1. The IRS doesn't require that you keep receipts, canceled checks, credit card slips, or any other supporting documents for meal expenses that cost less than $75. However, you must still document the facts of the business meal/meeting. Whenever you incur an expense for business-related meals while traveling, you're supposed to document the following facts:
- The date of the meal.
- The amount (including tax and tip).
- The place of the meal.
- The business relationship. For example, the names and occupations of the people at the meal and any other information needed to establish their business relationship to you.
2. International travel will attract more scrutiny from the IRS, but that doesn't necessarily mean you can't deduct it. Large corporations do it all the time. You will just need to be very careful.
Per the IRS,
Your trip is considered entirely for business if:
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You were outside the United States for more than a week, and
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You spent less than 25% of the total time you were outside the United States on nonbusiness activities.
If you are conducting business for 4 hours or more, 7 days a week, then you may meet this qualification. In this case, you may be able to deduct the entire cost of your trip. However, you would need to be very careful with keeping records of what work you did on what days, which clients you met with, for how long, etc. In the instances when you meet with potential customers and don't have any receipts or other documentation, record their names, phone numbers, email addresses, etc in your work log.
I would personally also recommend keeping an eye on your income throughout the year, and noting any income that was generated by the marketing you do on these trips. Be prepared to justify that the trip is a necessary and ordinary business expense, just in case you are ever audited.
You said you typically expect to work 7 days a week. However, if at any point that is not the case, you'll have to do the math to justify your expenses. Add up the total number of days that you are away. Add up the total number of days you spent a significant time working (4+ hours). If its less than 75%, you will need to allocate expenses following the rules in Pub 463.
