Writing Eligibility Rules: Age, Location and Who Can Enter

Picture this: you run a draw, announce a winner, and then discover they live somewhere you can't ship to, or they're too young to receive the prize. Now you have to explain why the person you just congratulated isn't actually the winner.

Clear eligibility rules prevent that moment. They tell people, before they enter, whether they can take part. This guide covers the main things to decide and how to write them down simply.

Please note: this is general guidance, not legal advice. Rules for promotions vary by country, state and region, and each social platform has its own promotion guidelines. Check the rules that apply where you and your entrants are, and read the platform's guidelines before you launch. If your giveaway is large or unusual, it's worth talking to a qualified professional.

Age: who is old enough to enter?

Most giveaways set a minimum age. Things to consider:

• The prize itself. Some products are only suitable for, or only legally sold to, adults. The prize should match the age limit.
• Platform requirements. Social platforms have their own minimum ages for accounts, but that doesn't automatically make every account holder eligible for your giveaway.
• Local rules. Some places have specific requirements about promotions involving minors. Check what applies to you.

Write the age limit plainly, for example: "Open to entrants aged 18 and over." Decide in advance what you'll do if a winner turns out to be under age, and say it in the rules. Usually that means drawing a substitute.

Location: where can entrants live?

Location rules usually come down to two questions: where are you allowed to run the promotion, and where can you realistically deliver the prize?

• Shipping. International shipping can be expensive, slow and complicated by customs. Many small businesses limit entry to the countries they already ship to.
• Local prizes. If the prize is a meal, a class or an in-person service, limit entry to people who can realistically use it, or say clearly that travel isn't included.
• Different rules in different places. Promotion rules aren't the same everywhere. Limiting entry to regions whose rules you've checked is a sensible approach.

Be specific. "US only" is clearer than "local followers". "Residents of the UK, excluding the Channel Islands" is clearer still if you have a reason for the exclusion.

Who is excluded?

Most giveaways exclude people with an unfair advantage or a conflict of interest:

• Employees and their immediate family or household.
• Partner brands, sponsors and their staff.
• Anyone involved in running the giveaway.
• Sometimes, previous winners within a set period, to spread prizes around.

Once you've written this down, make sure the draw actually respects it. RaffleSelect's block list, available on Silver plans and up, excludes named accounts from the draw so staff, family or recent winners can't be picked by accident.

Entry requirements

Eligibility also covers how someone enters. Spell out:

• The entry action. For example, "comment on this post".
• How many entries are allowed. One per person is simplest. RaffleSelect's duplicate filter enforces this at draw time.
• Any required content. If you ask for a hashtag, say exactly which one. The hashtag filter counts only comments that include it.
• Account requirements. For example, a public account, so you can verify entries.

Be cautious about adding requirements the platform doesn't allow. Some platforms restrict asking people to tag themselves in content or to share posts in certain ways. Read the current promotion guidelines for the platform you're using.

What happens when someone isn't eligible?

Say in your rules what you'll do if a selected winner doesn't meet the criteria or doesn't respond. The usual approach is to pick a backup. RaffleSelect lets you draw substitutes at the same time as the winner, so you already have the next eligible person ready without running a new draw.

A plain-language template

Adapt this to your giveaway, and check it against your local rules and the platform's guidelines:

"Open to residents of [countries/regions] aged [age] and over. One entry per person. To enter, comment on this post [with #hashtag] before [date, time, time zone]. Employees of [business] and their households are not eligible. The winner will be picked at random from eligible entries and contacted from this account within [timeframe]. If the winner doesn't respond within [number] days or isn't eligible, a substitute will be chosen. This giveaway is not sponsored, endorsed or administered by [platform]."

Keep it where people can find it

Put the key points in your caption: the end date, location and age limit. If the full rules are long, link to them or pin them in a comment. A rule nobody can find is hard to enforce fairly.

When your rules are set and entries are in, start your draw on RaffleSelect with the filters that match what you wrote.