-show segment had already led to discussions among players. With the new structure from July 8, both draws are to be presented in future as part of the regular broadcast.