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Many people have found themselves working from
home during the COVID-19 pandemic. If you’re one
of them, you might wonder, “Can I claim the home
office deduction on my 2020 tax return?”
The short answer is: Only if you’re self-employed.
Employees can no longer claim home office expenses,
and even self-employed taxpayers must follow strict rules to claim a deduction.
Copious write-offs
If you qualify, you can deduct the “direct expenses” of the home office. This
includes the costs of painting or repairing the home office and depreciation
deductions for furniture and fixtures used there. You can also deduct the
“indirect” expenses of maintaining the office. This includes the allocable share of
utility costs, depreciation and insurance for your home, as well as the allocable
share of mortgage interest, real estate taxes and casualty losses.
Alternatively, you can use the simplified method for claiming the deduction —
$5 per square foot for up to 300 square feet. Although you won’t be able to depreciate
the portion of your home that’s used as an office, you can claim mortgage
interest, property taxes and casualty losses as an itemized deduction to the extent
otherwise allowable, without needing to apportion them between personal and
business use of the home.
Deduction tests
You can deduct your expenses if you meet any of these three tests:
1. Principal place of business. You’re entitled to home office deductions if you
use your home office, exclusively and regularly, as your principal place of
business. Your home office is your principal place of business if it satisfies one of
two tests. You satisfy the “management or administrative activities test” if you
use your home office for administrative or management activities of your
business, and you meet certain other requirements. You meet the “relative
importance test” if your home office is the most important place where you
conduct business, compared with all the other locations where you conduct that
business.
2. Meeting place. You’re entitled to home office deductions if you use your home
office, exclusively and regularly, to meet or deal with patients, clients or customers.
The patients, clients or customers must physically come to the office.
3. Separate structure. You’re entitled to home office deductions for a home
office, used exclusively and regularly for business, that’s located in a separate
unattached structure on the same property as your home. For example, this
could be in an unattached garage, artist’s studio or workshop.
You may also be able to deduct the expenses of certain storage space for storing
inventory or product samples. If you’re in the business of selling products at
retail or wholesale, and if your home is your sole fixed business location, you can
deduct home expenses allocable to space that you use to store inventory or
product samples.
Limitations apply
The amount of home office deductions for self-employed taxpayers is subject to
various limitations. Proper planning is key to claiming the maximum deduction
for your home office expenses. Contact us if you’d like to discuss your situation.
510 Hempstead Tpke, Suite 204
West Hempstead, NY 11552
516 489 5600 P • 516 485 4822 F
stuart@sjstax.com • www.sjstax.com
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