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How do I claim self-employed travel expenses?

by TurboTax•3• Updated 2 months ago

If you're self-employed, you can claim reasonable travel expenses from yourself or your employees.

Select your TurboTax product and follow the instructions to claim travel expenses.

  1. Answer the initial Personal Info and Tax Profile interview questions if you haven't already. This unlocks the Tax Home screen.
  2. From the Tax Home screen, under Add to your return, enter self-employment and select Self-Employment Activities.
  3. At the Your Self-Employment or Business Summary screen, select Enter New Business.
  4. Answer all the questions about your self-employment, continuing until you get to the  Next up, claiming your expenses screen. Select Continue.
  5. At the Select the types of expenses you have screen, select More expenses, and select Add under Business travel and then continue.
  6. At the Here's your [type of business] info screen, under Business travel, select Start.
  7. Enter the amount of your eligible travel expenses.
  1. Select Find from the menu and enter business.
  2. Select Business profile, then select Go, and at Business expert interview, select Continue.
  3. At Business Identification, select your category of self-employment, then select Continue.
  4. At T2125 Business Identification, enter your self-employment business information.
  5. Continue completing each screen, providing the information requested.
  6. At T2125 Business Income, provide the gross revenue (sales, fees) and other information, then select Continue.
  7. At T2125 Valuing Inventory, provide applicable information and select Continue, or select Skip Inventory.
  8. At T2125 Vehicle Expenses, select Yes if you have business vehicle expenses, and complete the screens for vehicle expenses.
  9. At T2125 Claiming Business Expenses, select Continue.
  10. At Meals and Entertainment, include your meal expenses from business travel, including a $50 per day fixed rate for any conventions attended, then select Continue.
  11. At Business Travel Expenses, claim the total of all travel expenses, but don't include the meal and entertainment expenses from step #10, and don't include convention expenses, then select Continue.
  12. At Other Expenses, include convention expenses after subtracting the $50 per day amount included at Step #10, then select Continue.