If you run a small business or your own home business, the office furniture, office supplies & printing services you purchase for business use can reduce your taxable income. In general, if you make a purchase for business use, you can deduct it as a business expense on your taxes. If you're just getting around to doing your taxes, here are some tips on deductions you can take on office supplies, office furniture and services like printing.
Office Furniture
There's more to office furniture than your office chair and desk. Most durable goods that you purchase for use in your home or small business office can be deducted as a business expense on your taxes. Yes, that means you can deduct the cost of your Hon and Lorell vertical lateral file cabinets on your business income taxes. If you're outfitting an office, whether at home or outside the home, you can even deduct fixtures like GOJO automatic santizer dispensers and Dry-Erase porcelain marker boards. In short, if you bought it for office use, it qualifies as a business expense.
You can deduct the entire cost of the furniture in the year that you buy it, or you can "depreciate" the furniture over the course of seven years. If you choose to depreciate the furniture and split the deduction over seven years, you'll have to use the IRS depreciation charts.
If you purchased office furniture for use at home during 2011, you may be able to deduct the expense or part of it even if you don't qualify to take a home office deduction. You can learn more about the rules for deducting office furniture and fixtures in a home setting at the IRS website under Publication 587, which explains the rules for taking a Section 179 deduction.
Office Supplies
If you purchase office supplies, such as printer paper and ink, account books, business cards and other supplies, you can deduct them on your taxes as a business expense. You should be prepared to back up your deductions with receipts and records showing your purchases and your use of the supplies in question in case of audit.
Likewise, if you deduct office furniture on your taxes, you should keep any related receipts and records for at least three years after your purchase so that you can prove the purchase in case of an audit.
Business Services
If you pay for business services, such as printing services for brochures and business cards, you can deduct those services as business expenses on your taxes. Again, keep good records and save your receipts.
Is Claiming Office Furniture and Supplies for a Home Office an Invitation to an Audit?
Many self-employed business people are concerned that claiming deductions for things like office furniture, office supplies and printing services will invite the IRS to take a closer look at your income tax return. Most tax experts disagree. If you operate a business out of your home, they say, you are entitled to take certain legitimate deductions for your expenses. In fact, if you don't claim any expenses, but file as a self-employed contractor, you may be inviting closer scrutiny, they say. So take the business deductions to which you are entitled - and be sure that you can back them up with the appropriate paperwork.
Author Resource:
Chris Robertson is an author of Majon International, one of the world's MOST popular internet marketing companies on the web.
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