Is there any way to add inventories that I personally purchased prior to starting the business but that have become raw materials for my business after starting it up?

[lmbice]

These items were purchased in prior years and I have no receipts for them

[DS30 · Accepted solution]

Yes. What you will need to do is consider these materials as part of your capital contributions to the company once the company has started operations.

If you do not have a cost basis in these items (because you do not have the receipts) then just determine the fair market value (FMV) by using an internet search on the current cost of these items and use the FMV of similar items currently available for sale as the cost basis to increase your capital account for contributing these items to your business. (Please keep a record of how you determined the cost basis with your tax files for future reference).

Entering these raw materials as cost of goods sold -

You can enter your cost of goods sold under the Business income and Expenses>Business Summary>Cost of Goods Sold (See Screenshot #1)

However, if you do not have any inventory to report but want to enter your purchased materials/products that you sold under this section (to report as Cost of Goods Sold), you will still need to select "yes" for inventory but report zero "0" for both starting and ending inventory. You can put the Cost of Goods Sold relating to purchases under this section (See Screenshot #2)

You also have the choice to include these costs as non-incident materials and supplies under either cost of goods sold or supplies.

Usually, this would be part of your cost of goods sold (and any remaining unsold product would be included in inventory). However, as part of the small business exemption, these items that would have been included in the business inventory may be deducted the year that either the item is sold or when it is purchased, whichever is later. 

This exemption from recognizing inventory applies to sole proprietorships or very small businesses. To be exempt from reporting inventory, an individual taxpayer must not annually earn more than $1 million, as determined by annual gross receipt amounts for the past three years.

Please link this link for more information on IRS - Cost of Goods Sold

To deduct business expenses as supplies in TurboTax Online or Desktop, please follow these steps:

1. Once you are in your tax return, click on the “Business"” tab
2. Next click on “I’ll choose what I work on” (jump to full list)
3. Scroll down the screen until to come to the section “Business Income and Expense”
4. Choose “Profit or Loss from Business ” and select start/revisit/update.
5. If your business is already listed, choose to "edit"
6. You will get to a screen titled "Your () Business"
7. Under Business Expenses, choose "Other Common Business Expenses"
8. You can choose to report these costs under supplies or other miscellaneous expenses with the title "materials and supplies

Relate to any assets contributed to the company -

Any assets that you purchased prior to starting your business will not be considered part of start up costs.

Instead, these assets will be considered your "contribution" to the new business (your capital investment in the business) and you will include the cost under the asset section under the business summary and start taking a depreciation expense from the point when the business actually "started" and going forward.

For the amount of start-up costs before you started your business -

You may elect to deduct up to $5,000 of start-up costs in the year your business begins operations. The $5,000 first-year deduction limit is reduced by the amount of start-up costs exceeding $50,000. (You would include this as under business income and expenses - "Other Common Business Expenses"> "Other Miscellaneous Expenses" and enter here (as start-up costs). 

Start-up costs that exceed the first-year limit of $5,000 may be amortized ratably over 15 years. The amortization period starts with the month you begin operating your active trade or business. (Include any remaining start-up cost under the asset section of business income and expenses.)

Start-up costs include amounts paid for the following:

• An analysis or survey of potential markets, products, labor supply, transportation facilities, etc.
• Advertisements for the opening of the business.
• Salaries and wages for employees who are being trained and their instructors.
• Travel and other necessary costs for securing prospective distributors, suppliers, or customers.
• Salaries and fees for executives and consultants, or for similar professional services.

For example, you began business operations July 1, 2016, had start-up costs of $35,000.

You may deduct $6,000 in 2016 (First-year limit, $5,000, plus First year's amortization, $1,000).

A full year's amortization would be $2,000 ($35,000 minus $5,000 divided by 15). Since  the amortization period began July 1, 2015 (the month business operations began), the first year's amortization is one half of $2,000 or $1,000.

For the amount of business expenses after you started your business -

You will be able to expense any eligible business costs incurred after you started your business.

