# Tax Question regarding Uber fees



## reg barclay (Nov 3, 2015)

On the yearly summary it shows my gross income as the entire amount paid by pax for the rides I gave. It then lists things like Uber's service fee, booking fee, state taxes, etc, as expenses/deductions. Is that how we should list our income for tax purposes? Or should I just put the amount that I was actually paid as my gross income, since the other money never entered my bank account?


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## Merc7186 (Jul 8, 2017)

Your gross income in this case is what you were actually paid...not what Uber charged the pax.


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

Uber reports the entire amount they collect to the IRS -- and that is what you report to the IRS as well. If you only report the net, that is likely to cause an inquiry by the IRS...if they ever get back to work!

So you have to deduct anything that is not paid to you -- service fee, booking, airport/seaport pickup fees, etc. If they collect state tax on your rides, that should also be deducted. You also would deduct vehicle expenses, tolls you paid, mileage, etc.

If you are not absolutely positive, check with a tax professional.


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## reg barclay (Nov 3, 2015)

JimKE said:


> Uber reports the entire amount they collect to the IRS -- and that is what you report to the IRS as well. If you only report the net, that is likely to cause an inquiry by the IRS...if they ever get back to work!
> 
> So you have to deduct anything that is not paid to you -- service fee, booking, airport/seaport pickup fees, etc. If they collect state tax on your rides, that should also be deducted. You also would deduct vehicle expenses, tolls you paid, mileage, etc.
> 
> If you are not absolutely positive, check with a tax professional.


I get what you're saying, but the amount we make after Uber fees etc are deducted doesn't sound like our net, that amount sounds more like our gross to me. It's not like we're given the entire amount the pax paid, then billed by Uber for their commission. That part of the fare never came into my possession in the first place that it should be included in my gross earnings. I assume there's no practical difference between the two as regards the final tax bill, but that it's more an issue of avoiding red flags.


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

reg barclay said:


> I get what you're saying, but the amount we make after Uber fees etc are deducted doesn't sound like our net, that amount sounds more like our gross to me. It's not like we're given the entire amount the pax paid, then billed by Uber for their commission. That part of the fare never came into my possession in the first place that it should be included in my gross earnings. I assume there's no practical difference between the two as regards the final tax bill, but that it's more an issue of avoiding red flags.


Check with a tax professional to be sure.

But the IRS checks the income you report against the income reported to them -- just like they do with your bank accounts, regular W-2 job, etc. So if Uber reports one number, and you report a much lower number, the IRS may simply bill you for the taxes and penalties and interest for the difference. And that will be a PITA to get straightened out.

Don't risk a problem by following Google-smart UP posts -- check with a pro.


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## MicNic (Jan 14, 2019)

Uber pretends to be a payment processor for drivers, not a transportation company. Therefore, Uber has to report to the IRS every $ charged to riders’ credit cards, which is why you see the inflated number. You simply deduct the Uber fees charged to you along with your other expenses. You won’t pay any higher tax as a result of the strange reporting.


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## Seamus (Jun 21, 2018)

I have been told by UberTaxPro who gives great information, that the IRS uses a matching program so if there is a discrepancy between the 1099's and what you listed it will kick out and cause an inquiry.

Therefore the correct way is to report the 1099 amounts and then deduct out all Uber's fees.


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## grayspinner (Sep 8, 2015)

You need to do a schedule C. 

Start with the same total revenue that uber reported. Deduct booking fees, tolls, airport fees... Then deduct any other business expenses - mileage is the main one (mileage when the app is on, whether or not you have a pax), part of your cell phone bill, home office deduction, spotify/satellite radio/Pandora, charging cords, phone mounts, water/candy... 

This gives you your taxable business profit (or loss). If you have a profit, you also get to take a 20% deduction on the profit due to the new pass through deduction. Subtract that 20% from your taxable profit & then you'll then list that in the appropriate place on your 1040.

It is important to keep receipts and records to document your expenses. 

Your taxable profit is subject to self-employment tax which is much higher than the payroll taxes for w-2 workers, so it's very important to deduct all the expenses you are entitled to.


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## Tmuller03 (Jan 19, 2019)

So were do u deduct ubers fees what line a d will it be on the same place we deduct our mileage


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## grayspinner (Sep 8, 2015)

Tmuller03 said:


> So were do u deduct ubers fees what line a d will it be on the same place we deduct our mileage


Both are on schedule C
You'll list all your expenses individually - no idea on what lines as I use tax prep software


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## Tmuller03 (Jan 19, 2019)

But ubers deductions tons aren't my expenses are they there deductions on ubers part 8 still dont think its rite they say we gross this much when I got 15000 dollars in uber fees crazy


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## MadePenniesToday (Feb 24, 2017)

Correct me if I'm wrong but if you have a profit then you must file also a schedule SE. Not sure if you have to file if you have a loss. I also use a tax software but I might try doing it on paper also this year.


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## Tmuller03 (Jan 19, 2019)

Even of it's a minimum profit I believe


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## FLKeys (Dec 27, 2018)

You are self employed. The money your riders pay is the fee (sale) being charged on your behalf. Think of Uber 3 different companies, a bank, a software company, and a booking agent. You pay a credit card processing fee to your bank for processing credit card fees. You pay a fee to the software company for using their software, and you pay a finders fee to the person finding you work. In many businesses this is 3 different companies, in your business one company is doing all three and billing all three. If you are doing your records properly you are not paying taxes on all of those fees. They are business expenses that you deduct from your sales (rides). Your Taxable income is after all legal deductions. Perhaps you should really get some tax prep help this time if it is your first time. You can also check free tax help like Credit Karma is offering. Pretty sure theirs says right in it that it is useful for people doing rideshare.



MadePenniesToday said:


> Correct me if I'm wrong but if you have a profit then you must file also a schedule SE. Not sure if you have to file if you have a loss. I also use a tax software but I might try doing it on paper also this year.


Correct also remember a portion of the SE tax can be deducted as well.


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## UberTaxPro (Oct 3, 2014)

reg barclay said:


> On the yearly summary it shows my gross income as the entire amount paid by pax for the rides I gave. It then lists things like Uber's service fee, booking fee, state taxes, etc, as expenses/deductions. Is that how we should list our income for tax purposes? Or should I just put the amount that I was actually paid as my gross income, since the other money never entered my bank account?


What MicNic said...."Uber pretends to be a payment processor for drivers, not a transportation company. Therefore, Uber has to report to the IRS every $ charged to riders' credit cards, which is why you see the inflated number. You simply deduct the Uber fees charged to you along with your other expenses. You won't pay any higher tax as a result of the strange reporting."


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## FLKeys (Dec 27, 2018)

*Who Must Pay Self-Employment Tax?*
You must pay self-employment tax and file Schedule SE (Form 1040) if either of the following applies.


Your net earnings from self-employment (excluding church employee income) were $400 or more.
You had church employee income of $108.28 or more.


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## Joesmith2012 (Oct 7, 2017)

You have to reports all the 1099s you get because the IRS gets those too and will match to what you report. Then you deduct the Uber Fees under other expenses, this came right from the Turbo Tax help page.

Here


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