Tax deductible Expense Query for Self Employed Musician

kkmusic

I am a self employed musician who travels (in Ireland) every weekend to perform at gigs.

I understand that my accommodation expenses are tax deductible but I am unsure about food and drink.

On the revenue website it states that expenses which can't be claimed are: "Any private or domestic expenditure e.g. your own wages, food, clothing (except protective clothing), income tax etc"

However in another section it states:

Costs of meals may be incurred wholly and exclusively for business purposes where a business by its nature involves travelling (for example, in the case of self-employed long distance lorry drivers) or where occasional business journeys outside the normal pattern are made. A reasonable level of expenses incurred in these circumstances may be deducted from business profits.

As I am a self employed long distance musician would this also apply to me?

Could someone please clarify if my food expenses are tax deductible as most of the gigs I do are hours from my home.

I would greatly appreciate a clear answer on this as I am getting conflicting advice on it from different musicians and even accountants!

2ndcoming

You can claim for accommodation & subsistence (ie food) costs incurred when you're away on business (ie gigging) but you would need to keep all your receipts in case of an audit. If you're playing in a hotel and they put you up that's no expense, if you get your dinner and try to claim for 14 pints of stout as well, that's obviously a no-no too.

If you stick to the Civil Service Subsistence rates as a guide you won't go far wrong, just make sure you keep those receipts.

kkmusic

Thanks for clearing that up. The revenue would not reply to me without a PPS number for some reason.

2ndcoming

They don't answer general queries. Why not just give it to them? They don't bite.

kkmusic

Why don't they answer general enquiries? It's seems like such a waste of time if they have to answer the same question hundreds of times for people who are in the same situation.

I"m not comfortable sending my pps number via unsecured email and I would like the reply in writing rather than over the phone.

relax carry on

kkmusic wrote: »

Why don't they answer general enquiries? It's seems like such a waste of time if they have to answer the same question hundreds of times for people who are in the same situation.

I"m not comfortable sending my pps number via unsecured email and I would like the reply in writing rather than over the phone.

There is a secure service that Revenue are trying to get everyone to sign up to. Most of the general email addresses will be removed over time.

http://www.revenue.ie/en/online/myenquiries.html

kkmusic

Thanks. I'll try that.

2ndcoming

kkmusic wrote: »

Why don't they answer general enquiries? It's seems like such a waste of time if they have to answer the same question hundreds of times for people who are in the same situation.

I"m not comfortable sending my pps number via unsecured email and I would like the reply in writing rather than over the phone.

First of all you wouldn't ring up the bank or an accountant and expect them to give you business advice anonymously for free over the phone, and also there are few general answers. What applies to one person may not apply to another and more importantly it stops people having something majorly wrong with their file for 10 years because they never had anyone check it. It also cuts out crank calls. There are various reasons.

With the reply in writing they have 3 million plus "customers" and maybe 1000 customer service staff. They take about 10,000 phone calls a day. It's not feasible. TBH I'd put more faith in a direct instruction over the phone than what some random stranger told you on an internet forum.

kkmusic

Firstly I'm not looking for 'business advice' for free or anonymously. It's a general enquiry and my name is clearly on the email. Also unlike revenue, banks and accountants are private entities, I can choose whether I engage with them or not!

The Revenue are a public body funded by the tax payer who state one of their primary aims as:

"to maintain public confidence in Revenue through efficient and customer - orientated operation"

With this in mind, I think answering a general enquiry about expenses for a sole trader musician should be straightforward enough.

Quote:"What applies to one person may not apply to another and more importantly it stops people having something majorly wrong with their file for 10 years because they never had anyone check it"..

Are you implying that some sole trader musicians can claim food expenses when staying overnight and others can't? Who decides this?

Quote: "With the reply in writing they have 3 million plus "customers" and maybe 1000 customer service staff. They take about 10,000 phone calls a day. It's not feasible. TBH I'd put more faith in a direct instruction over the phone than what some random stranger told you on an internet forum."

Then why not publish the answer on the website and clear it up once and for all for everyone. They'd have a lot a less phone calls asking the same questions over and over every day, require less staff and it would cut down on many of the urban myths surrounding audits, especially what expenses people can and can't claim for. Also a phone call is a pretty flimsy defence in the event of audit.

2ndcoming

Well, Revenue's chief goal is obviously to get as much money in to the Exchequer as possible. They operate an (often praised) customer friendly model but if you read between the lines the better customer service they provide, the more counter-productive it is to their actual job.

Saving you money on your tax bill is ultimately what tax advisors and accountants are for, not Revenue.