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Thread: Easy Advice on Taxes?

  1. #1
    Curious Guest marilyn olivia's Avatar
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    Default Easy Advice on Taxes?

    I saw another post similar to what I'm asking but it got kind of off topic and complex so I was wondering if anyone could give me some clear, easy advice on how to do my taxes from dancing?

    I'm 19 so this is my first time doing my taxes alone plus I didn't know to keep all the receipts from things I could deduct (outfits, hair, nails etc), is there anyway I can still deduct them off of estimates or something? I do however keep track of how much money I've made every night.

    Thanks for any help!

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    God/dess Kylea2's Avatar
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    Default Re: Easy Advice on Taxes?

    You could estimate without them, but keep in mind that the IRS can review your taxes up to 7 years later and not having proof could leave you in trouble. Besides, deductions for that stuff are small. I'd say just report it all and next year keep track! As a matter of fact, I'd recommend you find a private CPA to do your taxes.
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    Default Re: Easy Advice on Taxes?

    I agree that estimating your deductible business expenses in the absence of receipts isn't going to 'hurt' you at all in terms of IRS audit risk - as long as the total 'cost' of your business expenses is in reasonable proportion to your dancing income. Probably the worst thing that could happen is that you are audited, and you'll have to 'model' the stripper costumes and 5" heeled shoes you bought for the IRS agent to 'prove' you really expended this money LOL !

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    Default Re: Easy Advice on Taxes?

    ^^^ Makes for a great porn story. Instead of an additional assessment, she gets a special form of discipline for lying on her tax returns.

    But seriously, make an itemized list of all your expenses and provide a reasonable estimate for each one separately. If you don't make a complete list and get audited 2 years later, you won't remember what your expenses were for. You should also take pictures of all the items purchased and keep them as part of your records. If these items are sold online, you can print the pages that show the sales price. If you have no supporting documentation of your expenses, whatsoever, they might be disallowed... but, only if you get audited.

    Regarding deduction of business expenses generally, a summary is at:
    http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/...109807,00.html

    A more detailed explanation is at IRS Publication 535:
    http://www.irs.gov/publications/p535/index.html

    Regarding what records you should keep, review IRS Publication 583 (the section on Recordkeeping):
    http://www.irs.gov/publications/p583/index.html

    Here is a 2009 Tax Court opinion that might be helpful: http://taxlaw.typepad.com/files/blackmon.sum.wpd.pdf

    A construction worker claimed deductions on his 2003 tax return for his work clothes (denim jeans, denim shirts, and boots), and his transportation expenses between his home and his work site.

    Generally, clothing is a non-deductible personal expense. Revenue Ruling 70-474, however, states that clothing expense is deductible if required as a condition of employment and not adaptable for ordinary every day use. The IRS did not challenge Mr. Blackmon on this test, but rather denied his deduction because he could not substantiate the amount of his deduction (although, the Tax Court did mention this test in the footnotes). The Tax Court upheld the IRS's determination because Mr. Blackmon could not provide any records to substantiate the cost of his work clothes or boots.

    Likewise, Mr. Blackmon could not substantiate his transportation expenses. But even if he could, his transportation expenses between his home and his job site are considered non-deductible commuting expenses. Revenue Ruling 99-7 provides three exceptions to this general rule: a deduction for transportation expenses is allowed (1) if the work location is temporary and the location is "outside the metropolitan area where the taxpayer lives and normally works," (2) if there are one or more regular work locations away from the residence, then daily transportation expenses are deductible between the taxpayer's residence and a temporary work location in the same trade or business, and (3) if the taxpayer's residence is their place of business. Temporary is generally defined as a realistic expectation that a work location will last less than one year.

    Here, Mr. Blackmon worked at a plant in Darlington, NC and lived 71 miles away in Chadbourn, NC. He worked there for 7 years, and 11 1/2 months in 2003. The record is not clear, but it seems he was laid off a few times during that 7 year period, and worked at other jobs in different locations. Mr. Blackmon believed all his work locations were temporary because he might get laid off at a moment's notice. Unfortunately this is not the definition of temporary.

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    Member rihannsu's Avatar
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    Default Re: Easy Advice on Taxes?

    I thought my outfits weren't tax deductible, but when I read the part about them not being suitable for everyday wear, I knew that stripper outfits qualified.

    Sometimes living in Texas is a plus, after all.

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    Default Re: Easy Advice on Taxes?

    ^^^ I agree that a dancer's outfits should qualify, but it would be really funny to find a case where a crusty old judge has gone through a dancer's outfits to determine what is and what is not "adaptable for ordinary every day use"... G-strings as underwear?... Sexy costumes as lingerie for romantic evenings with the SO?... Thigh boots have become mainstream... Bebe sells stripper-chic shoes that resemble stripper high-heels.

    When I have some goof-off time, I'll check if I can find a case.

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    God/dess Zofia's Avatar
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    Default Re: Easy Advice on Taxes?

    Costumes are deductible. So, I tried to buy stripper clothes from stores/online that would mark the receipt "costumes". That may not resolve the issue, but I think it helps.

    HTH
    Z

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