Simplified Method: If you choose the standard option, you can deduct $5 per square foot. There are two ways to calculate your tax deductions for your home office-the Simplified Method and the Regular Method. It usually is an office just for the business, though you can also count a desk in one room that only functions as a business place.

If your home office is also used as a guest bedroom or for kids to do homework, you may not qualify for this write-off.

The space in your home where you work has to exist exclusively for your business and nothing else.

If you only work from home occasionally, you can’t write it off.

Your home has to be your primary place of business where you do the majority of your work.

Here are a couple things you need to qualify for this deduction: If you use part of your home as an office, you can sometimes write off a portion of your home expenses. Working from home means flexibility and convenience, and now it also means a potential tax write off. It should only take a few minutes, but it might save you a lot of hassle later. You should record the date, the amount of miles traveled, the business reason you were traveling, and the total miles on the odometer. The best way to keep track of your mileage is to get a driving log. You have to be sure to keep pretty meticulous records so you can avoid any miscalculation. Note: Mileage is one of the tax deductions that the IRS most frequently audits. This rate takes money spent on gas, insurance, and maintenance into account, so you don’t need to write those off separately. In order to use the standard mileage rate, you need to keep careful track of your mileage. Some self-employed individuals will choose to deduct their actual outlays instead, but you are legally allowed to deduct the standard mileage rate even if your actual costs are lower. Please note: You cannot deduct expenses from commuting to or from work.Īs of January 1, 2018, the standard mileage deduction is $0.545 per mile. Any driving that you do during work, like traveling to meet with clients or going out of town on business, can be written off.

This is one of the biggest 1099 tax deductions for independent contractors. Here are some of the most common 1099 tax deductions to look out for: 1. You can itemize deductions using a Schedule C (Form 1040) and reduce your tax liability to the lowest level allowed by the IRS. Well, because you’re an independent contractor, chances are that you use some of your personal resources for business. If you categorize all your expenses as you go, it will be easy to sum up all the tax deductible expenses by category at the end of the year. You can use an accounting program to keep track of and itemize any expenses. You are also in charge of deducting your expenses, which lowers the amount you have to pay in taxes. However, as a freelancer or independent contractor, you are your own boss–so you pay the percentage that the boss would normally pay, on top of your personal tax rate. The tax rate for 1099 income is twice the rate of W2 income because employers are required by law to automatically withhold income tax from their employees’ paychecks. Figuring out your tax liability for income reported on your 1099 forms can get pretty complicated.

Tax write offs for 1099 employees