It’s tax time so that means tallying up all your income and expenses to see how much you have to pay or how much you’ll get back in a tax return. If you made a move during 2013 you may be eligible for tax deductions and credits that are related to the moving costs. The one big stipulation is that the move had to be job related. If you just decided it was time to upgrade to a new home or live in a more desirable neighborhood you won’t be able to deduct the moving costs.
Below you’ll find a rundown of what can and can’t be deducted and the stipulations for these expenses.
Potential Job Relocation Moving Deductions
If you meet the requirements associated with making a move for a job, and you have all your records in order it’s time to start deducting your work-related moving expenses. These can be expenses that were paid by yourself or a member of your household. Here are all the items that can reduce your tax bill or even get you a bigger return.
- Movers
- Moving truck and trailer rentals
- Packing services
- Packing supplies
- Crating fees
- Storage fees – for time between moving your items out of your former home and into your new home.
- Costs of moving items between the storage area and the residences
- Gas – You can either use the actual cost if you kept a detailed record or you can opt to take the standard $0.24 per mile deduction.
- Oil – If you drove your car during the move to transport yourself, family members or your belongings.
- Parking fees
- Toll fees
- Plane tickets
- Cost of disconnecting and connecting utilities
- Fees for shipping vehicles
- Fees for shipping pets
- Lodging during travel
A quick note about travel deductions: household members don’t have to travel together, but you can only deduct the expenses for one trip per household member.
Moving Expenses You Can’t Deduct on Your 2013 Taxes
Unfortunately, not all expenses incurred from moving out of your old home and into a new one are deductible. Below are the items that can’t be added as deductions.
- Meals
- Costs related to sightseeing trips along the way don’t qualify for job relocation moving deductions
- Licensing and tag fees
- Sales price of new home
- Costs associated with breaking or beginning a lease
- Closing costs and any other expenses related to buying or selling a home
- Mortgage penalties
- House hunting expenses
- Loss on the sale of your home
- Real estate taxes (this is deducted in another section)
- Home improvements made prior to selling your home or as a contingency to a sale
- A return trip to your previous home
- Security deposits
Basically securing and paying for a new residence as well as the costs of selling your previous home don’t fall under the moving expenses category. However, do note that some of the costs above may fall under other types of deductions. If you have questions regarding a particular item not listed here reach out to the IRS or a tax professional to ensure that all your expenses are itemized correctly.
Image Source: flickr.com/photos/26373139@N08/5913069484
Original Source: https://squarecowmovers.com/tax-deductions-for-moving-expenses-in-2013/