FTR TAX TIP OF THE MONTH
DEDUCT THE MILES YOU DRIVE TO SAVE BIG THIS TAX SEASON
One of the beneficial deductions a business can take is the use of a vehicle by the business. Since the IRS knows vehicles are a popular deduction by a business, you want to make sure you know the rules for taking this deduction so you are not subject to a disallowance or adjustment of this deduction during an audit. If you are using a vehicle for a trade or business, it is important that a mileage log is kept proving the legitimacy of
SUMMER VEGETABLE GREEK SALAD
the deduction and number of miles that can be used. Many cellphone apps can track business miles, and I have several clients who use an Excel spreadsheet. I want to focus on vehicles that are used for a mix of business and personal, like a car, SUV, or pickup truck. If you are self-employed and file a Schedule C and use your personal vehicle for business, it will be most beneficial if you are able to claim the home office deduction, even if you commute to another office location for your business. If you do not have a home office in this scenario, then all the miles commuting back and forth to another office location are not deductible. Let’s say you have to drive to a meeting, or go to the bank, post office, or office supply store after you get to the office, then these miles will be deductible. If you have a business entity — corporation or partnership — then the business entity can reimburse you for your business miles and take a deduction as an expense on the entity tax return.
Inspired by CookieAndKate.com
For the vinaigrette: • INGREDIENTS
DIRECTIONS
You have three options for that:
1. In a medium bowl, whisk
2 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tsp Dijon mustard 1 garlic clove, minced 1 tsp dried oregano
together vinegar, mustard, garlic, oregano, honey, and salt. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking until well combined. 2. In a large serving bowl, toss together the romaine lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, red onion, parsley, olives, and feta (as well as the chickpeas or salami, if desired). 3. If you plan to serve all the salad at once, drizzle the dressing over
1. You can multiply the amount of business miles by the allowable cents per mile (56 cents for 2021).
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2. If you have lease payments, you can take the amount of business miles driven during the year and divide by the total miles driven to arrive at a percentage you can use for the calculated deduction. For example, let’s say you drove 5,000 business miles and 10,000 total miles for the year — 50% of the lease payments, gas, insurance, and maintenance can be deducted. 3. Finally, if you are purchasing a vehicle and have monthly payments, you can depreciate the vehicle over the allowable number of years, then deduct the loan interest, gas, insurance, and maintenance using the percentage of business to total miles from the last example. If you or someone you know has any questions about deducting a vehicle for business, please reach out to me. I can make sure you are following all the guidelines for an allowable deduction.
1/2 tsp honey
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
For the salad: •
1 head romaine lettuce, chopped 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved 1 small cucumber, seeded and chopped 1 cup yellow bell pepper, chopped 1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped 1/4 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and halved 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled Optional protein choices: 1 cup cooked chickpeas or 6 oz Genoa salami
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the salad to lightly coat, then toss to combine. Otherwise, store the vinaigrette and salad separately, then dress each portion before serving.
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