You have two questions here. Let's answer them (or try to anyway) one at a time.
"Can I take a business deduction for 2015 if I did't make money?"
I am assuming the business was a sole proprietorship or single member LLC of which you were the sole owner and reported the business income/expenses on SCH C as a part of your personal tax return. If so, then understand this.
Business income is reported on the SCH C in the tax year you receive it.
Business expenses are reported on the SCH C is the tax year you pay them.
If your business expenses exceed the business income, one of two things will happen, depending on the type of business.
- Either the expenses will reduce your taxable business income to zero, and excess expenses will carry over and be deducted from your other earned income (such as W-2 income), or;
- Once business expenses get your taxable business income to zero, the excess business expenses are carried over to the next tax year where they will be deducted, provided you have the business income from which to deduct them. However, in this scenario, if you don't claim your valid deductible business expenses in the tax year they are incurred, then you can not carry them over to the next year. You just lose the deduction is all.
