Write guns off on your taxes?

[TheOtherOne]

I made a little bit of money on the side last year and I'm going to have to report it on taxes. I made the money from a car website that I run and I plan to write off all my web hosting costs and the things I had to have to keep it running.... but can I write off the Glock I bought last year also? I mean I did buy it to protect and keep in the car which I feature on the site. I decided I better not write the car off itself, because I use it for other things but the guns primary use could be just for the "business" to protect my investment that I have in making sure the car is safe.


... or does that just not fly because there's some IRS code that says you have to be a cop or someone important to write off a gun?

 

[EJ]

Essential?

The buisness must be required for the deduction--

ALso you know if you feel it is required and deduct it -- you have to amortize the cost over aboiut 20 yrs--

I wouldn't buy it -- bu maybe you can convince an IRS man at your audit--

 

[Chipperman]

Sounds a bit shakey to me.

 

[uglymofo]

No way I'd do it. The cash return IF immediate during that year, is generally about a 30%; that is, if the gun is deductible as an immediate expense (not amortized over time), and (for example) your gun cost $600, you would see a net difference in your taxes due, of ~$200. However, it would definitely not be something you could amortize in one year, and I think you'd be hard-pressed to demonstrate factually by documentation that it was purchased to 'protect' the car. Any model (or expense) for an alarm, or car-tracking system, sure. A gun as deduction? a neat trick in this case.

I'd save the "questionable" (no offense meant here) deductions for those things that might net more return with better plausibility.

The car is legitimately deductable under certain (easy) conditions: If you have a second mode of transportation (generally, another car--I don't think a motorcycle wouldn't fly with the IRS), that'd go a long way to "proving" this car is for business only (in that case, you could deduct everything and anything related to this car--gas, maintenance, insurance, parking, Paxton supercharger, 18" rims and tires, Tokicos, Borla, etc).

Mandatory is a log of mileage, dates, and circumstance (who'd you see and why); make sure this log tallies with your business calendar day planner, and keep them together for the taxman. (You don't need any othe proof of business travel commitments in order to deduct your vehicle expenses.) This would allow you to deduct all vehicle-related expenses attributed to business mileage (even if you only have one car). That is, the log must show the mileage on Jan 01 and Dec 31 of that year. The rest of the entries can be only for the business mileage. The log book only has to show the business miles, and they were worth about 29 cents a mile last I recall. You don't necessarily have to have all your service / gas receipts; (but it'd be better if you did, in circumstances where you added expensive items like a Paxton, Borla, and Fikse's). My business vehicle screamed at 11.73 in the quarter mile (not bad for 4400 lb. of tax-deductible locomotion. Too bad it wasn't my business...imagine what I coulda thought up.)

To me, this was worth way more than a one-time item like a gun purchase that was amortized over 15 years.

 

[Blackhawk]

Careful there....

I'd just forget about that idea.

 

[Pilgrim]

Perhaps if you were a member of a state authorized militia and required to provide your own musket, powder, flint, and musket balls.

 

[CZ-75]

You could write them off as a hobby. But then you'd need to itemize, rather than take a standard deduction. Most folks do better with the std. deduction.

 

[Pilgrim]

You can only take deductions for losses in a hobby to the extent they offset income. This would apply if you are buying and selling guns. Then you run into that pesky problem of needing a FFL to do that.

 

[Mike Irwin]

This has been asked before, I believe over on TFL.

In short, no, you can't write off your handguns, UNLESS you must purchase them as part of your job.

Comes under the same heading as other tools required by your job.

You attempt to do this, and you're likely to be audited.

 

[AR-10]

I'm a business owner and my wife keeps the books. I keep telling her to take off all my shooting expenses as a business expense.

Entertaining Clients
She just rolls her eyes , and ignores my suggestion.

As a note of interest, did you know that bribes and kick-backs are legitimate tax write-offs???

 

[Sisco]

I've been told but never verified that in some cases farmers can write off guns if they are used for "predator control". I know a couple of guys that have done this but they haven't been audited either.

 

[blades67]

Just start your own security business, then you can deduct all of your uniform expenses. Also, if you hire yourself to protect the car and the computer you can write off your salary.







Please, don't actually try this, it was posted in jest.

