Business deductions

The home office deduction lets you deduct things like rent, mortgage interest, insurance, utilities, repairs, and depreciation for the portion of your home used for business. It's available to homeowners and renters alike.

You may be able to claim the home office deduction if your office is used regularly and exclusively for your business and is your principal place of business. In addition, if you're working at home for an employer, your home office must be for the convenience of your employer – not just you.

This means if your employer lets you telecommute as an option, you can't take the deduction. However, if your employer doesn't have their own office or workplace, forcing you to work from home, you may be able to claim the deduction.

When you enter your home office information in TurboTax, we'll determine if you can claim the deduction and how much the deduction is worth.

What does "Regular and Exclusive Use" mean?

Whether you're self-employed or an employee, one requirement for the home office deduction is that you regularly use a part of your home exclusively for conducting business.

For example, let's say you turned an unused bedroom into your office and installed a computer with its own high-speed connection. You go in there 4-6 days every week, building websites. The room is used strictly for business – contacting prospects and clients, meeting with them, and working on their websites. In this case, your office would meet the regular and exclusive use requirement.

On the other hand, if you or a family member occasionally go into your office so they can watch movies or play games on your computer, your office is no longer being exclusively used for business.

Similarly, if you work out of your office occasionally or sporadically, it wouldn't be used regularly.

If you can carve out a little nook in your home that you can dedicate solely to your business affairs, you’re setting yourself up for a great home office tax deduction. It does not have to be a separate room, as a desk in the corner of the kitchen will qualify. But it does have to be used exclusively for business tasks, so the kitchen table probably does not qualify.

For your cell phone deduction, you should claim that portion (percentage) that is for business use.

A complete list of Uber expenses would be unwieldy but here some good info that you may find helpful about your husband's business:

https://ttlc.intuit.com/replies/5796507