With tax season already upon us, The Tax Lady Roni Deutch is reaching out to the American trucking community with tax tips and advice specific to truckers.
North Highlands, CA – By reaching out to truckers in this country, Ms. Deutch is hoping that she can help many of them avoid owing a tax liability by filing accurate returns with the IRS.
“We have dozens of people calling my law firm every day who work in the trucking industry,” claims Ms. Deutch. “Unfortunately, many truckers find themselves in a tough situation when it comes to filing tax returns. With the large set of confusing deductions and credits available to truckers, it can be very easy for someone to file an inaccurate return and end up owing a huge back tax payment to the IRS.”
“Because of how complicated taxes can be for truckers I expected that there would be piles of information available to members of the trucking community,” continued Ms. Deutch. “However, I quickly realized that there is not nearly enough information available. Thus, I decided to shed some light on the issue by compiling this list of tax tips specifically for truckers.”
Keep Immaculate Records
With complicated tax-filing requirements specific to the trucking industry, numerous truckers get audited every year. While an audit is never a “good” thing, you should not have anything to worry about as long as your financial information is organized and supports your reported income, expenses, and other deductions.
Business Expenses
If you are self-employed, there are many truck-driving related expenses you can look into deducting. The basic rule of thumb with these deductions is that about anything that goes on or in your truck can be deducted as a business expense. This can include decorations for the inside of your cab, the materials you use to clean your truck, and even repair expenses.
Itemizing Tips
While itemizing expenses will not automatically lead to an audit, it does mean that the IRS is going to spend more time looking over your return. But there is not need to worry as long as you keep good records and keep all receipts. If you do not receive a receipt for a truck wash or other expense, then you can write down the amount, description, and date in a “receipt book.” The IRS will allow this as proof for the expense as long as they are normal and expected expenses for your business, and do not appear to be excessive.
Meal Allowances
According to the IRS, you are allowed to deduct up to $52 worth of meal allowances per day, as long as you are on the road a full day. Keep a logbook with dates and cost of the meals you eat while on the road so that you can keep track of these expenses.
Multiple State Taxes
Perhaps the biggest tax headaches truck drivers face is the taxes they have to pay in every state they are registered to drive their truck in. For some truckers, this is can be as little as 1 or 2 states. However, for truckers driving across the country, this number can quickly add up. Each state will collect vehicle registration fees, and some states will charge other fees as well. Make sure your tax preparer is up to date on each state’s tax codes regarding out-of-state truck drivers.
Truck Weight
If you drive a truck with a large gross weight (over 55,000 pounds), you will need to pay the federal highway use tax by August 31st of each year. If you have not already purchased a truck with this weight, be aware that if you do, this tax will be due for the first time at the end of the month in which you make your truck purchase. After you have paid it for the first time, you can decide to pay it every year in August, or in quarterly payments to reduce the burden.
Fuel Taxes
Luckily for truckers, most states appreciate your purchase of their fuel and will give you specific tax breaks. Therefore, it is imperative that you keep good track of your mileage and fuel purchases.
Hire a Professional
With so many IRS rules and regulations as well as deductions and credits available to truck drivers, you should definitely consider hiring a tax professional to help you sort it all out. You may even find that your tax preparation fees pay for themselves because a competent professional tax preparer will be able to advise you of all the deductions and credits you are eligible for, even the new ones you may not know about yet.
Millions of people recognize tax attorney Roni Deutch as The Tax Lady®. She has been helping taxpayers nationwide resolve their tax liabilities for eighteen years. As an industry leader, she has saved her clients tens of millions of dollars and has helped thousands of families settle their back taxes.
