Tax Question

[Fly BI]

I'm doing my Federal return and was wondering how many other pilots deduct for haircuts & drycleaning?

 

[njcapt]

Me. Both.

One haircut every four weeks and one drycleaning of my uniform slacks per trip. I do my own shirts, and show an expense of $1.25 per trip day.

 

[Fly BI]

Many thanks!

 

[npowless]

From http://www.forbes.com/2001/03/06/0306finance.html


Beating Tax Court

Shira J. Boss, Forbes.com, 03.06.01, 7:00 AM ET
NEW YORK - Last year a writer went to the U.S. Tax Court and argued that he should be able to write off payments to prostitutes as research for a book. The Court ruled that this particular tab was a personal rather than business expense. But the Court did allow him to write off travel expenses for book research, something that the Internal Revenue Service had disallowed.

A commercial airline pilot represented himself in Tax Court after the IRS disallowed a deduction for haircuts and shoe shines. He lost the point on the haircuts, but the Court ruled that shoe shines were part of the cost of keeping up a uniform, which is a deductible expense.



Also, an excerpt from a search of Federal Tax Cases (this could be the one referenced in the Forbes article, I'm not sure):

MICHAEL C. TOTIN AND DANA E. TOTIN, Petitioners v. COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE, Respondent
Docket No. 9164-83.
UNITED STATES TAX COURT
T.C. Memo 1984-603; 1984 Tax Ct. Memo LEXIS 66; 49 T.C.M. (CCH) 122; T.C.M. (RIA) 84603
November 20, 1984.

[...]

Even if substantiated, the cost of haircuts and razor blades is not deductible. In Fryer v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 1974-26, this Court held that the cost of a commercial airline pilot's haircuts was a nondeductible personal expense, even though airline regulations required pilots to have haircuts on a regular basis. Similarly, the cost of the boots is not deductible as they are suitable for personal or private wear. See, e.g., Donnelly v. Commissioner, 262 F.2d 411 (2d. Cir. 1959), affg. 28 T.C. 1278 (1957); Yeomans v. Commissioner, 30 T.C. 757 (1958).

 

[vclean]

If it wasn't for your flying job, you would never get a haircut?

 

[b757driver]

Gentlemen/Ladies,
I think you need to use common sense here!
It is only those items that you would not normally need to have or do if you were not a pilot, that you can deduct ie. uniform upkeep, meals during training courses while out of town, stationary items, flight bag etc. All of these are requirements of the job and are reasonable expenses to deduct.
As someone above mentioned, haircuts are not special to pilots only.

 

[jtf]

Unless you are making a lot of money, write it all off- including $5 for every van ride to and from the hotel and $5 for the maid at the hotel. The odds of getting audited are pretty slim if you are like the majority of pilots now that the glory days (and salaries) appear to be dead. I personally use H&R Block because they will let you write off a ton of questionable stuff and they have to pay the penalty if you get caught writing off something that they said you could (and this guarentee is in their normal service- don't waste extra money on their special guarentee service).

 

[Fly BI]

Interesting. There's some conjecture over the haircut issue with the guys I fly with. The argument FOR the haircut are the airline's grooming standards. Every airline is slightly different, but most seem to specify it in the employee handbook ..."will present a neat and professional appearance". That said, how many airline pilots do you see with hair below the collar or ponytails?

 

[njcapt]

A commercial airline pilot represented himself in Tax Court ...

I would attribute his failure to prevail mostly to this.

 

[Chest Rockwell]

jtf,

I assume you teach your children that it is okay to cheat as long as you do not get caught.

 

[jtf]

Chesty,

All 18 of my little bast*rds that I have spread out around the cities I fly to are in fact not only taught to cheat, but also how to lie, steal, gamble, and smoke by the age of 7. Identity theft is on next years schedule.

 

[jeff333]

Chesty,

All 18 of my little bast*rds that I have spread out around the cities I fly to are in fact not only taught to cheat, but also how to lie, steal, gamble, and smoke by the age of 7. Identity theft is on next years schedule.

LOL.


Write off every thing you can. Tax law allows you to take resonalbe deductions for job related expense. Is it you job to save every receipt for the IRS. NO

 

[Kingairrick]

I used Wolcott & associates for the first time last year.
www.aviation-cpa.com
They specialize in flight crew taxes. I was amazed at the amount of stuff I can write off LEGALLY. Like the difference between the per-diem rate your employer pays and the DOT per-diem rates for each different city.
Seriously saved me a couple grand.

To answer the question, both, and don't forget your medicals and batteries.

 

[A Squared]

Like the difference between the per-diem rate your employer pays and the DOT per-diem rates for each different city.

hey, any idea where I can find a list if DOT per-diem rates?

 

[lumax]

Does anyone deduct per diem? That is, the difference in overnight per diem the airline paid you (box 12 a (L) in W-2 form), versus the amount the government allows DOT workers to deduct.
If you do, how do you do it? Where do you enter the numbers in Turbo tax?

Thanks

 

[Kingairrick]

The rates are published by the GSA for domestic and the Secretary of State for international. I have no idea exactly where...The above mentioned firm does it all for me. I just give them my calandar from last year.

 

[A Squared]

THanks, I found it, google is a wonderful thing. It's a freakin' mess trying to navigate the GSA's website though. anyone else ever notice how messed up the fed's websites are? dead end links, no redirect for moved pages, hopelessly unorganized structure, PITA to find pages you *know* are there someplace..... I know, what did I expect?


http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?programId=9704&channelId=-15943&ooid=16365&contentId=17943&pageTypeId=8203&contentType=GSA_BASIC&programPage=%2Fep%2Fprogram%2FgsaBasic.jsp&P=MTT

 

[Fly BI]

DOT per diem rates

http://policyworks.gov/org/main/mt/homepage/mtt/perdiem/perd05d.html

lumax,

I when you get to the beginning of the deductions section, choose the option for "complete interview". That will cover all you bases.