Copyright (c)
2009 Tom Wheelwright
http://www.ProVisionWealth.com
With
the holidays right around the corner, many of us are making holiday travel plans.
As you are making your holiday travel plans, identify opportunities to integrate
your holiday travel plans with your tax strategy - legally!
Tip
#1
Spend more than 50% of your time during each 8-hour day
on business activities and you can deduct 100% of your travel expenses. This means
you can deduct all of your travel expenses if you conduct business from 8 AM to
1 PM every day, and then take the rest of the day off to visit with family and
friends.
Tip #2
Travel expenses for
your spouse and your children are 100% deductible if they are involved in your
business and spend more than 50% of each day on business activities.
Tip
#3
Create a reason that is great for your business to travel
to that location. This is my favorite tip because I find when I create a great
business reason to travel, my business benefits in a way that it wouldn't have
without the travel.
I have many friends and family members
in Utah that I like to visit as often as I can. I decided to take a business trip
there a few years ago to explore the possible expansion of my rental real estate
business into Utah. I spent more than 50% of each day on business activities and
then I also had some personal time to visit with friends and family. My rental
real estate business in Utah has doubled since then and my regular travel there
is a legitimate business expense!
Tip #4
If
it's personal - treat it as personal. If one of your goals for a particular trip
is to take a break from business, then treat that trip as personal. Trying to
claim that as business travel could draw a lot of scrutiny to your legitimate
travel expenses. Or if your spouse and children don't participate in the business,
treat their portion of the travel expenses as personal - trying to deduct their
expenses could jeopardize your portion that is legitimate.
Tip
#5
Travel outside of the U.S. has a completely different
set of rules. Be sure to discuss this with your tax coach before you travel.
Travel
is one of my favorite deductions because it is one of those expenses that most
of us already have, and when planned properly, it gives us the opportunity to
increase our business's bottom line while decreasing our tax liability.
NBA
Benefit Provider - Endless
Vacation Rentals by Wyndham Worldwide
NBA
Resource Article - The Miracle
of Holiday Networking
NBA
Resource Article - Ten
Money Saving Tips For Holiday Travel
Reprint
of this article does not constitute an endorsement by the National Business Association;
the article is for informational purposes for our members and viewers of our Web
site.
