OTR Truckers and IRS Tax Deductions

Organizing Your OTR Driver Expenses for the IRS

Not filing your income tax return can get you into serious trouble with the IRS.  If you don't file for one year the odds are you are not going to file for the next year, the next year, and so on.  Suddenly, you haven't filed for several years, and now you are afraid to contact the IRS and resolve this.



Attn:  IRS...

 The good news is that typically, the IRS is more interested in getting delinquent taxpayers back into the habit of filing their returns and getting past due returns filed.  Non-filers usually do not have to worry about going to jail.  But why take the chance?

It is best to file the omitted returns before the IRS contacts you.  Even if you cannot pay back taxes, filing is much better than not filing.  Once you have filed your past due returns, the IRS will gladly set up payment options for you.  You just might find that they are surprisingly lenient; they'd rather you be proactive and contact them then the other way around.

You may be successful in getting penalties waived if you have valid reasons for not filing your returns.  However, the interest cannot be waived and you will have to pay that.

Are Your Receipts Everywhere But Where They Should Be?

When you are on the road for long periods of time, the lifestyle is not conducive to keeping receipts and records organized for necessary (and unnecessary items), like gas, snacks, bottled water, tolls, maybe a mini refrigerator or small cooker.  But there is a solution and we hope you will take advantage of it.  An OTR trucker worksheet is available at our website designed specifically as a way for OTR truckers to log and record expenses and have a record at the end of the year of expenses, per category.

The Long Haul Trucker/OTR Driver Deductible Expenses Worksheet as well as a description of the deductions is available at our website at http://www.bigtrucksbigbucks.com/Reports/OTRDeductibleExpensesWS.pdf and http://www.bigtrucksbigbucks.com/Reports/OTRDeductionsExplan.pdf .

You may find there are deductions you hadn't even considered.  For instance, you are on the road and ask your wife (girlfriend, companion or significant other) to go to Walmart and get you some supplies.  Did you know that the round trip mileage for that expense is also deductible?  At $.51 per mile (and there's talk of an increase) that deduction alone can add up over the course of a year.  Other deductions you may not have considered include laundry expenses, locker fees, home office expenses, stationary, and many more.

IRS Refund for OTR Truckers

Years ago my wife worked for H & R Block and prepared a number of tax returns for OTR drivers.  In almost every instance, they were amazed at the deductions they were allowed and very happy when they learned they were getting a big refund, bigger than previous years. 

You may want to change or customize the categories on the OTR Driver Worksheet to suit your own needs.  We recommend you keep all of your receipts, record the appropriate information on your Worksheet, and include your Worksheet with all your documents that you give to your Tax Preparer.

Using A Tax Preparer.....



The IRS and You....



In our opinion, it's always a good idea for long haul drivers to use the services of a Tax Preparer.  First of all, the fees you pay are deductible on your next year's return. 

And secondly, it's a small cost when it's likely you will discover some deductions you had overlooked or hadn't considered.  A good Tax Preparer will ask you questions and will look for every possible allowable deduction.  And the next year all those deductions and your complete tax return will be on record as a reference.

And thirdly, simplify your life, turn to the experts.  You have better things to do with your time than to try and figure out the IRS Tax Codes.  Good luck, good deducting and spend your refund wisely !

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