Good morning, Substack readers! I hope your week is off to a great start and that you find this newsletter full of useful information that will help you make the most of your tax deductions as a freelance writer. I’d love to get your feedback on what you deduct—comments are open!
This newsletter isn’t behind a paywall—all my tax filing tips and tricks are here for free. But if you find value in posts like this, I hope you’ll consider being a paid subscriber—you’ll get many benefits, including workshops, zoom sessions, and more!
But as tax season is already upon us, I want to give you this valuable information to set you up for success ASAP.
According to Ramsey Solutions, if you earn $400 or more from freelancing in a year, you need to report that income on your tax return, pay income taxes on it, and pay the 15.3% self-employment tax on those earnings.
We’ll get into 1099s, keeping track of your deductible expenses each month with an organizer, self-employment tax, and other nitty-gritty details in another tax newsletter, because in this post, I want to focus on all the things you can write off as business expenses.
BUSINESS TRAVEL
Do you travel for your writing? (Escaping to an Airbnb to write for a few days? Traveling to research a story? Additional expenses not covered on a press trip? They all count!)
Accommodation: Any hotel or short-term rental you booked.
Transportation: Airfare, car rental, rideshare, or public transportation like buses and subways.
Food and Drink: 50% of any meals you consume on your trip can be deducted (or more if the restaurant is included in a story you’re working on, check with your tax preparer).
BUSINESS MEETINGS
Coffee shop meetings: Meeting a writer’s group at a coffee shop or going to lunch? It’s a business expense.
Co-working space: It’s a tax-deductible expense you can include on your Schedule C forms.
Transportation: Driving your own vehicle, using a rideshare or taking public transportation for work-related meetings (or even driving to a coffee shop to work alone) are all tax-deductible.
VEHICLE
Gas and Fuel: You can claim any amount used for business trips (even going to get office supplies). I typically calculate the distance driven and miles per gallon for my car and figure out the number that way. The 2023 IRS mileage rate is 65.5 cents per mile.
Tolls: Toll roads, bridges, or tunnels traveled while doing business travel are deductible.
Parking: Parking while at a business-related event, meeting, or work session are deductions.
Insurance: If you live in a state that requires auto insurance (everywhere but Virginia and New Hampshire), you can deduct your car insurance premiums.
License and Registration: You can deduct a portion of your registration, emissions/safety inspection and roadside assistance.
Vehicle Depreciation: You can write off your vehicle’s annual value depreciation for business-related trips.
Repairs and Maintenance: You can deduct part of regular oil changes, repairs—even a car wash—if you use your vehicle for work.
Loan Interest: If you took out a loan to buy a vehicle, you can deduct a portion of the loan interest on your taxes.
HOME EXPENSES
If you do any part of your work from home (I’m calling my loungewear a work uniform and office expense now), you can deduct it from your taxes!
Furniture/Appliances: Anything you use to outfit your home workspace, like an office chair, stand-up desk, or filing systems are write-offs.
Insurance: If you pay renters or homeowners insurance, you can deduct a portion of this for your home office.
Rent: If you rent your home or apartment, you can deduct the square footage of the room that is dedicated office space.
Property taxes: You can deduct a portion of your property taxes, too.
Mortgage interest: If you’re a homeowner, you can’t deduct the principal, but you can deduct a portion of your mortgage interest as a business expense.
Utilities: Heat, water, and electricity are all necessities—a portion of your bill can be claimed as a business expense.
Internet: Another necessity to running a business—you can deduct a portion of this as a business expense, too.
Repairs/Maintenance: You can deduct a portion of updates and repairs to your home (since running a business from your home office increases the wear and tear on your property).
GENERAL EXPENSES
Subscriptions: Do you subscribe to magazines, newspapers, professional journals, or even Substack newsletters that relate to your business? Deduct it!
Marketing Expenses: You can deduct your website hosting, domain names, digital ads, swag, or any other business-related marketing cost.
Professional Development: Are you taking a class, enrolled in a workshop, buying books or audiobooks, or joining professional organizations with a membership fee? All tax-deductible.
Trade Shows and Conferences: If you’re attending a professional trade show, conference, or networking event, the admission cost (and related costs) can all be deducted. You can even deduct event tickets for online webinars!
Software: Did you upgrade your software, buy a program, or have professional subscriptions to things like LinkedIn, Trello, Canva, Adobe, Microsoft? All deductions.
Office Supplies: Anything related to your business can be deducted: calendars, notebooks, printer ink and paper, copy costs, your favorite pen, post-it notes—write them off!
Office Space Rent: If you pay for a co-working or office space, it’s a write off.
Mobile Phone Bill: You can deduct a portion of your mobile phone bill if you use any of it for work—that includes interviews, discovery calls, and even engaging on social media.
Professional Gear: Did you get a new laptop, new camera, or even a vlogging kit? It all counts as a business expense.
Bank Fees: If your bank charges a monthly service fee, credit card renewal fee, or even an ATM fee, you can deduct it if it’s related to operating your business.
Payment Processing Fees: If you invoiced a sponsor for ad placement, and they paid you with a credit card, you probably paid 2.9% or .30 cents as a processing fee—you can deduct those, too. You can even deduct instant transfer fees if your invoice is paid through a service like Venmo or Melio that offers instant payment for a cost.
Legal/Professional Services: You can deduct all costs associated with anyone you hire professionally, like tax preparers/accountants, attorneys, marketing/PR agencies, production companies, etc.
Sub-contractors: Any salary or fee you pay to an employee or sub-contractor is tax deductible.
RESEARCH:
It depends on what you’re writing, but a portion, if not all, of the expenses you accrue while researching a story, book, or even a potential story, can be deducted. Think outside the box on this one!
*Writing about television and culture? Deduct your streaming memberships if they’re related to what you’re working on.
*Writing about the best local spas/newest trends in massage/Russian manicure trend? Deduct the services you receive.
*Writing about yoga styles, your fitness or weight loss journey, or various gym offerings? Write off a portion your gym expenses.
*Writing about best new restaurants, craft cocktails, or meal delivery services? Developing a recipe? Deduct your dining out expenses (including gratuity on a comped meal) and groceries used for the recipe.
Did I forget anything? What would you add? Drop it in the comments!