Kasim Qasim

Travel and entertainment are legitimate deductions, but few business owners take full advantage of them. One reason may be that they fear that the deduction will be challenged by the IRS and they’ll have to undergo the scrutiny of an audit. Another reason may be because the owner is unsure of how to take the deductions or what’s allowed and what’s not allowed. To be clear, travel and entertainment are allowable deductions. the IRS understands that much of business is conducted over drinks, meals or on the golf course. Travel is also an obvious necessary to conduct business. If you’ve been hesitant about taking travel and entertainment deductions, here is a guide to maximizing the benefits of these deductions.

What’s Really Allowed?

The first thing is to feel more confident about what’s really allowed with travel and entertainment expenses. That will enable you to recognize the expense when it occurs and to fully take advantage of every possible deduction.

Travel Expense Allowances

Travel expenses related to your business activities are allowed in the following two categories:

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Tax law allows you to deduct two types of travel expenses related to your business, local and what the IRS calls “away from home.”

First, local travel expenses. You can deduct local transportation expenses incurred for business purposes such as the cost of getting from one location to another via public transportation, rental car, or your own automobile. Meals and incidentals are not deductible as travel expenses, but you can deduct meals as an entertainment expense as long as certain conditions are met (see below).

Second, you can deduct away from home travel expenses-including meals and incidentals, but if your employer reimburses your travel expenses your deductions are Read More