# IRS expense write offs?



## superjtrdr (Jun 9, 2015)

.56 a mile from the time the app is on or only when I accept rides?


Repairs but not maintenance. Correct?

What else can I write off?


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## Uber-Doober (Dec 16, 2014)

superjtrdr said:


> .56 a mile from the time the app is on or only when I accept rides?
> 
> Repairs but not maintenance. Correct?
> 
> What else can I write off?


^^^
They used to have a pretty extensive pamphlet on it a long time ago... it might even be on the IRS site. 
Personally, even going to the IRS site gives me an anxiety attack.


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## ReviTULize (Sep 29, 2014)

Easy...
mileage or expenses.
but mileage is usually way better. This includes expenses related to wear and tear, gas and regular maintenance.

Air fresheners, waters, Sirius subscription, phone, cell bill, mints, car washes, tinting for more comfortable pax, dashcams, etc...you get the idea...save the receipts!! I even write off the miles to get to and from the car wash and going to buy any of the above items


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## CROWBOY (May 31, 2015)

First year you can write off up to $5,000 for starting a business. I can't remember the specifics of this one, but I would google it or ask a tax professional about it. All I know, is I've seen many Uber drivers recommend this across the internet.


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## ReviTULize (Sep 29, 2014)

CROWBOY said:


> First year you can write off up to $5,000 for starting a business. I can't remember the specifics of this one, but I would google it or ask a tax professional about it. All I know, is I've seen many Uber drivers recommend this across the internet.


You can write off any business expense.
I believe the 5k is the loss than you can show. But a business expense, is a business expence. My tax liability was next to nothing last year. But I have a regular job


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## CROWBOY (May 31, 2015)

ReviTULize said:


> You can write off any business expense.
> I believe the 5k is the loss than you can show. But a business expense, is a business expence. My tax liability was next to nothing last year. But I have a regular job


I think anything like maintenance and repairs on your car before starting up if you're deducting by the mile, you can deduct any business startup expense if you keep you're total expenses under $50,000


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## LAuberX (Jun 3, 2014)

Log mileage.

Start of shift to end of shift, every mile counts.

Keep a mileage log, simple.


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## superjtrdr (Jun 9, 2015)

LAuberX said:


> Log mileage.
> 
> Start of shift to end of shift, every mile counts.
> 
> Keep a mileage log, simple.


But if i am writing off miles then I can"t write of maintenance. Correct?


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## LAuberX (Jun 3, 2014)

Trust me, mileage is enough to offset most of the Uber payments, we don't make money!

Maintenance is nothing compared to the standard IRS mileage deduction.


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## ReviTULize (Sep 29, 2014)

superjtrdr said:


> But if i am writing off miles then I can"t write of maintenance. Correct?


Correct


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## turbovator (Aug 3, 2015)

superjtrdr said:


> .56 a mile from the time the app is on or only when I accept rides?
> 
> Repairs but not maintenance. Correct?
> 
> What else can I write off?





superjtrdr said:


> .56 a mile from the time the app is on or only when I accept rides?
> 
> Repairs but not maintenance. Correct?
> 
> What else can I write off?


The standard mile deduction for the for the 2014 IRS tax year is 57.5 per mile. You either take the standard mile deduction or your vehicle expenses. It's an either or deduction you can't claim both. Per mile is usually the better if the two. You gave to see which works best for you.


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## CROWBOY (May 31, 2015)

superjtrdr said:


> .56 a mile from the time the app is on or only when I accept rides?
> 
> Repairs but not maintenance. Correct?
> 
> What else can I write off?


Bottled water, mints, percentage of your cellphone bill, car accessories like chargers or aux cables.



turbovator said:


> The standard mile deduction for the for the 2014 IRS tax year is 57.5 per mile. You either take the standard mile deduction or your vehicle expenses. It's an either or deduction you can't claim both. Per mile is usually the better if the two. You gave to see which works best for you.


