Deducting a co-working space as a w-2 employee

[nemo2790]

I'm a w-2 employee in a remote/work from home position. I'm considering renting a co-working space at $475 per month. I plan to exclusively work from the space. It's my understanding I can deduct this from the state tax (PA) but not federal? And I must prove that the total cost exceeds my AGI for the year? Is this accurate? Any insight would be appreciated.

[Opus 17]

The deduction is not allowed on your federal tax return.  I don’t know the exact rules for Pennsylvania, but if Pennsylvania uses the same definition of itemized deductions that was in place federally before tax reform of 2018, then in order to deduct work related expenses, you must be taking the itemized deduction, and you can only deduct work related expenses that are more than 2% of your gross income.

It would be much smarter to have your employer reimburse you for your expense

[nemo2790]

Thanks for the reply. I talked to my friend's dad last night who has been doing taxes for folks for years in PA. He confirmed, while I can't do it at the federal level I can at the state. To your final point, I can deduct the entire amount of the co-working space ($5,500-6,000) so long as that's more than 2% of my income?

[Critter]

Ask your local friend for the PA specifics or look at the PA forms for an exact answer.