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Make a dress suit tax deductible? in: Subjects › Tax

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I know a suit (a normal black dress suit) is not tax deductible in general due to the fact that it can be worn for business or non-business occasions. However, I was thinking about it, and I was wondering if the business actually purchases the suit, owns it, issues it out for business meetings and takes it back after the meeting, dry cleans it, etc..., shouldn't it be a tax deduction for the business.

Here is my situation. I am the sole member of an llc taxed as an s-corp. Can I do this make set it up as a business expense and therefore a tax deduction?

thanks


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No. At the very least, be very prepared to spend a lot of money on legal bills to defend yourself in an audit, then be prepared to pay taxes and heavy penalties and interest once you lose your case (and you WILL lose your case).


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You could become a suit salesman...

Message edited by: WalletWalletWallet on 2009-10-27 16:12:55 CDT
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jetsfan92588 said:I know a suit (a normal black dress suit) is not tax deductible in general due to the fact that it can be worn for business or non-business occasions. However, I was thinking about it, and I was wondering if the business actually purchases the suit, owns it, issues it out for business meetings and takes it back after the meeting, dry cleans it, etc..., shouldn't it be a tax deduction for the business.

Here is my situation. I am the sole member of an llc taxed as an s-corp. Can I do this make set it up as a business expense and therefore a tax deduction?

thanks
Sure. Get a big, annoying, and permanant logo fixed conspicuously on your suit. Superman ran it through as a business expense. Why not you?


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wow-i didn't think it would be that resounding of a no. lol

just curiously, what if I was just an employee of a large c-corp (like fortune 500) where i had no ownership whatsoever and they did this with suits for employees. Would it then be tax deductible to them? thanks


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Nope

The only time it's deductible is if you are required to purchase a uniform specifically for work (i.e police officer, mailman, etc)


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jetsfan92588 said:wow-i didn't think it would be that resounding of a no. lol

just curiously, what if I was just an employee of a large c-corp (like fortune 500) where i had no ownership whatsoever and they did this with suits for employees. Would it then be tax deductible to them? thanks
You'd likely be creating a form of taxable compensation for the employee by paying them with the usage of clothing which was non-company specific and could be used for other purposes.

Put logos or company names on the jackets and maybe you'd have a case.

Message edited by: Xnarg on 2009-10-27 16:54:10 CDT
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jetsfan92588 said:wow-i didn't think it would be that resounding of a no. lol

just curiously, what if I was just an employee of a large c-corp (like fortune 500) where i had no ownership whatsoever and they did this with suits for employees. Would it then be tax deductible to them? thanks
Yes, it would likely be tax deductible to the corporation but it would be a fringe benefit to the employee (and thus taxable to the employee). You aren't going to get a benefit from deducting it on the corporate tax return and including it on your W-2.


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Sec. 132(d) does indeed say that the standard for excluding a "working condition fringe" is the same as the standard for deducting it if paid by the employee.

I wonder if this is really the case, though. If a professional athlete is supplied by his employer with equipment (beyond the uniform), such as athletic shoes, only to be used by the athlete in competition or, maybe, in practice, that doesn't feel like it should be taxable; is there a good argument to differentiate a business suit from a pair of Nikes?


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I for one think this law is bullshit. I never wear a suit anywhere but work. I could wear it to a $500/night restaurant but I don't go to those.

I could also wear scrubs to McDonalds but scrubs are deductable.


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tripleB said:I for one think this law is bullshit. I never wear a suit anywhere but work. I could wear it to a $500/night restaurant but I don't go to those.

I could also wear scrubs to McDonalds but scrubs are deductable.

it seems like a significant amount of tax law makes absolutely no sense.


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jetsfan92588 said:tripleB said:I for one think this law is bullshit. I never wear a suit anywhere but work. I could wear it to a $500/night restaurant but I don't go to those.

I could also wear scrubs to McDonalds but scrubs are deductable.


it seems like a significant amount of tax law makes absolutely no sense.

It's almost as though they are saying, if you need to wear a suit to work, you must be wealthy so don't need a tax write off because any job that requires a suit daily must be high paying. And if you are poor then you need the deductions more so if you're a medical assistant wearing scrubs you get the writeoff.

The irony is that the lower income people who are eligible for writeoffs on their scrubs and janitor's pants do not itemize and the "rich" people who have to wear a suit to work actually do itemize.


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Actually this brings up an interesting point. Google offers free meals to employees and many tech companies offer free drinks (soda, coffee and juice) to their employees. What tax implications are there in those cases?

Message edited by: Jobowoo on 2009-10-27 19:17:38 CDT
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If suits were deductible, Congress would probably cap the deductible amount at the price of a JC Penneys suit special ($119).


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Xnarg said:If suits were deductible, Congress would probably cap the deductible amount at the price of a JC Penneys suit special ($119).With clawbacks if you work for the banking, insurance, or health care industry


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Xnarg said:If suits were deductible, Congress would probably cap the deductible amount at the price of a JC Penneys suit special ($119).

If it's a good enough suit to wear on the floor of the senate, it's a good enough suit for me.


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Jobowoo said:Google offers free meals to employees and many tech companies offer free drinks (soda, coffee and juice) to their employees. What tax implications are there in those cases?Free coffee, soda, snacks, etc. will be tax free. Occasional meals to make it easier for employees to work overtime can be tax-free. Any kind of meal on a regular basis is going to be taxable.


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LH2004 said:Jobowoo said:Google offers free meals to employees and many tech companies offer free drinks (soda, coffee and juice) to their employees. What tax implications are there in those cases?Free coffee, soda, snacks, etc. will be tax free. Occasional meals to make it easier for employees to work overtime can be tax-free. Any kind of meal on a regular basis is going to be taxable.

Google offers free lunch/dinner to its employees every weekday.


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WalletWalletWallet said:You could become a suit salesman...but then it would be inventory.


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