Please refer to this IRS link for more information about Business Expenses

[denisurushiyama1111]

Great input.Thanks.

What if I have a significant inventory of goods (say a collection of stamps) to bring in the new company?

[Carl]

While for many situations one can expense inventory as "supplies", thus allowing the deduction of the cost in the first year, this has the potential to be problematic when the business closes. It "just depends" on to many factors to cover here.

Generally speaking, when starting a new business that has inventory, or in the first year an existing business acquires inventory, the BOY (Beginning of Year) inventory balance must be ZERO. It flat out does not matter when that inventory was originally purchased - even if purchased years before the business even existed. There are reasons for this, and it has to do with the way the cost of inventory is deducted.

What you paid for inventory is not deductible until the tax year you actually sell that inventory. It flat out doesn't matter in what tax year it was purchased either. This is dealt with in the "Cost of Goods Sold" section where you enter what "you" paid for the inventory that you actually sold in the tax year.

[Anonymous_]

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@Carl wrote:

While for many situations one can expense inventory as "supplies", thus allowing the deduction of the cost in the first year, this has the potential to be problematic when the business closes.

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There should be no issue with expensing inventory as supplies in the tax year they are sold.

There should also be no issues in that respect when the business closes.

[Carl]

There should also be no issues in that respect when the business closes.

A possible scenario where it could be an issue.

You purchase $40K of inventory in 2020 and only sell $5K of that inventory. Then for whatever reason you go bust in 2021 with $35K of inventory remaining that you expensed. On paper, this could result in a $35K "loss" for inventory that you kept for personal use. It's not a loss per-se, because you kept it for personal use. Yet on the tax return, you're claiming a loss. Seems a bit underhanded to me, since inventory removed from the business for personal use is not deductible.

[Anonymous_]

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@Carl wrote:

There should also be no issues in that respect when the business closes.

A possible scenario where it could be an issue.

You purchase $40K of inventory in 2020 and only sell $5K of that inventory. Then for whatever reason you go bust in 2021 with $35K of inventory remaining that you expensed. On paper, this could result in a $35K "loss" for inventory that you kept for personal use. 

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This is not an issue since the inventory is not expensed it until it is sold.

If a taxpayer is treating this in any other manner (e.g., as you described. where the inventory is expensed all at once - prior to being sold), they are doing it wrong. That would be what the IRS would term improper matching of income with expenses.

[denisurushiyama1111]

Thanks to all.

I probably haven't thought that far but are worried about what a substantial value of paid start-up equity in the shape of inventory will do to later tax payments.

From what I understand this is not an issue from this POV because it only plays in when goods are sold.

Do I get that right?

[Anonymous_]

Using your stamp collection example, you would expense (deduct) each stamp as a "supply" when you sell it (assuming you are not keeping an inventory).

[denisurushiyama1111]

Yes, I would keep an inventory, starting with the initial stock, paid-in as start-up equity.

If I later pay myself amount X for every stamp sold at price Y, I would get taxed for X as a regular private seller of stamps, AND I'd get taxed for the profit Y-X my company would make (after cost).

Correct?

If I can get around being taxed for privately selling stamps, I still run risk of being accused to pull cash from the company with every sale.

If I get the collection valued once as a whole I'd be in clear water later.

[Anonymous_]

@denisurushiyama1111 

You need to post more details, including exactly what you are trying to accomplish, the exact nature of your business, and the entity you are planning to form for your business (e.g., sole proprietorship, corporation, et al).

[denisurushiyama1111]

Planning a LLC to use my knowhow and the standing inventory for a fulltime job as Manager of the LLC. 

I will purchase new inventory from sales, growing the collection over time.

Other than existing companies I will not have an 'old' sales channel (like a chain of shops, or vendors) to worry about but can go 100% online from the start. 

[Anonymous_]

Note that if the only member of the LLC is you, then you have a single-member LLC which, without an election to be treated as a corporation for federal income tax purposes, is effectively a sole proprietorship. 

[denisurushiyama1111]

Good point.