tax question.?

Question

I am self employed and doing Turbo Tax schedule C for the first time this year.I have a cleaning business,and use my car to get me from client to client.What deductions are allowed for my car?Gas? Repairs? Milage? Please don't answer unless you are sure.Thanks alot.

Answer 1

You can deduct 44.5 cents per mile for mileage related to your business.

You could also, as an alternative to the mileage deduction, take actual expenses.

If you take actual expenses the first year you use your car, you must continue to take actual expenses. For this reason, mileage is usually a better choice.

Answer 2

You need to have records for business use of your auto. Taking the standard mileage deduction assumes the amount covers all expenses (gas, insurance, wear & tear, etc.) If you prefer you can use actual expenses if you have repair bills and the vehicle is used only for business. (IRS will not believe the vehicle is not used for personal use unless you tell them you have another car for personal use.) If the car is used for both business and personal, you can only deduct the portion for business. For example, you put 40,000 miles on the car last year. Of those 4,000 miles were for business, and you kept a mileage log to prove it. You could take the standard deduction of $0.445 per mile ($1,780.00) or 10% of your actual expenses for the car. If you have to pay for tolls or parking these fees are deductible in addition to the other expenses or standard deductions.

Answer 3

You can either use the actual cost method or the mileage method.

If you use the actual cost method, add up ALL of your vehicle costs for the year and then apportion them between personal and business use based upon the miles driven for business use vs personal use.

If you use the mileage rate, calculate the expense at 44.5 cents per mile for all business miles driven.

Answer 4

You can generally figure the amount of your deductible car expense using one of two methods: the standard mileage rate method or the actual expense method. If you qualify to use both methods, before choosing a method, you may want to figure your deduction both ways to see which gives you a larger deduction.

More info:
http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc510.html

Answer 5

I ALWAYS USE SCHEDULE C AND JUST GO ADDING WHAT APPLIES THERE'S A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING YOU JUST GOT TO READ THE FORM IT HAS EVERYTHING SUCH AS ADVERTISING,INSURRANCE,REPAIRS,MEALS AND FOR THE GASOLINE I JUST PUT IT IN LINE 27. (OTHER EXPENSES).