Originally Posted by
N1003U
Speaking to the tax laws in the USA, depending on your marginal tax bracket and the calculation of the value of the ticket, it is quite possible that the increase in tax liability can be greater than cost of simply buying a similar ticket, perhaps with fewer restrictions.
When LH gave away TATL eco tickets as part of SMD 1 & 2 the winner didn't get a 1099 for their IRS paperwork, so I would assume this is not the case for the OP.