Work Travel Expenses

[tgnetz]

My wife works from home.  She also travels to an office every day.  When her day starts, she begins working at home and then traverses to her office and finishes the day there.  Can mileage be claimed from her commute in the morning (but not in the evening) because she is traveling from her home office to her work office?

[HelenaC · Accepted solution]

No, those are commuting miles. For income tax purposes, she does not have a home office, therefore she cannot claim her miles to or from her employer's office. 

• If you're working at home for an employer, your home office must be for the convenience of your employer – not just you.

• This means if your employer lets you telecommute as an option, you can't take the deduction. However, if your employer doesn't have their own office or workplace, forcing you to work from home, you may be able to claim the deduction. See Home Office Deduction - IRS.gov