Frequently Asked Questions:

Deductible Expenses –What is Deductible?

1. Q: What work expenses can I deduct?

 A: Generally, you can deduct any expenses that are ordinary and or necessary in the course of your work.  Commuting and personal expenses are not deductible, but there are exceptions, check with your tax advisor.

2. Q: My employer pays for my hotel rooms and pays me a flat rate “Per Diem” of $40 per day, can I deduct anything?

 A: Yes, you are entitled to deduct the difference between the amount of Per Diem your employer pays and the amount you actually paid, or you can take a deduction according to government per diem tables for the locations you traveled.

3. Q: Can I deduct my Crash pad expenses?

A: Generally you cannot deduct a lodging or "Crashpad" expense if it is a commuting expense; check with your tax advisor..  A “Crashpad” may not be a commuting expense if you are on a temporary assignment.  A temporary assignment is an assignment that is expected and does in fact last for less than a year.  For example, if you live in Houston, TX. and are temporarily transferred to Newark, NJ. and keep your home in Houston and commute to Newark and rent a room for the duration of the temporary assignment, and the temporary assignment is expected to last less than a year and it does in fact last less than a year, your "crashpad" expenses and the travel expenses of travel to and from the temporary lodging to the temporary place of work are deductible.  It is strongly recommended that you check with a professional tax advisor before taking a deduction for a “crashpad”.  For further information read IRS pub 463 and Pub 529.

Commuting Expenses

4. Q: Can I deduct expenses I incur getting to and from work?

A: No, generally your cost of getting to and from work is a commuting expense and therefore not deductible. There are exceptions for temporary assignments, check with your tax advisor.

5. Q: I live in Denver Colorado, and my regular place of work is in Houston Texas, I park my car at the airport in Denver and pay $40 per month to park there.  Can I deduct the amount I pay for parking?

A: No, the parking expense is a commuting expense and not deductible.

6. Q: Can I deduct parking expenses, mileage or tolls to get to and from work?

A: No, see the definition of commuting expenses.

 

Travel History Log 

7. Q: Why do I have to enter my final destination on my last day of travel?

A: Your travel log reflects your travel history, and to properly calculate the amount of expenses, your last day needs to be identified as the final day of travel. Please enter the location where your travel ENDED. Always enter your ending location (usually your regular place of business i.e. Where you normally report for work) on the last day of travel.

Temporary work location.

8. Q: I am holding MSP as my permanent base starting March 1st which is what I bid for. My Company is temporarily basing me in DTW for 2 months until my permanent base in MSP starts on March 1st. It is not realistic to enter into a lease or crashpad for 2 months and so I am paying for a hotel while I am sitting reserve in DTW. The Company is not paying me perdiem while I am in DTW since I am technically based in DTW for those 2.5 months. Can I deduct the cost of the hotels that I incur while in DTW since it is a temporary base? What about perdiem differences while I am sitting reserve in DTW even though they are not paying me perdiem?

A: If you have one or more regular work locations away from your home and you commute to a temporary work location in the same trade or business, you can deduct the expenses of the daily round-trip transportation between your home and the temporary location, regardless of distance. If your employment at a work location is realistically expected to last (and does in fact last) for 1 year or less, the employment is temporary unless there are facts and circumstances that would indicate otherwise. If your employment at a work location is realistically expected to last for more than 1 year or if there is no realistic expectation that the employment will last for 1 year or less, the employment is not temporary, regardless of whether it actually lasts for more than 1 year. If employment at a work location initially is realistically expected to last for 1 year or less, but at some later date the employment is realistically expected to last more than 1 year, that employment will be treated as temporary (unless there are facts and circumstances that would indicate otherwise) until your expectation changes. It will not be treated as temporary after the date you determine it will last more than 1 year. If the temporary work location is beyond the general area of your regular place of work and you stay overnight, you are traveling away from home. You may have deductible travel expenses which entitle you to a deduction for “Per Diem” and lodging expenses.

9. Q: I live in Kansas City, MO and work as an Oil Field Explosives Technician putting out oil well fires around the world.  My employer sends me to locations around the world to put out oil well fires; my office is in Houston Texas.  Can I deduct mileage for driving from my home to the Kansas City Airport and parking expenses at the Kansas City airport?

A: If you first travel to your office in Houston, then you are commuting to work and commuting expenses are not deductible.  However, if you proceed from your home to various locations then expenses from your driveway to the temporary worksite are deductible, so parking, mileage, etc may be deductible.  Check with your tax advisor.