Extracted Text (may have errors)

Page 15 of 59 of Publication 463 17:36 - 21-JAN-2010 The type and rule above prints on all proofs including departmental reproduction proofs. MUST be removed before printing. meeting is temporary and you have one or more assignments, you are employed where you For more information on alternative motor vehi- regular places of work. work, not where the union hall is located. cles, see Form 8910, Alternative Motor Vehicle If you ordinarily work in a particular metropol- Credit. itan area but not at any specific location and the Office in the home. If you have an office in reserve meeting is held at a temporary location your home that qualifies as a principal place of Rural mail carriers. If you are a rural mail outside that metropolitan area, you can deduct business, you can deduct your daily transporta- carrier, you may be able to treat the qualified your transportation expenses. tion costs between your home and another work reimbursement you received as your allowable If you travel away from home overnight to location in the same trade or business. (See expense. Because the qualified reimbursement Publication 587, Business Use of Your Home, is treated as paid under an accountable plan, attend a guard or reserve meeting, you can deduct your travel expenses. These expenses for information on determining if your home of- your employer should not include the reimburse- fice qualifies as a principal place of business.) ment in your income. are discussed in chapter 1. If your vehicle expenses are more than the If you travel more than 100 miles away from Examples of deductible transportation. The amount of your reimbursement, you can deduct home in connection with your performance of following examples show when you can deduct the unreimbursed expenses as an itemized de- services as a member of the reserves, you may transportation expenses based on the location duction on Schedule A (Form 1040). You must be able to deduct some of your reserve-related of your work and your home. complete Form 2106 and attach it to your Form travel costs as an adjustment to gross income 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. rather than as an itemized deduction. For more Example 1. You regularly work in an office A “qualified reimbursement” is the reim- information, see Armed Forces Reservists Trav- in the city where you live. Your employer sends bursement you receive that meets both of the eling More Than 100 Miles From Home under you to a 1-week training session at a different following conditions. Special Rules, in chapter 6. office in the same city. You travel directly from your home to the training location and return • It is given as an equipment maintenance Commuting expenses. You cannot deduct each day. You can deduct the cost of your daily allowance (EMA) to employees of the U.S. the costs of taking a bus, trolley, subway, or taxi, round-trip transportation between your home Postal Service. or of driving a car between your home and your and the training location. • It is at the rate contained in the 1991 col- main or regular place of work. These costs are lective bargaining agreement. Any later personal commuting expenses. You cannot de- Example 2. Your principal place of business agreement cannot increase the qualified duct commuting expenses no matter how far is in your home. You can deduct the cost of reimbursement amount by more than the your home is from your regular place of work. round-trip transportation between your qualify- rate of inflation. You cannot deduct commuting expenses even if ing home office and your client’s or customer’s you work during the commuting trip. place of business. See your employer for information on your reim- bursement. Example. You sometimes use your cell Example 3. You have no regular office, and to and from work. Sometimes business associ- case, the location of your first business contact ! ceived a qualified reimbursement, youIf you are a rural mail carrier and re-you do not have an office in your home. In this phone to make business calls while commuting ates ride with you to and from work, and you is considered your office. Transportation ex- CAUTION cannot use the standard mileage rate. have a business discussion in the car. These penses between your home and this first contact activities do not change the trip from personal to are nondeductible commuting expenses. Trans- Standard Mileage Rate business. You cannot deduct your commuting portation expenses between your last business expenses. contact and your home are also nondeductible You may be able to use the standard mileage at your place of business are nondeductible your car for business purposes. For 2009, theduct the costs of these trips, you can deduct theFees you pay to park your carrate to figure the deductible costs of operatingcommuting expenses. Although you cannot de-Parking fees. commuting expenses. You can, however, de- standard mileage rate for the cost of operatingcosts of going from one client or customer to duct business-related parking fees when visiting your car for business use is 55 cents per mile.another. a customer or client. material that advertises your business on your Car Expenses CAUTION car expenses for that year. You cannotPutting displaya year, you cannot deduct your actual!If you use the standard mileage rate forAdvertising display on car. car does not change the use of your car from deduct depreciation, lease payments, mainte- personal use to business use. If you use this car If you use your car for business purposes, you nance and repairs, gasoline (including gasoline for commuting or other personal uses, you still ordinarily can deduct car expenses. You gener- taxes), oil, insurance, or vehicle registration cannot deduct your expenses for those uses. ally can use one of the two following methods to fees. See Choosing the standard mileage rate Car pools. You cannot deduct the cost of figure your deductible expenses. and Standard mileage rate not allowed, later. using your car in a nonprofit car pool. Do not • Standard mileage rate. You generally can use the standard mileage include payments you receive from the passen- rate whether or not you are reimbursed and • Actual car expenses. whether or not any reimbursement is more or gers in your income. These payments are con- sidered reimbursements of your expenses. less than the amount figured using the standard If you use actual expenses to figure your de- mileage rate. See chapter 6 for more information However, if you operate a car pool for a profit, you must include payments from passengers in duction for a car you lease, there are rules that on reimbursements. affect the amount of your lease payments that your income. You can then deduct your car Choosing the standard mileage rate. If you expenses (using the rules in this publication). you can deduct. See Leasing a Car, later. want to use the standard mileage rate for a car In this publication, “car” includes a van, Hauling tools or instruments. Hauling pickup, or panel truck. For the definition of “car” year the car is available for use in your business.you own, you must choose to use it in the first tools or instruments in your car while commuting for depreciation purposes, see Car defined to and from work does not make your car ex- under Actual Car Expenses, later. the standard mileage rate or actual expenses.Then in later years, you can choose to use either penses deductible. However, you can deduct any additional costs you have for hauling tools or You may be entitled to a tax credit for If you want to use the standard mileage rate TIP an alternative motor vehicle that you for a car you lease, you must use it for the entire instruments (such as for renting a trailer you tow with your car). place in service during the year. The lease period. For leases that began on or before vehicle must meet certain requirements, and December 31, 1997, the standard mileage rate Union members’ trips from a union hall. If you do not have to use it in your business to must be used for the entire portion of the lease you get your work assignments at a union hall qualify for the credit. However, you must reduce period (including renewals) that is after 1997. and then go to your place of work, the costs of your basis for depreciation of the alternative You must make the choice to use the stan- getting from the union hall to your place of work motor vehicle by the amount of the credit you dard mileage rate by the due date (including are nondeductible commuting expenses. Al- claim. See Depreciation Deduction, later, under extensions) of your return. You cannot revoke though you need the union to get your work Actual Car Expenses. the choice. However, in later years, you can Chapter 4 Transportation Page 15