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I am using Turbo Tax Home and Business. Under the Business tab -- Business Expenses -- Other Common Business Expenses -- Meals this is what's available:
Meals: 50% Limit (Meals while traveling for business)
Meals: 100% limit - Meals for children at daycare facility or meals provided by a restaurant
I now see that the 2nd option is not limited to day care or restaurant employees but includes all meals at a restaurant. So that's the place to enter local business meals. Sorry for the confusion.
Appreciate the response.
Perhaps you have made an erroneous entry in Turbo Tax. If you are using Turbo Tax Self-Employed, fully deductible meals include.
Also check to see if you selected the right check box in meals. This is what it should look like and how you make the selection for 100%.
I am using Turbo Tax Home and Business. Under the Business tab -- Business Expenses -- Other Common Business Expenses -- Meals this is what's available:
Meals: 50% Limit (Meals while traveling for business)
Meals: 100% limit - Meals for children at daycare facility or meals provided by a restaurant
I now see that the 2nd option is not limited to day care or restaurant employees but includes all meals at a restaurant. So that's the place to enter local business meals. Sorry for the confusion.
Appreciate the response.
Local business meals are 50% deductible . Being served in a restaurant does not make it a100% deduction. It’s a 50% deduction for business meals.
I am using TurboTax Home and Business 2021, as an independent contractor, and it also only has the choice of meals for travel and meals for daycare. I recommend the company fix this, it is totally unclear. Just wasted over an hour of my day looking for the correct place to enter business meals.
I think I feel your frustration but I do have a solution. Select Meals 50% limit, Meals while travelling for Business. 100% limits are only for Meals provided at daycare facilities.
@jennfs62
Should I enter these meals individually or add one total? We buy breakfast burritos and body armor (drinks) for the crew, daily.
Business expenses do not need to be itemized on a tax return. the total amount for each category is entered.
Your business should also be keeping books which DO show each itemized expense.
Thank you, yes we have detailed books. This is our first year so I was unsure on how to enter the total.
I got confused by this also:
The software says this:
Meals
Meals while traveling
From the surface, this is the place for travel meal only, and there is no other place to enter non-travel meal. So I hope TurboTax can change the wordings to something similar:
Meals
Include meals while traveling
This should fix this confusion.
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