USMCFDX

I read it after I posted, thanks. I am quite sure that I did mine correctly and why would pay $50 to have someone do it. Even if they came up with $1000 more, I do not think they would, that would not decrease my tax paid to the IRS enough to recover the $50 I paid them to do the calculations.

Flaps50

Isn't an extra $1000 in deductions worth about an additional 300 dollars on your return at our tax rates?

Just wondering if I'm out to lunch on that.

Thanks

onetime

For those of us less skilled in the tax area, what specifically do you do with the per diem recap page. Are you simply subtracting the per diem paid from the allowance for each trip?

USMCFDX

Tax advice on the internet : you get what you pay for, but here it goes.

Look at your Xcludbl Alownce (what the IRS says you rate) column and compare it to the Total PerDiem Paid column (what FedEx paid you).

Figure out the difference, the amount you were underpaid in the eyes of the IRS. Internationally, ie CDG or KIX, it will be a big diifference. If you are on international perdiem and start in IND you will have already have been taxed on the overage. You will have a smaller difference in a place like LAX or OAK while on domestic perdiem.

Add up all the amounts you were underpaid. This is the figure you get to use in your deductions. I think you end up being to deduct 75% of this amount. I can't remember exactly and have not progressed that far on my return this year.

Side note, you also get to use 18 hours on the start and end of a travel day. This means that if you perdiem report says 10 hours on day one you get to use 18 hours. You need to multiply 18 times the rate for that city. Then use this for the amount you should have been paid.

Hope that makes sense. Let the tax discussions begin. IRS pub 463 helps.

AerisArmis

Prodiem uses MM and E (I think that's what it's called). As such, if you use them, you can't claim tips, shoe shines, dry cleaning and a bunch of other stuff. Might be the $1000 right their for you F/Os. Needless to say, what a Captain tips, and what he claims are oceans apart. Check with Prodiem for specifics.

⌐ AV8OR WANNABE

Prodiem rocks!

I used them last year for the first time and was very pleased.
One evening I basically used the copy & paste function for the 13 pay periods (ups) onto their online form and the very next morning I had an email from them with all the numbers crunched! Also ended up with a larger deduction than I anticipated.

I'll be using them this year too!

⌐ AV8OR WANNABE

So you actually know the max IRS deduction allowed per city? (not country) ...because that's what prodiem does.

USMCFDX

Our report from FedEx includes the IRS limit for that city for M&I.

⌐ AV8OR WANNABE

I see, makes more sense now. Still, I think the $50 is a good price for the very user friendly service they have...

USMCFDX

Not denying that $50 is a good price. Just saying that with FedEx providing all the information, it is too easy for me to do, and spend my $50 elsewhere.