Can i deduct money put down on vehicle

[completeservices]

I put cash as a down payment on a loan for a vehicle used for business. Can i deduct this as an expense?

[ChelsiE2 · Accepted solution]

No, the downpayment itself is not considered a deduction.  

However, the better news is you can use the entire amount of the purchase price to calculate a depreciation deduction for this business asset.  If you are allowed a Section 179 Deduction, then the entire purchase price will be fully deductible in the year of purchase.  This is even true if you have a loan for this vehicle.

For more information on Section 179 Deduction:

https://ttlc.intuit.com/replies/3302228

[jaconrad013]

Yes you can, but you have to put it through as an ITEMIZED DEDUCTIONS and have to use the vehicle strictly for work purposes.

[KelliPeterson]

^I don't believe this to be true -- not sure which "itemized deduction" you would put a car down payment on, and if it is a business deduction, that would go on Schedule C (most likely), not Schedule A (Schedule A is used for personal deductions).

[VolvoGirl]

@KelliPeterson   This is a new forum layout. Some posts that have June 2019 dates are really older posts from the old forum that got moved over. So they might be for prior years and not current info. When they migrated over the dates got changed to June 2019. And the screen shots got deleted. 

You used to be able to itemize employee job expenses on Schedule A but those have been suspended 2018-2025.

[Bill S62]

How then should it be categorized?

[Vanessa A]

How should what be categorized?  The vehicle or the down payment?

A down payment is not a business deduction.  There would be no category for it on your tax return.

If you bought a vehicle, the amount you paid for the vehicle (down payment PLUS any financing not counting interest) would be entered as a vehicle business expense. You would then either be able to take the standard mileage deduction or you could take actual expenses.  If you choose actual expenses, you may be able to take full depreciation on the vehicle depending on the circumstances. As you walk through the business vehicle expense section, TurboTax will help you decide which way is best for you. 

Business Use of a Vehicle