This section discusses expenses you can deduct for local business transportation. This includes the cost of transportation by air, rail, bus, taxi, etc., and the cost of driving and maintaining your car.

Local transportation expenses include the ordinary and necessary costs of all of the following.

• Getting from one workplace to another in the course of your business or profession when you are traveling within your tax home. (Tax home is defined earlier under Travel Expenses.)
• Visiting clients or customers.
• Going to a business meeting away from your regular workplace.
• Getting from your home to a temporary workplace when you have one or more regular places of work. These temporary workplaces can be either within the area of your tax home or outside that area.

Local business transportation does not include expenses you have while traveling away from home overnight. Those expenses are deductible as travel expenses and are discussed earlier. However, if you use your car while traveling away from home overnight, use the rules in this section to figure your car expense deduction. See Car Expenses, later.

The following discussions apply to you if you have a regular or main job away from your home (residence). If your principal place of business is in your home, see Office in the home, later.

Illustration of local transportation. Figure 28-B illustrates the rules for when you can deduct local transportation expenses when you have a regular or main job away from your home. You may want to refer to it when deciding whether you can deduct your local business transportation expenses.

Temporary work location. If you have one or more regular places of business and commute to a temporary work location, you can deduct the expenses of the daily round-trip transportation between your home and the temporary location. The temporary work must be irregular or short term (generally a matter of days or weeks).

If you have no regular place of work but ordinarily work in the metropolitan area where you live, you can deduct daily transportation costs between home and a temporary work site outside that metropolitan area. Generally, a metropolitan area includes the area within the city limits and the suburbs that are considered part of that metropolitan area. You cannot deduct daily transportation costs between your home and temporary work sites within your metropolitan area. These are nondeductible commuting costs.

If the temporary work location is beyond the general area of your regular place of work and you stay overnight, you are traveling away from home. You may have deductible travel expenses as discussed earlier in this chapter.

Figure 28-B. Local Transportation

Two places of work. If you work at two places in one day, whether or not for the same employer, you can deduct the expense of getting from one workplace to the other. However, if for some personal reason you do not go directly from one location to the other, you cannot deduct more than the amount it would have cost you to go directly from the first location to the second. Transportation expenses you have in going between home and a part-time job on a day off from your main job are commuting expenses. You cannot deduct them.

Armed Forces reservists. A meeting of an Armed Forces reserve unit is a second place of business if the meeting is held on a day on which you work at your regular job. You can deduct the expense of getting to or from one workplace to the other as just discussed under Two places of work.

You usually cannot deduct the expense if the reserve meeting is held on a day on which you do not work at your regular job. In this case, your transportation generally is considered a nondeductible commuting cost. However, you can deduct your transportation expenses if the location of the meeting is temporary and you have one or more regular places of work.

If you ordinarily work in a particular metropolitan area but not at any specific location and the reserve meeting is held at a temporary location outside that metropolitan area, you can deduct your transportation expenses.

If you travel away from home overnight to attend a guard or reserve meeting, you can deduct your travel expenses. These are discussed earlier under Travel Expenses.

Commuting expenses. You cannot deduct the costs of taking a bus, trolley, subway, taxi, or driving a car between your home and your main or regular place of work. These costs are personal commuting expenses. You cannot deduct commuting expenses no matter how far your home is from your regular place of work. You cannot deduct commuting expenses even if you work during the commuting trip.

Example. You had a telephone installed in your car. You sometimes use that telephone to make business calls while commuting to and from work. Sometimes business associates ride with you to and from work, and you have a business discussion in the car. These activities do not change the trip from personal to business. You cannot deduct your commuting expenses.

Parking fees. Fees you pay to park your car at your place of business are nondeductible commuting expenses. You can, however, deduct business-related parking fees when visiting a customer or client.

Advertising display on car. Putting display material that advertises your business on your car does not change the use of your car from personal use to business use. If you use this car for commuting or other personal uses, you still cannot deduct your expenses for those uses.

Car pools. You cannot deduct the cost of using your car in a nonprofit car pool. Do not include payments you receive from the passengers in your income. These payments are considered reimbursements of your expenses. However, if you operate a car pool for a profit, you must include payments from passengers in your income. You can then deduct your car expenses (using the rules in this chapter).

Hauling tools or instruments. Hauling tools or instruments in your car while commuting to and from work does not make your car expenses deductible. However, you can deduct any additional costs you have for hauling tools or instruments (such as for renting a trailer you tow with your car).

