Filing My Own Taxes As A Company Driver
Topic 17939 | Page 5
This is just a thank-you and a plug for diving into the archives of this great forum via the tags. As a "prospective" gathering information to make informed decisions, it's very helpful to have detailed answers like that below (above in full) from Rick about how trucking might affect my taxes and therefore finances. This lets me see what might be possible financially, tells me that I need to maintain a "home" to claim the per-diem deduction (and not go full vagabond, haha), etc. All helpful grist for the planning mill!
Matt
Yes...but you still claim it on your taxes even if the company takes it out. IRS could allow more but still is listed on tax return regardless.
What folks have a difficult time understanding is that there are TWO ISSUES INVOLVED in the "Per Diem Pay Equation".
#1 - Per Diem PAY. This is where a company pays a PORTION OF YOUR CPM PAY as Per Diem. They don't pay MORE than your CPM, and in fact, many companies keep a processing/admin "fee" of .5-1.5 CPM. Which is actually STEALING in my book, since all payroll software calculates this automatically - keeping ANY of your pay for simply checking a box in your payroll profile is STEALING. Especially since THE COMPANY SAVES MONEY by paying you a portion of pay in the form of Per Diem, because they do not pay MATCHING TAX $$ for SS/Medicare for that portion of your check
Per Diem PAY is not FREE MONEY. It is not $$ IN ADDITION TO whatever your CPM rate is. It is UNTAXED PAY. You STILL HAVE TO PAY TAXES ON IT - unless you DEDUCT IT LATER ON YOUR TAX RETURN.
Matt, I agree; I'd used the wealth of information on this forum, LONG BEFORE I signed up for 'me.' I refer this place to EVERYONE, also!
Glad, as a 'part' of TT.. this has helped you..... Rick indeed...the 'answer man!!!' Miss you, Rick S. !!
~ Anne ~
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.CPM:
Cents Per Mile
Drivers are often paid by the mile and it's given in cents per mile, or cpm.
Per Diem:
Getting paid per diem means getting a portion of your salary paid to you without taxes taken out. It's technically classified as a meal and expense reimbursement.
Truck drivers and others who travel for a living get large tax deductions for meal expenses. The Government set up per diem pay as a way to reimburse some of the taxes you pay with each paycheck instead of making you wait until tax filing season.
Getting per diem pay means a driver will get a larger paycheck each week but a smaller tax return at tax time.
We have a ton of information on our wiki page on per diem pay
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Per Diem Pay Truck Drivers Tax Questions Understanding The Laws
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This is just a thank-you and a plug for diving into the archives of this great forum via the tags. As a "prospective" gathering information to make informed decisions, it's very helpful to have detailed answers like that below (above in full) from Rick about how trucking might affect my taxes and therefore finances. This lets me see what might be possible financially, tells me that I need to maintain a "home" to claim the per-diem deduction (and not go full vagabond, haha), etc. All helpful grist for the planning mill!
Matt
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.CPM:
Cents Per Mile
Drivers are often paid by the mile and it's given in cents per mile, or cpm.
Per Diem:
Getting paid per diem means getting a portion of your salary paid to you without taxes taken out. It's technically classified as a meal and expense reimbursement.
Truck drivers and others who travel for a living get large tax deductions for meal expenses. The Government set up per diem pay as a way to reimburse some of the taxes you pay with each paycheck instead of making you wait until tax filing season.
Getting per diem pay means a driver will get a larger paycheck each week but a smaller tax return at tax time.
We have a ton of information on our wiki page on per diem pay