11-5-10 Job Hunting Expenses |
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Job Hunting Expenses In these tough times many people are seeking work. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could get a break on the expenses incurred while looking for work? Well you actually can deduct some of those expenses on your income tax return. Some of the expenses that may be deductible are:
There are some costs related to job hunting that are not deductible. For example, if you must move for a new position, and you put a deposit down on a new home at the new location, but you then do not actually get that job and must forfeit the deposit, that deposit will not be deductible. You also may not deduct real estate broker commissions related to the sale of a home when moving to start a new position. There are also some stipulations to the deduction. You may not deduct expenses if it is the first time you are looking for work. You also must be seeking a position in the same line of work in which you were previously employed. Another situation where expenses may not be deductible is when a person takes a significant break from work before beginning their search for a new position. For instance, if a person took a couple of years off to raise small children, and returned to the job market once they were in school, job searching expenses would not be deductible. Some questions that often come up are “What if I accept a temporary job while continuing to look for a permanent job within my industry?”, and “How much can I deduct on my taxes?” One would still be able to deduct job search related expenses directly related to the search in their field if they accept a temporary position, just not the expenses related to finding that temporary job if it is unrelated to their previous line of work. Job search expenses are miscellaneous itemized deductions. The IRS allows taxpayers to deduct only the amount that exceeds 2% of their adjusted gross income. |
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