If you receive a W-2, you are an employee. To claim most work-related expenses, you must itemize deductions. You can deduct only the portion of your work-related expenses that exceeds the IRS floor: 2 percent of adjusted gross income.
In TurboTax, you would go to Federal Taxes, then Deductions & Credits, then scroll down and look for Employment Expenses. When you click on Employment Expenses, you will see where to enter Job-Related Expenses.
If you receive a 1099, you are considered self-employed and would need to deduct your expenses on Schedule C. You would need to upgrade to TurboTax Self-Employed to claim your expenses, as Deluxe will only allow you to enter your income from your business and not your expenses.
