It depends. If you are an employee and received a W-2, then NO, you cannot claim any expenses. Employee job related expenses are not federally deductible. They may be deductible on your state return depending on which state you live in.
If you are self employed, (received a 1099 or no documents) then YES, you can enter your lodging and travel expenses as business expenses.
To enter your self-employment income select the following:
- Federal
- Income and Expenses
- Show More next to Self-Employment
- Start next to Self-Employment
- Yes, to you have any self-employment income or expenses
- Enter the type of self-employment work you do and you can select that you use your name for your business
- Click through a few more screens and you will get to a screen that says "Your XX info"
- Click Looks good
- Then you will come to a screen that says Let's enter the income for your business. It will give you the option of 1099-NEC or Other self-employed income including the 1099K , cash and checks.
- If you do not select one, it will not let you enter your income
- Enter your self-employment income on the next screen
- Continue and on the next screen click add expenses
* Please note navigation may differ slightly depending on which version of TurboTax you are using*
The income and expenses as an independent contractor will be reported on Schedule C which is part of your overall tax return. This also means you will be subject to the 15.3% SE Tax. If you did not pay Self Employment (SE) Taxes in 2025, and if you plan to do this again in 2026, it may be a good idea to make estimated quarterly payments to avoid penalties.
Taking Business Expense Deductions
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