Tax Benefits for Job Hunting

The IRS recently published their Summertime Tax Tip 2016-24, entitled “Looking for Work May Impact Your Taxes”, with some good tips that you should know as you go about job hunting.  The text of the actual publication from the IRS follows, and at the end of the article I have added a few additional job-related tax breaks that could be useful to you.

Looking for Work May Impact Your Taxes

If you are job hunting in the same line of work, you may be able to deduct some of your job search costs. Here are some key tax facts you should know about when searching for a new job:

• Same Occupation.  Your expenses must be for a job search in your current line of work. You can’t deduct expenses for a job search in a new occupation.
• Résumé Costs.  You can deduct the cost of preparing and mailing your résumé.
• Travel Expenses.  If you travel to look for a new job, you may be able to deduct the cost of the trip. To deduct the cost of the travel to and from the area, the trip must be mainly to look for a new job. You may still be able to deduct some costs if looking for a job is not the main purpose of the trip.
• Placement Agency. You can deduct some job placement agency fees you pay to look for a job.
• First Job.  You can’t deduct job search expenses if you’re looking for a job for the first time.
• Time Between Jobs.  You can’t deduct job search expenses if there was a long break between the end of your last job and the time you began looking for a new one.
• Reimbursed Costs.  Reimbursed expenses are not deductible.
• Schedule A.  You normally deduct your job search expenses on Schedule A, Itemized Deductions. Claim them as a miscellaneous deduction. You can deduct the total miscellaneous deductions that are more than two percent of your adjusted gross income.
• Premium Tax Credit.  If you receive advance payments of the premium tax credit, it is important that you report changes in circumstances –  such as changes in your income, a change in eligibility for other coverage, or a change of address  –  to your Health Insurance Marketplace.  Advance payments are paid directly to your insurance company and lower the out-of-pocket cost for your health insurance premiums.  Reporting changes will help you get the proper type and amount of financial assistance so you can avoid getting too much or too little in advance.

For more on job hunting refer to Publication 529, Miscellaneous Deductions. You can get IRS tax forms and publications on IRS.gov/forms at any time.

In addition to all that…

It’s important to know that you have some other job-related tax breaks which you can take advantage of…

Moving Expenses – if you move to a new home for your employment, either a new job or just being transferred in your current job, you might be able to deduct your moving expenses if:

• the move is closely related to your start of work in the new location
• your new work location is more than 50 miles farther away from your old home than the distance from your old home to the old work location.  In other words, if your old workplace was 7 miles away from your old home, your new workplace must be at least 57 miles away from your old home.
• you must continue to work in the new location for at least 39 weeks during the 12 months after the move.  If you’re self-employed you must also work in the new job for 78 weeks during the 24 months following the move. (There are exceptions for disability, layoff, transfers, and other situations.)

You may include the cost of transportation and storage of your household goods for up to 30 days, as well as travel and lodging from the old home to the new home (only one trip per person).

Unreimbursed Employee Business Expenses – certain expenses related to your job that are not reimbursed by your employer can be deducted.  Some examples are:

• Dues to professional associations and chambers of commerce if work related and entertainment is not one of the main purposes of the organization.  Any part of the dues that is related to lobbying or political activities is not deductible.
• Educational expenses related to your work.  These expenses must be required to maintain your current job, serving a business purpose of your employer, and not part of a program that will qualify the taxpayer for a new trade or business.
• Licenses and regulatory fees.
• Malpractice insurance premiums.
• Office-in-home expenses (subject to quite a few qualifications)
• Phone charges for business use (but not the cost of basic service for the first phone in a home)
• Physical exams required by the employer
• Protective clothing and safety equipment required for work, as well as tools and supplies required for your job
• Uniforms required by your employer that are not suitable for ordinary wear
• Union dues and expenses

This is not an exhaustive list – you can find more information by going to the IRS website at www.IRS.gov.

Photo by Richard Croft