Union members' trips from a union hall. If you get your work assignments at a union hall and then go to your place of work, the costs of getting from the union hall to your place of work are nondeductible commuting expenses. Although you need the union to get your work assignments, you are employed where you work, not where the union hall is located.

Office in the home. If you have an office in your home that qualifies as a principal place of business, you can deduct your daily transportation costs between your home and another work location in the same trade or business. (See chapter 30 for information on determining if your home office qualifies as a principal place of business.)

If your home office does not qualify as a principal place of business, follow the general rules explained earlier.

Examples of deductible local transportation. The following examples show when you can deduct local transportation expenses based on the location of your work and your home.

Example 1. You regularly work in an office in the city where you live. Your employer sends you to a one-week training session at a different office in the same city. You travel directly from your home to the training location and return each day. You can deduct the cost of your daily round-trip transportation between your home and the training location.

Example 2. Your principal place of business is in your home. You can deduct the cost of round-trip transportation between your qualifying home office and your client's or customer's place of business.

Example 3. You have no regular office, and you do not have an office in your home. In this case, the location of your first business contact is considered your office. Transportation expenses between your home and this first contact are nondeductible commuting expenses. Transportation expenses between your last business contact and your home are also nondeductible commuting expenses. Although you cannot deduct the costs of these first and last trips, you can deduct the costs of going from one client or customer to another.

Car Expenses

If you use your car for business purposes, you may be able to deduct car expenses. You generally can use one of two methods to figure your expenses: actual expenses or the standard mileage rate. In this chapter, "car" includes a van, pickup, or panel truck.

You may be entitled to a tax credit for an electric vehicle (see chapter 38) or a deduction from gross income for a part of the cost of a clean-fuel vehicle that you place in service during the year. The vehicle must meet certain requirements, and you do not have to use it in your business to qualify for the credit or the deduction. For more information, see chapter 15 of Publication 535.

Standard Mileage Rate

You may be able to use the standard mileage rate to figure the deductible cost of operating your car for business purposes. For 1998, the standard mileage rate is 32 1/2 cents a mile for all business miles. This rate is adjusted periodically for inflation.

If you choose to use the standard mileage rate, you cannot deduct your actual car expenses.

You generally can use the standard mileage rate regardless of whether you are reimbursed and whether any reimbursement is more or less than the amount figured using the standard mileage rate. See Reimbursements under How To Report, later.

Rural mail carriers. The higher standard mileage rate for U.S. Postal Service employees with rural routes (rural mail carriers) is repealed.

If you are a rural mail carrier, you may be able to treat the amount of qualified reimbursement you received as the amount of your allowable expense. Because the qualified reimbursement is treated as paid under an accountable plan, your employer should not include the amount of reimbursement in your income. And, since the reimbursement equals the expense, you have no deduction to report on your tax return.

A "qualified reimbursement" is the amount of reimbursement you receive that meets both of the following conditions.

1. It is given as an equipment maintenance allowance (EMA) to employees of the U.S. Postal Service.
2. It is at the rate contained in the 1991 collective bargaining agreement. Any later agreement cannot increase the qualified reimbursement amount by more than the rate of inflation.

See your employer for information on your reimbursement.

If you are a rural mail carrier and received a qualified reimbursement, you cannot use the standard mileage rate.

Choosing the standard mileage rate. If you want to use the standard mileage rate for a car you own, you must choose to use it in the first year the car is available for use in your business. Then in later years, you can choose to use the standard mileage rate or actual expenses.

If you want to use the standard mileage rate for a car you lease, you must choose to use it for the entire lease period. For leases that began on or before December 31, 1997, the standard mileage rate must be used for the entire portion of the lease period (including renewals) that is after that date.

If you choose to use the standard mileage rate, you are considered to have chosen not to use the depreciation methods under the Modified Accelerated Cost Recovery System (MACRS). This is because the standard mileage rate includes an allowance for depreciation. You also cannot claim the section 179 deduction. If you change to the actual expenses method in a later year, but before your car is considered fully depreciated, you have to estimate the remaining useful life of the car and use straight line depreciation. For information on how to figure that depreciation, see the exception in Methods of depreciation under Depreciation Deduction in chapter 4 of Publication 463.

