Babysitter milage

Forum|Forum|4 years ago
October 20, 2021
2 replies
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Hello, so my wife is an independent contractor for a babysitting service where she has to drive to client's house to perform the service. Can we deduct the milage from our home to work site then back home?

taxlady28

Level 10

No, that is not deductible. Commuting from work to job and back home is not deductible.

macuser_22

Alumni - Champ

@taxlady28 wrote:

No, that is not deductible. Commuting from work to job and back home is not deductible.

That is not correct.

Mileage for *employees* is not deductible. But mileage for self-employed persons most certainly is deductible as a business expense on Schedule C. For 2020 it is $0.57.5 per mile.

https://www.irs.gov/tax-professionals/standard-mileage-rates

**Disclaimer: This post is for discussion purposes only and is NOT tax advice. The author takes no responsibility for the accuracy of any information in this post.**

AmeliesUncle

Level 15

@ltap91 wrote:

Example: Client A needs a babysitter for one time on Tuesday 1pm to 5pm. Client B need a baby sitter for a one time 6 pm to 9 pm. She drives to client locations to perform the service then drives home.

As I said above. If she is self employed and files a Schedule C then all mileage is a deductible business expense on Schedule C (it is NOT a deductible "personal expense" on Schedule A.

@macuser_22 wrote:
If she is self employed and files a Schedule C then all mileage is a deductible business expense on Schedule C

It was mentioned in some later comments, but that is absolutely NOT true.

Miles are deductible from a business location to another business location. Whether or not your home qualifies as a business location depends on the circumstances.

Carl

Level 11

The bottom line is unfortunately, commuting from your residence to your primary place of employment is not deductible and never has been. Doesn't matter if you're self-employed or a W-2 employee. For a babysitter who does not provide childcare or babysitting services in their own home, that home is not their primary place of employment. The first client location of the day, each day, is their primary place of employment.