 

[TaxPhd]

A firearms bulletin board is probably not the best place to get tax advice. Some of the incorrect items that have been posted on this topic are as follows:

1) "The buisness must be required for the deduction"

Deductions must be both "ordinary" and "necessary" in order to be deductible. There is no requirement for either the business (???) or the deduction to be required.

2) "ALso you know if you feel it is required and deduct it -- you have to amortize the cost over aboiut 20 yrs"

If it were deductible, it would likely be immediately expensed under IRC §179. Otherwise, it would be depreciable over 7 years.

3) "The cash return IF immediate during that year, is generally about a 30%"

The return is not "generally" anything. It is exactly the marginal tax rate of the taxpayer multiplied by the amount of the deduction.

4) "However, it would definitely not be something you could amortize in one year"

See #2 above.

5) "In short, no, you can't write off your handguns, UNLESS you must purchase them as part of your job"

Required as a condition of employment is one way, but not the only way. See #1 above.

6) "As a note of interest, did you know that bribes and kick-backs are legitimate tax write-offs???"

This applies only in foreign countries, only if the payments are in the form of "grease," and the payments don't otherwise violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

In the United States, all bribes, kickbacks, etc., are considered a violation of public policy, and are not tax deductible.

I would strongly suggest that you consult with a qualified tax specialist on this issue.

 

[Mike Irwin]

TaxPhD,

There's a very large envelope with all my tax related **** in it for the past year.

Have at, dude.

And, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to the tax site to get some gun advice.

 

[AR-10]

6) "As a note of interest, did you know that bribes and kick-backs are legitimate tax write-offs???"

This applies only in foreign countries, only if the payments are in the form of "grease," and the payments don't otherwise violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

In the United States, all bribes, kickbacks, etc., are considered a violation of public policy, and are not tax deductible.

Thank you for the illumination.
Now you know why my wife does the books and I don't.

 

[TheOtherOne]

The car is legitimately deductable under certain (easy) conditions: If you have a second mode of transportation (generally, another car--I don't think a motorcycle wouldn't fly with the IRS), that'd go a long way to "proving" this car is for business only (in that case, you could deduct everything and anything related to this car--gas, maintenance, insurance, parking, Paxton supercharger, 18" rims and tires, Tokicos, Borla, etc).

Hmmm.... I do have a second car. I didn't keep any mileage records last year, but maybe this is something I should consider for this year! I'm definitely going to look into it but, like TaxPhd said, this probably isn't the best place to be getting tax advice.

It sure would be nice to get a tax break by writing off all my guns, future guns and gun expenses though!

 

[bogie]

Yeah, going into a "shooting-related" business is a serious plus - I've been seriously thinking of putting together some t-shirts, something of the sort...

1,000 miles travelled (that you would anyway...) = $290 off your taxes. Add in your hotel/motel expenses, etc...

Problem is that you need to make a profit - this ain't "free" money. You may be able to get away with this for a year or so, but if you don't clear a profit...

 

[ambidextrous1]

Here's a creative idea:
Get yourself certified as a firearms instructor, after receiving the standard NRA course (not terribly long, and a lot of fun.)
Advertise your services via bulletin boards @ public places, etc (low cost) and charge your students a nominal fee for your services.
You'll need a variety of pistols for your training, of course; and a Dillon press will keep business expenses down.
In CCW states, you can qualify (through the state, I believe) to prepare candidates for the CCW, and charge a bit more for this.
Other options include specialized firearms courses, etc. If you're good at it, most of your customers will come via word-of-mouth.
Don't give up your day job!

 

[Quartus]

You could write them off as a hobby.

I'm sure the IRS will be interested to know that hobbies are now tax deductible!



Get your tax advise somewhere else!

 

[Blackhawk]

1,000 miles travelled (that you would anyway...) = $290 off your taxes.

Ummm, no. Maybe $290 off of your taxable income, but the max that would reduce your taxes is $290 x your tax rate.

 

[TaxPhd]

Quartus,

Expenses of a hobby ARE deductible, but only to the extent of the income generated from the hobby. You cannot take a LOSS from a hobby.

 

[Quartus]

I sit corrected!


Well, I ain't standin' to read this thread, y'know!


Duh. I remember that now!


Like I said, get your tax advice somewhere else! A firearms board is gonna get you in trouble!




BTW, welcome aboard, TaxPhd!


Uh, what do YOU do for a living?