Mileage Deduction

[Browlader]

I have a $6407 standard mileage deduction and it didn't change my refund at all. Why not

[AnnetteB6]

The answer as to why it did not affect your return depends on where the mileage deduction was entered.  

If it was entered as an employee business expense on Form 2106, then your Federal return will not be affected unless you are in a certain category of employee (an Armed Forces reservist, qualified performing artist, fee-basis state or local government official, or an employee with impairment-related work expenses).

If it was entered as part of Schedule E Rental Income and Expenses and your property generated an overall passive loss, then your Federal return will not be affected.

If it was entered as part of Schedule C Business Income and Expenses, then more information would be needed to explain why your overall refund was not affected.

[Browlader]

It was entered as part of a schedule C as my mileage for instacart 

[LenaH]

There are a few reasons your mileage entered may not be deducted. If one of the belong situations apply, you will have to use the actual method for your automobile expenses.

You will not be able to deduct mileage on your Schedule C if:

• You lease your business vehicle.
• You made payments on a vehicle, but it is not in your name or your spouse’s name, and you are not considered the owner for tax purposes. 
• You did not use the standard mileage for 2019. If you choose the actual expenses method in the first year you used your car for work, you'll need to stick with it for every year you use this vehicle for work and keep all your receipts for your records.

Actual expenses include gas, oil, repairs, tires, insurance, registration fees, licenses, and depreciation (or lease payments) that are connected to your work-related mileage.

The amount of actual expenses you can deduct depends on mileage you used your vehicle for work. For example, you drove 12,000 miles last year, but only 6,000 miles were work-related. This means that you can deduct 50% of your actual expenses.

@Browlader

[Browlader]

Any other thoughts because none of those apply

- I own the vehicle personally

- it is paid for so no payments and the car is in my name

- this is the first year I have done this so I did not claim actual expenses in 2019

Thank you for your help

[AmyC]

If your tax refund is already maxed out, it won't go any higher. If your income is low enough that you have no tax liability, adding more expenses will not change anything.

Please preview your return and look at the tax liability. If it is zero, it can't go below zero so adding more will not help. See How do I preview my TurboTax Online return before filing?

[Fletchy_D]

I have the same problem, but none of the reasons you listed applies to my situation.

I don't lease the vehicle, I am the owner and paid for it, and didn't deduct for mileage using either standard mileage deduction or actual method last year. I qualified for a deduction more than six times greater than what was reflected in the "federal tax owed" field.

The standard mileage deduction isn't that impressive on it's own, but only having a sixth of it credited to my return is a joke that took way too long to get to the punchline. 

Please advise as to other reasons why the deduction I qualify for isn't the deduction I receive.