Question

How do I enter mileage or vehicle expenses that would get me the full mileage expense deduction?

Forum|Forum|7 years ago
June 4, 2019
3 replies
0 views

I logged 4073 miles driven for work, so it should be at the 2017 rate of 53.5 cents/mile($2179) but my total vehicle expense deduction for the year comes out to be only $739

TurboTax Self Employed Online

I

Irene2805

For vehicles used in your business you can either take mileage or actual expenses. TurboTax will calculate the most beneficial for you.

If you choose to take mileage, depreciation is taken into consideration in the mileage rate.
If you choose to take actual expenses, TurboTax will automatically calculate the deduction and include it with the other vehicle expenses. To find the depreciation amount, just subtract the expenses you entered from the total expense displayed.

As you go through the interview, TurboTax will first calculate the standard mileage deduction and then ask if you would like to see if actual expenses would give a higher deduction. You will have the opportunity to enter the expenses (gas, tires, etc.) and TurboTax will add these along with the depreciation and give you a comparison.

To enter information on your business vehicle, please follow these steps:

Click on Income and Expenses and then click the Start/Revisit box in the Self-Employment section.
On the Your 2017 self-employed work summary screen, click on Edit next to your business. [See Screenshot #1, below.]
If you've already started to enter information on your vehicles, in the EXPENSES section click on Edit next to Vehicle. [Screenshot #2]
If you haven't started, on the Here's your [business] info screen, click on the box Add expenses for this work. [Screenshot #3]
On the next screen click the radio button next to Vehicle and click Continue at the bottom of the screen.
Continue through the interview, entering the requested information.
After entering information on your vehicle, you will be taken to the Vehicle Summary screen, where you will be able to add another vehicle. [Screenshot #4]

janet444

This is crazy. I just want to deduct the miles I drove and I'm being asked ridiculously detailed questions about the vehicle itself! I don't even remember what I paid for it.

I drove nearly 2000 miles last year in my job as a babysitter - not including commuting. I deserve a deduction for those miles I drove, but somehow it's not enough to track every tiny little mileage. I need to include an insane amount of information beyond that. Is this just TurboTax overcomplicating this deduction or is it the IRS?

VictoriaD75

Tracking business miles and the vehicle is an IRS requirement. You cannot take the mileage deduction unless you have tracked all business miles including the business purpose. Miles commuting to a job site are not deductible. If you were traveling to the same worksite everyday, you cannot deduct the miles. Additional information can be found in the links below for your reference:

Business Use of Vehicles

Maximizing Tax Deductions for the Business Use of Your Car

Standard Mileage vs Actual Expenses

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M

Mcmillannicole1993

I need the Ford escort removed please

J

JamesG1

See this or follow these directions:

Down the left side, click Federal.
Click on Wages & Income.
Under Your income, click on Edit/Add to the right of Self-employment income.
Click on Edit next to the business name.
To the right of the vehicle expenses, click Edit.
Under Vehicle Summary, click Edit to edit the entries. Click Delete to delete the entries.

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C

CJC8N469

Can I submit business vehicle expenses on my 2019 federal return? Or is is only allowed on state returns? It never asked me for any information on the TurboTax Deluxe software. Did it accidentally skip over it?

X

xmasbaby0

Employee

@CJC8N469 What do you mean by "business vehicle expenses?"

If you are a W-2 employee you cannot deduct any job-related expenses on your federal return. Your state laws might be different.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/4482873-which-federal-tax-deductions-have-been-suspended-by-tax-reform

If you are self-employed then your mileage, etc. are entered on the Schedule C with your other business expenses.

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**