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I recently participated in the wedding of a very good friend of mine. I knew you wanted to pay for travel, lodging and meals, but how? It was relatively easy for me. Not only am I a certified Pathfinder Coach, but I am also an event planner (with my wife) and a personal financial advisor. Therefore, before the trip, I contacted the hotel where the wedding was to be held and arranged a meeting with the event coordinator. This meeting was for a tour of the facilities and information on how to book an event there. I also had several meetings with the wedding party; They could offer advice on financial matters.
It sounds strange? Feel like there’s no way you can legitimately rule out a short trip like this? Don’t rule it out so soon. It is very possible. And this is how …
Travel
Taxpayers traveling away from home for business can deduct related expenses, including the cost of reaching their destination, the cost of room and board, and other ordinary and necessary expenses. Taxpayers are considered to be “traveling away from home” if their duties require them to be away from home much longer than a normal day’s work and they need to sleep or rest to meet the demands of their work. The actual cost of meals and incidental expenses can be deducted or the taxpayer can use a standard meal allowance and reduced record keeping requirements.
The days of the week make a big difference – you can treat weekends as business days by planning business meetings on both sides. For example:
If Monday is a federal holiday and you have meetings scheduled for Friday and Tuesday, the three days in between are considered business days. They will be considered business days and all your travel and transportation expenses are deductible.
Note: An IRS private letter resolution for Saturday and Sunday will be considered business days if the costs of staying are less than airfare for travel after Saturday.
Transportation vs. Expenses en route –
o Transportation expenses are those costs you incur to get to and from your destination.
o Travel expenses include all costs necessary to maintain life on the road.
Take the family car and save even more. Traveling with non-business family members allows you the same benefit of traveling in the car on your own. Whether the car is full or not, you can still deduct the same amount of mileage – $ .505 / mile this year.
accommodation
A basic definition is “sleeping away from home”.
Only actual accommodation costs can be claimed as an expense and receipts should be kept for documentation. Expenses must be reasonable and appropriate; deductions for extravagant expenses are not allowed.
Some weird rules you should know …
o Strange bed rule: Even if you could get home, but have traveled, say, 200 miles from your residence, you can get a hotel room for the night and have the company pay for it. If you are attending a convention and the convention is across town, you can still deduct your accommodation costs for the hotel.
o Pay your family to allow you to stay with them – your business can take a tax deduction if it stays with family members – but you must pay them something. There is a two week assignment per year.
By Coach Jeff Earlywine
You can find more information: www.helpmybusinesstoday.com