Are employer transportation benefits deductible in CA if they're only included in wages, but not listed in a separate box of W-2?

[BillM223 · Accepted solution]

By a separate box of the W-2, I assume that you are referring to box 14? 

FTB Publication 1001 says "Enter the amount of ridesharing fringe benefits received and included in federal income on Schedule CA (540), Part I, Section A or Schedule CA (540NR), Part II, Section A, line 1, column B."

So, the first statement may be true ("Are employer transportation benefits deductible in CA if they're only included in wages"), but I can't address the second statement, ("but not listed in a separate box of W-2?") because I don't know which box you are referring to nor do I know if these benefits are included in Wages.

If you are not referring to box 14, please come back and tell us.

[tax44]

Hi thanks so much.  The transportation benefits are not listed in box 14 or any box on the W-2, but they are listed  in the wage statements (and all paychecks).  If they are not listed on W-2 or any tax/IRS document, then are they not deductible?  Thanks.

[BillM223]

What I can't tell (and you probably can't either) is are the benefits included in Wages in box 1 on your W-2? You should ask your employer. It is possible that you could tell from your pay stubs, but since I don't know what your paystubs look like - and since there is no standardized format, the safest thing would be to ask your employer. The worst thing may be that they will show you how to read the pay stubs/statements.

[tax44]

Thanks Bill.  Yeah, they are added in to reported wages in box 1 of W-2.  I double-checked the math.  That maybe wasn't clear at first, but it's why I asked the question originally.  It's a separate line item for 'transportation'.  Are all such lines eligible? TT does not clarify.  My concern is that they're not reported in box on W-2. Thanks.

[BillM223]

Not everything is reported as added to box 1. In fact. many of the things in box 12 are reporting subtractions from the amount in box 1, not additions. Since these are state laws, the IRS cannot possibly keep up with them all.

So, the result is that the transportation benefit is added to Wages (box 1) on your W-2, so it is taxable on the federal return, and in CA, it is deductible on the state return.

"Are all such lines eligible?" Absolutely not. It depends on what they're for and what state you are in.