92 Small Business Tax Deductions
- Accounting fees
- Advertising & marketing
- Amortization
- Bad debts that you cannot collect
- Banking fees
- Board meetings
- Building repairs and maintenance
- Business association membership dues
- Business travel (here’s what you need to know!)
- Cafeteria health-insurance plan (requires plan)
- Car expenses
- Charitable deductions made for a business purpose
- Charity or traveling to perform charitable services
- Cleaning/janitorial services
- Collection expenses
- Commissions to outside parties
- Computers and tech supplies
- Consulting fees
- Continuing education for yourself to maintain licensing and improve skills
- Contractors
- Conventions and trade shows
- Credit card convenience fees
- Depreciation
- Discounts to customers
- Eating out while you’re traveling for business
- Education and training for your employees
- Employee wages
- Employee benefits
- Entertainment for customers and clients
- Equipment
- Equipment repairs
- Exhibits for publicity
- Family members’ wages
- Franchise fees
- Freelancers
- Freight or shipping costs
- Furniture or fixtures
- Gifts for customers or employees ($25 deduction limit for each)
- Group insurance (if qualifying)
- Guard dog
- Gym for employees, located onsite
- Health insurance
- Home office (see our handy article)
- Insurance premiums for credit, liability, malpractice, worker’s comp, and other insurance
- Interest
- Internet hosting and services
- Inventory
- Investment advice and fees
- Legal fees
- License fees
- Management fees
- Materials
- Maintenance
- Medical expenses (with plan)
- Mortgage interest on business property
- Moving
- Newspapers and magazines
- Office supplies and expenses
- Outside services
- Payroll processing
- Payroll taxes for employees, including Social Security, Medicare taxes and unemployment taxes
- Parking and tolls
- Penalties and fines paid for late performance or nonperformance of contracts
- Pension plans
- Permits and fees
- Postage
- Profit sharing
- Publicity
- Prizes for contests
- Real estate-related expenses
- Rebates on sales
- Rent
- Research and development (we literally wrote the guide on this one!)
- Retirement plans
- Royalties
- Safe-deposit box
- Safe
- Service fees
- Software and online services
- Startup expenses
- Stereo equipment for playing background music at work
- Storage rental
- Subcontractors
- Taxes (amazingly, taxes incurred in running your business are deductible)
- Telephone
- Theft and loss
- Tips. Just because you didn’t get a receipt doesn’t mean you can’t deduct the cost, but you should document it just the same.
- Uniforms for your employees
- Utilities
- Waste removal
- Website design
- Workers’ compensation insurance
11 Deductions to Avoid All Together
- A small business loan—but you can deduct whatever you purchase with the loan
- Business attire that you can wear outside of work (ie, non-uniforms)
- Contributing your time to charity
- Membership dues, even to a professional organization
- Federal income tax payments
- Your life and disability insurance premiums if you’re a sole prop., partnership, or S Corporation
- Lobbyists
- Penalties and fines you pay as the result of breaking the law
- Political contributions
- Professional accreditation fees
- Your own salary if you’re a sole proprietor