You can only deduct by one method, but to calculate your operating costs for next year, keep track of gas and all maintenance receipts. It will give you a very accurate number to calculate cost of every mile you rack up. Very important if rates drop in your market. Then you can figure out if you should quit.


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

superjtrdr said:


> But if i am writing off miles then I can"t write of maintenance. Correct?


Right. And if you do the actual expenses you still have to keep track of mileage as you can only deduct the percentage that's business. So if you drive 100 miles total but only 50 is business you can deduct half of your maintenance etc.

Usually the direct mileage (thought it was 57.5 cents THIS year?) is better, but if you drive very little for personal and don't uber that much the actual expenses may be more.

Either way keep a log of mileage.


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## Old Rocker (Aug 20, 2015)

I'd track both expenses and mileage, but like everyone else is saying, taking the standard mileage deduction will probably almost always be better unless you have some extraordinary expenses (which the IRS may disallow).

Be sure to track your deadheading miles back to your waiting location or home.


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## PT Go (Sep 23, 2014)

Not sure about Android, but my iPhone has a note feature and I use Siri when I first get in the car to 'note' my starting milage. When I pull into the garage for the last time of the day, I use it to note my ending milage.
Having that as a record, I then input that info into a spreadsheet that calculates my milage for the day. Good record to have for the IRS. My milage last year helped reduce my tax liability by an extreme amount. So at least I 'made' money by not having to pay it out to the IRS.


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## StarzykCPA (Aug 6, 2015)

Some "auto" expenses you can deduct regardless of whether you use the standard mileage or actual expense method include: parking fees, tolls, and personal property taxes.


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## BingoBadger (Jan 21, 2015)

The $5,000 deduction is for organizational/start-up costs. It is a deduction so spending up to 10K, 5K for organizational and 5K for start-up can be deducted. The org costs probably don't apply too much as they would be for negotiation b/w uber and driver, operating agreements, etc. (i.e. legal fees). Start-up costs would be costs incurred prior to driving (would not be your car). There are probably not a lot of expenses in this category either. I find it hard to believe that new Uber drivers have anywhere near 5K in either of these categories.


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## Uber Kraus (Jun 10, 2015)

I have a letter sized envelope in my car. All my receipts go in there. I also have a small notebook where I track every single mile I drive for Uber.

Cell phone, etc...


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## San Diego Steve (Jun 20, 2015)

superjtrdr said:


> .56 a mile from the time the app is on or only when I accept rides?
> 
> Repairs but not maintenance. Correct?
> 
> What else can I write off?


I've been self employed for many years and have a Cpa do my taxes. He confirmed this year that the mileage you can deduct is from your first ride to your last ride. Commute from home and back to home not deductible.


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## StarzykCPA (Aug 6, 2015)

San Diego Steve said:


> I've been self employed for many years and have a Cpa do my taxes. He confirmed this year that the mileage you can deduct is from your first ride to your last ride. Commute from home and back to home not deductible.


This is one of those things where if you ask 10 different people, you'll probably get 10 different answers. I have no problem including that mileage for my clients.

The reasoning is somewhat similar to a self-employed person who works from his home office. If you have to drive out from your home office to go visit 2 different clients, you would not just deduct the mileage between the 2 sites. You would include the total mileage for the trip.


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## atthehop (Jul 24, 2015)

ReviTULize said:


> Easy...
> mileage or expenses.
> but mileage is usually way better. This includes expenses related to wear and tear, gas and regular maintenance.
> 
> Air fresheners, waters, Sirius subscription, phone, cell bill, mints, car washes, tinting for more comfortable pax, dashcams, etc...you get the idea...save the receipts!! I even write off the miles to get to and from the car wash and going to buy any of the above items


I know for a fact that if you use Sirius, or any media in a business environment you must pay royalty fees. Since each driver is in their own business I am certain the royalty recovery companies are not going to wast their time going after individuals. They usually go after large corporations, I used to pay a company a set fee each month for each bus my old company operated with a Sirius radio in it. They operated well over 400 units all over the US.


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