Table of Contents
If you deduct travel, entertainment, gift, or transportation expenses, you must be able to prove (substantiate) certain elements of expense. This chapter discusses the records you need to keep to prove these expenses.
If you keep timely and accurate records, you will have support to show the IRS if your tax return is ever examined. You will also have proof of expenses that your employer may require if you are reimbursed under an accountable plan. These plans are discussed in chapter 6 under Reimbursements.
Table 5-1 is a summary of records you need to prove each expense discussed in this publication. You must be able to prove the elements listed across the top portion of the chart. You prove them by having the information and receipts (where needed) for the expenses listed in the first column.
You cannot deduct amounts that you approximate or estimate.
You should keep adequate records to prove your expenses or have sufficient evidence that will support your own statement. You must generally prepare a written record for it to be considered adequate. This is because written evidence is more reliable than oral evidence alone. However, if you prepare a record in a computer memory device with the aid of a logging program, it is considered an adequate record.
You should keep the proof you need in an account book, diary, statement of expense, or similar record. You should also keep documentary evidence that, together with your record, will support each element of an expense.
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You have meals or lodging expenses while traveling away from home for which you account to your employer under an accountable plan, and you use a per diem allowance method that includes meals and/or lodging. (Accountable plans and per diem allowances are discussed in chapter 6.)
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Your expense, other than lodging, is less than $75.
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You have a transportation expense for which a receipt is not readily available.
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The name and location of the hotel.
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The dates you stayed there.
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Separate amounts for charges such as lodging, meals, and telephone calls.
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The name and location of the restaurant.
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The number of people served.
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The date and amount of the expense.
Example.
If you are a sales representative who calls on customers on an established sales route, you do not have to give a written explanation of the business purpose for traveling that route. You can satisfy the requirements by recording the length of the delivery route once, the date of each trip at or near the time of the trips, and the total miles you drove the car during the tax year. You could also establish the date of each trip with a receipt, record of delivery, or other documentary evidence.
If you do not have complete records to prove an element of an expense, then you must prove the element with:
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Your own written or oral statement containing specific information about the element, and
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Other supporting evidence that is sufficient to establish the element.
If the element is the description of a gift, or the cost, time, place, or date of an expense, the supporting evidence must be either direct evidence or documentary evidence. Direct evidence can be written statements, or the oral testimony of your guests or other witnesses setting forth detailed information about the element. Documentary evidence can be receipts, paid bills, or similar evidence.
If the element is either the business relationship of your guests or the business purpose of the amount spent, the supporting evidence can be circumstantial, rather than direct. For example, the nature of your work, such as making deliveries, provides circumstantial evidence of the use of your car for business purposes. Invoices of deliveries establish when you used the car for business.
Example.
You use your car to visit the offices of clients, meet with suppliers and other subcontractors, and pick up and deliver items to clients. There is no other business use of the car, but you and your family use the car for personal purposes. You keep adequate records during the first week of each month that show that 75% of the use of the car is for business. Invoices and bills show that your business use continues at the same rate during the later weeks of each month. Your weekly records are representative of the use of the car each month and are sufficient evidence to support the percentage of business use for the year.
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You were unable to obtain evidence for an element of the expense or use that completely satisfies the requirements explained earlier under What Are Adequate Records.
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You are unable to obtain evidence for an element that completely satisfies the two rules listed earlier under What if I Have Incomplete Records.
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You have presented other evidence for the element that is the best proof possible under the circumstances.
This section explains when expenses must be kept separate and when expenses can be combined.
You must keep records as long as they may be needed for the administration of any provision of the Internal Revenue Code. Generally, this means you must keep records that support your deduction (or an item of income) for 3 years from the date you file the income tax return on which the deduction is claimed. A return filed early is considered filed on the due date. For a more complete explanation of how long to keep records, get Publication 583, Starting a Business and Keeping Records.
You must keep records of the business use of your car for each year of the recovery period. See More-than-50%-use test in chapter 4 under Depreciation Deduction.
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You claim deductions for expenses that are more than reimbursements.
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Your expenses are reimbursed under a nonaccountable plan.
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Your employer does not use adequate accounting procedures to verify expense accounts.
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You are related to your employer as defined under Per Diem and Car Allowances, in chapter 6.
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