Do you have any tax tips for freelance writers? Are there expenses that I can write off? I'll be visiting a CPA, but I would like have my questions ready for him.
How do you handle taxes as a freelance writer
(4 posts) (3 voices)
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This is your lucky day because I used to be in accounting. I'm totally grateful that I have my degrees and experience. I just got my taxes done for free! No, I did not prepare them. The city where I live had volunteer tax preparation. I went because I was not sure about a few things. Hopefully your CPA will not be charging you that much.
You can deduct computer equipment and software. If you use your printer, you can deduct that. I believe you can deduct the square footage of your home/apartment.
Second, if you visit clients you can deduct the mileage. I think it must be at a certain threshold.
Finally, write down your expenses that you use as a freelance writer. Computer, software, paper, etc...You may want to do a Google search for tax deductions. Check out our page Things You Should Know for tax and legal issues. When in doubt, ask your CPA. Hope this helped.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Hi Angela
Been there! Having been self-employed and home-based for years, I've been dealing with this issue for a long time!
I'm certain that you can only deduct the cost of your mortgate or rent for ONLY that percentage of your home/apartment in which you actually work, not the entire space. So if you use a spare bedroom, or even a corner, add up that actual square footage and figure out what percentage of your space it represents - that's the percentage of your cost that can be deducted.
However, IRS rules change ALL THE TIME, so it's best to be sure you're getting expert advice - your CPA is a great start, and it can't hurt to occasionally get a second look from another professional tax preparation service to be sure you're not missing anything.
I've also used tax preparation software like H&R Block's TaxCut and TurboTax - both work great and as long as you use the most current version they will find you all of the current deductions.
Good luck!
Posted 2 years ago # -
Thanks Trisha! I knew it was some portion of your home/apartment your could deduct. This is why I'm not in accounting anymore
Posted 2 years ago #
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