As a lease-operator truck driver (1099), fixed costs can occasionally put a weekly settlement in debt. Where can I deduct repayments of negative balances?

[viktor-king]

I am an independent contractor (1099) leasing a commercial truck from my carrier. 
Repairs must be done through the company when possible, and can take a week or more. 

If the truck generates no revenue, certain fixed costs can bring weekly settlement payouts to $0. When the truck goes into debt, the debt accumulates as a 'Negative Balance Advance' which is repaid over time from future profitable settlements.

Where can I deduct this repayment amount?

[AnnetteB · Accepted solution]

You could claim this type of expense in the Less Common Expenses section, using the Other Miscellaneous Expenses category.  Doing so will allow you to enter your own description for the expense along with the amount. 

[qbteachmt]

The repayments are debt service, not Expense. It's like an overdrawn Bank Balance.

You enter and track the expenses, even if they are incurred in a period where there is no income. You might run negative and have to Repay (see deduction for) the amounts because that is reflecting Gross income minus amounts "offsetting" what you were allowed to incur without having to Pay previously. This reduction is not the Expense, now.

This deduction is a sort of Banking activity; it is cash flow but not expense.

Example: You get a recurring charge of $500 a week, and one week you make $1,000 and the next you make $300 as Gross Revenue. The third week you make $800.

Week 1: Gross income $1,000, Expenses $500, Net to you is $500 take home.

Week 2: Gross income $300, Expenses $500, Net to you $0, they are allowing you to owe them $200.

Week 3: Gross income $800, Expenses $500, deducted the $200 you owed them previously, so Net to you is $100.

As a Cash Basis tax filer, the Ending negative Balance would be Expense you cannot take on taxes, since you did not yet pay for those expenses.

You cannot track, from my example, the $500 expense as expense and also intend to use the Repayment amount as Expense. The one is payment against the other.