Bookkeeping in a Cargo Van

[PinballWizard]

Another newbie question here.

As an O/O in a cargo van, what daily / weekly / monthy items do I need to keep track of for tax purposes ?

1) Mileage ? Do I need to just keep the odometer reading at the beginning of the year and end of year and take the mileage allowance ? Or do I need to keep track of mileage on each run ?

2) I understand that taking the mileage allowance is the best for a van. If that is done, then I don't deduct other expenses related to the van ( oil changes / fuel / repairs / etc. ? Is that right ?

3) Per diem.... How do you keep track of this for tax reasons ?

One more thing, does anyone have a good spreadsheet they would like to share that is running a cargo van ?

Thanks again for all your help, once I get the hang of this, maybe I will be helpfull to someone in the future

-Brandon

 

[terryandrene]

I keep a ledger for my van operation and record every expense related to the truck and the business of expediting. We may use actual expenses or the standard mileage allownec; I choose the latter but keep track of the non-deductable items such as fuel, repairs insurance, title, van payments (less loan interest) and other supplies. Tolls and parking are deductable. Keep track of annual start and stop miles. You may want to track miles by week, month or quarter for statistical purposes but not needed for the tax man.

I record the time and date of leaving and returning home. I divide the day into quarters and use the appropriate percentage of days away from home. I also use the standard meal allowance for transportation workers and do not bother to record each meal or save meal receipts.

One thing I do is write my mileage on every receipt for the van. That acts as a seriel number to keep things in order. You may want to make copies of any saved receipts that are thermally produced, because they fade quickly

 

[Moot]

Remember the "owner" half of owner/operator. You are a business owner and qualify for certain business related tax deductions. I would like to add a few items to Terry's list.

Set up a dedicated home office. The square footage as a percent of your homes total square footage can be used as a deduction which includes utility fees. I bought a lap top computer last year to take on the road. Tax deductable business expense. Cell phone. Even coin operated laundry and car washes. Write your own receipt listing name, address, date and amount spent. Showers and motels are also deductable, even if you have a sleeper.

I keep track of things on a monthly basis. I have a preprinted trip sheet for each load and keep track of fuel and mileage on that. All expenses are recorded on the outside of the monthly envelope and all receipts and other related paper goes inside the envelope. At the end of the month I tally it up by category, including D.O.T. days and write that on the outside of the envelope. At the end of the year my accountant sends me a worksheet. I fill that out and let him do the rest.

A great advantage we as owner/operators have is tax deductable expenses. Deduct everything that you are legally entitled to. It's your money, try and keep as much as you can!