Tax write off ?

If your attending college can you go out and buy a laptop then write it off on your income taxes?

 

Yes if it was required by one of your classes

as long as you had to have it for the class you were taking

 

And as long as you're not attending one of those colleges where they provide them for your use.

Double-check with an accountant to be sure, though...the rules are always changing.

 

hrm well lets say they didnt require one yet i play it off like i needed one to learn at home, since they have them at the school.

 

Nope, you're out of luck.

Of course, you can write just about anything off...until you get audited. Then you're screwed for false information, misreprentation, tax evasion, and possibly even fraud, with compounded interest.

 

Like sgt Tibbs said

check with the school first

but then again

when you do your taxes they will give you 2 types of school breaks

one of them if I remember correctly you can list your expenses

you know the expenses for books and equipment

but it does have a limit

technically you might be able to get away with the laptop being a required expense

Good luck

 

Three things could happen:-

1) Tax deduction allowed in full (very unlikely!)
2) Tax Deduction rejected outright (Likely)
3) tax deduction partially allowed as apercentage (Usually 25% or 50%) (not very likely)



Carry on.....

 

We write off all of our computers and equipment as business expenses.

Not sure how it works for schools and such.

 

I write mine off for a business expense, too. Internet fees are a total deduction, equipment is partial. School is a completely different animal, though.

 

I write all the compter costs off on tax - but then, I run a computer business for a living.

 

Thanks Everyone for the responses, I suppose ill ask the school and/or a tax guy at a nearby office. I dont want to listen to my pops and just go buy one just yet untill I get the ok by someone who knows for sure.

 

10 to 1 says your tax guy says you can't do it unless you itemize your deductions.

 

It didn't occur to me that we weren't talking about itemizing deductions. Can you take deductions without itemizing? I honestly don't know, I went from using the EZ form to filing a novel all in one year and haven't looked back. Which is why I pay an accountant to do it for me.

 

I'll ask my wife to read this and give her answer on this...she's the CPA, not me..

 

W'eve always had to itemize to take deductions. Same thing, from a couple forms to a freaking novel.

 

IF you look at the revised Federal Tax codes,, Section 7, subsection J, page 632, paragraph 9, subset 3.22, It clearly states that the allowability of a deduction for a computer for home learning while attending an accredited university/college,, is totally subject to the whims of the IRS minion who audits your return.

There are multiple possible outcomes to claiming this deduction.

1. Allowed in full
2. Allowed partially
3. Not allowed, with a penalty of 111,000 dollars
4. Meet Bubba. He will be your cellmate for the next 5 years





Hope this helps .

 

wife says in NY the hope and lifetime learning credits tax deduction for education only applies to tuition fees. So it sounds like it's truly a state dependent thing.

 

I got slapped.. mama says the Hope and lifetime is federal. She doesn't know about the state laws for FLA so best to look into it.