Moving mileage

Let's review the reasons one can claim mileage on a tax return:

1. Moving Expenses -- to be closer to work. Has to be work related and there are a few tests to be met. See Pub 521

If it is work related, and work incidental to being a full-time student might have big trouble passing these tests, the mileage reimbursement is the same rate as medical mileage.

1. Medical -- pretty liberal but must be for legitimate medical reasons.
2. Job related -- highest reimbursement rate but must be job related and no commuting mileage is allowed.
3. Charitable milage - most liberal rules but lowest milaeage rate, because while Congress gave the IRS the right to set mileage for business, moving, and medical, Congress reserves for themslves the right to set charitable mileage.

I do give you both lots of credit for creativity. But no moving costs.

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You report the rental of his room on Schedule E :^)

Although you could also use actual gas and oil expenses instead of mileage rate.

Susan is not moving, therefore she could not write off expenses on her return in any case (you can't deduct moving expenses for family members unless it is due to them moving with you). If Joshua owes no tax, moving expenses wouldn't help him either.

Questions about temporary absence at college for dependents have come up here before. If the situation was such that Joshua did meet the tests for his own moving expense adjustment, it seems to me that fact, coupled with you renting out his (former) room, could lead to him no longer meeting the residence test to be your qualifying child (and therefore almost certainly he would no longer be your dependent).

-Mark Bole

We've talked about deductibility of "contributions" to the beer- judging nonprofit. Is Joshua going to a school in a state where he's legal to drink beer? Perhaps you could say you are sending him there to support the beer judging organizaiton and deduct some of it that way.

That's all I can think of at the moment.

I capitalized that to which I reply, i.e. "YOU COULD SAY".

and just to whom would you say it? Mr auditor if it ever came to that?

No way, Jose. uh.. Stuart.

ChEAr$, Harlan

Or to whomever it may be relevant.

Oh, well, that was all I could think of at the time.

The only other thing I can think of, which I understand may not work these days, is to gift him business equipment and then lease it back.