Mileage Deductions - delivering papers

[jac909]

I currently deliver papers and was planning on deducting mileage for my driving instead of itemizing.   I drive about 30/31 miles from first paper drop to last drop.  I drive an additional 11 miles from home to where I pick up my papers and from my last drop to home.

Am I allowed to claim all 41/42 miles per night or do I claim 30?  

I do paperwork at home, the business side of things....figuring out nightly draws and such but most of my time is spent delivering.

[HelenC12]

Since you are self-employed, ALL mileage is deductible for you when driven for business purposes. You are allowed the 41/42 miles per night. Make sure you keep a log of miles driven and for what purpose.

• Your home is your "office" so anytime you drive somewhere for business related purposes, it's deductible.
• For example: depositing your income check to bank and driving from your "home office" to first paper delivery.
• Where to enter your expenses, click here.
• Other Self-employed expenses you may be able to deduct, click here.

[AmeliesUncle]

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@HelenC12 wrote:

Since you are self-employed, ALL mileage is deductible for you when driven for business purposes. 

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It is not automatic.  In order for all mileage to be deductible (including to and from your home), your home must be the "Principal Place of Business".

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/rr-99-7.pdf#page=6

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p587.pdf#page=3

[jac909]

If I do my daily paperwork, receive my paycheck ect. weekly to my home would that make it my principal place of business or would my car be it since I deliver out of it?

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

[HelenC12]

The above IRS reference is if you want to take the Home Office Deduction.

Please see the following: Top Tax Deductions for Delivery Drivers

• Self-employed individuals can deduct their non-commuting business mileage. This includes miles that you drive to your first delivery pickup, between deliveries, and back home at the end of the day.

[AmeliesUncle]

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@HelenC12 wrote:

The above IRS reference is if you want to take the Home Office Deduction.

Please see the following: Top Tax Deductions for Delivery Drivers

• Self-employed individuals can deduct their non-commuting business mileage. This includes miles that you drive to your first delivery pickup, between deliveries, and back home at the end of the day.

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Um, no.

The FIRST reference above is an official REVENUE RULING that discusses who can transportation expenses to and from your home.  Of the three allowable circumstances, 2 deal with a "temporary" work location and the 3rd deals with the "Principle Place of Business".  The link to the Home Office Publication was to point out what the "Principal Place of Business" means.

A link to a blog on some random website does not take priority over an official IRS Revenue Ruling.

[DMarkM1]

It appears your home office is a principle place of business. Here is the discussion from Publication 587.  Your car would not be a principle place of business since it must be a fixed location. 

• You use it exclusively and regularly for administrative or management activities of your trade or business.
• You have no other fixed location where you conduct substantial administrative or management activities of your trade or business.

There are many activities that are administrative or managerial in nature. The following are a few examples. • Billing customers, clients, or patients. • Keeping books and records. • Ordering supplies. • Setting up appointments. • Forwarding orders or writing reports.

You can deduct the miles to/from your home (if it is a principle place of business) to any business locations.

This is from Publication 463 discussing business miles deduction.  

Office in the home.

If you have an office in your home that qualifies as a principal place of business, you can deduct your daily transportation costs between your home and another work location in the same trade or business. (See Pub. 587, Business Use of Your Home, for information on determining if your home office qualifies as a principal place of business.)

Examples of deductible transportation.

The following examples show when you can deduct transportation expenses based on the location of your work and your home.

Example 2.

Your principal place of business is in your home. You can deduct the cost of round-trip transportation between your qualifying home office and your client's or customer's place of business.

Example 3.

You have no regular office, and you don’t have an office in your home. In this case, the location of your first business contact inside the metropolitan area is considered your office. Transportation expenses between your home and this first contact are nondeductible commuting expenses. Transportation expenses between your last business contact and your home are also nondeductible commuting expenses. While you can’t deduct the costs of these trips, you can deduct the costs of going from one client or customer to another.

[toddleroc]

You are telling people that commuting miles to and from their home are deductible. What you are not telling them is that they are deductible only if your home qualifies as a home office under IRS rules meaning you can take a deduction for home office. Please clarify.

[LeonardS]

Yes, you may deduct your commuting miles when you are self-employed without having the home office deduction.  Both are a consideration for self-employed individuals but one is not contingent on the other they are separate items.  The post by @HelenC21 is correct as to delivery drivers deducting commuting mileage,