Standard mileage rate not allowed. You cannot use the standard mileage rate if you:

1. Use the car for hire (such as a taxi),
2. Operate two or more cars at the same time (as in fleet operations),
3. Claimed a depreciation deduction using ACRS or MACRS depreciation in an earlier year,
4. Claimed a section 179 deduction on the car,
5. Claimed actual car expenses after 1997 for a car you leased, or
6. Are a rural mail carrier who received a qualified reimbursement. (See Rural mail carriers, earlier.)

Two or more cars. If you own two or more cars that are used for business at the same time, you cannot use the standard mileage rate for the business use of any car. However, you may be able to deduct your actual expenses for operating each of the cars in your business. See Actual Car Expenses in chapter 4 of Publication 463 for information on how to figure your deduction.

You are not using two or more cars for business at the same time if you alternate using (use at different times) the cars for business.

Example 1. Marcia, a salesperson, owns a car and a van that she alternates using for calling on her customers. She can use the standard mileage rate for the business mileage of the car and the van.

Example 2. Maureen owns a car and a van that are both used in her housecleaning business. Her employees use the van and she uses the car to travel to the various customers. Maureen cannot use the standard mileage rate for the car or the van. This is because both vehicles are used in Maureen's business at the same time. She must use actual expenses for both vehicles.

Parking fees and tolls. In addition to using the standard mileage rate, you can deduct any business-related parking fees and tolls. (Parking fees that you pay to park your car at your place of work are nondeductible commuting expenses.)

Actual Car Expenses

If you do not choose to use the standard mileage rate, you may be able to deduct your actual car expenses.

If you qualify to use both methods, figure your deduction both ways to see which gives you a larger deduction.

Actual car expenses include the costs of: Depreciation; Lease fees; Rental fees; Garage rent; Licenses; Repairs; Gas; Oil; Tires; Insurance; Parking fees; Tolls.

Business and personal use. If you use your car for both business and personal purposes, you must divide your expenses between business and personal use.

Example. You are a contractor and drive your car 20,000 miles during the year: 12,000 miles for business use and 8,000 miles for personal use. You can claim only 60% (12,000 ÷ 20,000) of the cost of operating your car as a business expense.

Interest on car loans. If you are an employee, you cannot deduct any interest paid on a car loan. This interest is treated as personal interest and is not deductible. However, if you are self-employed and use your car in that business, see chapter 8 of Publication 535.

If you use a home equity loan to purchase your car, you may be able to deduct the interest. See chapter 25 for more information.

Taxes paid on your car. If you are an employee, you can deduct personal property taxes paid on your car if you itemize deductions. Enter the amount paid on line 7 of Schedule A (Form 1040). (See chapter 24 for more information on taxes.) If you are not an employee, see your form instructions for information on how to deduct personal property taxes paid on your car.

You cannot deduct luxury or sales taxes, even if you use your car 100% for business. Luxury and sales taxes are part of your car's basis and may be recovered through depreciation, discussed later.

Fines and collateral. You cannot deduct fines and collateral you pay for traffic violations.

Depreciation and section 179 deductions. If you use your car for business purposes as an employee or as a sole proprietor, you may be able to recover its cost by claiming a depreciation or section 179 deduction. The amount you may claim depends on the year you placed the car in service and the amount of your business use.

For more information, see the instructions for Form 2106 (if you are an employee) or Form 4562 (if you are self-employed). Also see chapter 4 of Publication 463 for a detailed discussion of these deductions.

Leasing a car. If you lease a car that you use in your business, you can use the standard mileage rate or actual expenses to figure your deductible car expense.

Deductible payments. You can deduct the part of each lease payment that is for the use of the car in your business. You cannot deduct any part of a lease payment that is for personal use of the car, such as commuting.

You must spread any advance payments over the entire lease period. You cannot deduct any payments you make to buy a car, even if the payments are called lease payments.

If you lease a car for 30 days or more, you may have to reduce your lease payment deduction by an "inclusion amount." For information on reporting lease inclusion amounts, see Leasing a Car in chapter 4 of Publication 463.

Sale, Trade-in, or Other Disposition

If you sell, trade in, or otherwise dispose of your car, you may have a taxable gain, a deductible loss, or an adjustment to the basis of your new car. This is true whether you used the standard mileage rate or actual car expenses to deduct the business use of your car. Chapter 14 has information on basis of property and chapter 15 has information on sales of property. For details on adjusting the basis of your car, see Disposition of a Car in chapter 4 of Publication 463.

Previous | First | Next

Publication 17 | 1998 Tax Year Archives | Tax Help Archives | Home