Year End Tax Tips for Wedding and Event Planners

It’s that time of the year again where you find yourself scrambling to find all those receipts and bits of paperwork that you knew you’d need when filing your taxes. We hope you kept everything together, because we know every penny counts when you’re trying to save on taxes. There’s good news: if you’re a wedding planner, your chances of racking up deductions are high.

We’ve put together a list of tips of the trade in year-end tax filing that’ll keep your wallet from thinning.

Working from home. We know there’s probably a majority of wedding planners out there that do their business from home, and that’s good news if you do. Working from home means you could be eligible for a home office deduction. 

Learning more about your business. If you took educational courses in order to improve your skills as a business owner, you can deduct the costs as a business expense.

Fete your business customers. Did you entertain a client preceding or following a “substantial business discussion”? If so, this means that 50% of the entertainment and meal expenses are deductible. The entertainment can take place the day before or after for an out-of-town customer. What’s more, spouses or significant others can tag along when the situation calls for it.

Stock up on depreciable equipment. Under current law, the maximum Section 179 deduction for business equipment is limited to only $25,000, while 50% bonus depreciation generally isn’t allowed anymore this year. Nevertheless, don’t hesitate to buy needed equipment if the price is right. At tax return time, you can maximize deductions, including any retroactive extensions of favorable provisions ultimately approved by Congress.

Add vacation time to business trips. Generally speaking, you can deduct travel expenses – including airfare, lodging, ground transportation and 50% of meal costs – if the primary purpose of the trip is business-related. As long as you spend more days on business than pleasure, you should be in the clear. However, note that expenses that are strictly personal, such as a sightseeing jaunt, are nondeductible.

Overhead used. If you’re just starting out in the wedding planning business, your cost of overhead may be low. If you’ve been in the bizz for a while now, it’s probably substantially higher. Either way, you can deduct the cost of items used to manage your business such as laptops, iPads, printer, cell phone, and office supplies.

Marketing your business. We know that marketing and advertising your amazing wedding planning skills can sometimes be costly — now you can get more bang for your buck. If you dished out cash for your business’s website, online and print advertising, business cards, and other marketing expenses, you can add this to your long list of deductions.

Celebrate with your staff. If you happen to have a staff working for you, sometimes a little celebration may be in order for the success of your wedding planning business. Normally, deductions for business entertainment are limited to 50% of the cost. However, under a special tax law exception, you can write off 100% of a company party, like a July 4th or Labor Day picnic or barbecue, as long as the entire workforce is invited.

Deadline to file taxes for Business is March 16th and Personal returns is April 15th for this year. If you are not ready to file your return, you can file an extension. E-filing an extension is the way to go and you can use an IRS authorized E-file service provider like ExpressExtension and get an additional 5 to 6 months to prepare and file your return. Learn more at IRS or Express Extension. If you ever have any questions regarding your taxes or deductions, please contact a tax professional.