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Daycare and Taxes>Standard Mileage Deduction... Confused
Unregistered 07:50 AM 02-01-2014
I did not keep track of any of my mileage last year (first year in daycare, opened first of the year 2013), but I saved ALL of my receipts from my daycare related purchases(food, supplies, all other expenses related to day care). Can I use the receipts to now make a log of my mileage, based on the distance between my home and the location on the receipts?? They are all from local places in my own town that I shopped at regularly throughout the year.

If I can, do I record round-trip miles or just one way?

I used my vehicle and my husband's for these trips, but I have no idea what our starting odometer reading was for either vehicle. Do I need to know this if I am using standard mileage? I am not claiming any other expenses (tolls, parking fees, etc), just mileage.

I purchased Tom's book and have read the sections on vehicles carefully but I am still not sure about this part. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!!!
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TomCopeland 02:35 PM 02-01-2014
Originally Posted by Unregistered:
I did not keep track of any of my mileage last year (first year in daycare, opened first of the year 2013), but I saved ALL of my receipts from my daycare related purchases(food, supplies, all other expenses related to day care). Can I use the receipts to now make a log of my mileage, based on the distance between my home and the location on the receipts?? They are all from local places in my own town that I shopped at regularly throughout the year.

If I can, do I record round-trip miles or just one way?

I used my vehicle and my husband's for these trips, but I have no idea what our starting odometer reading was for either vehicle. Do I need to know this if I am using standard mileage? I am not claiming any other expenses (tolls, parking fees, etc), just mileage.

I purchased Tom's book and have read the sections on vehicles carefully but I am still not sure about this part. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!!!
Yes, you can now reconstruct your mileage based on all of your records (receipts, cancelled checks, credit/debit card statements, calendar notations, etc). You need to know how far each trip was, but you don't need odometer readings.

You can claim as business trips those trips in which the primary purpose of the trip was business. If it's primarily for business, count the round trip miles. Never claim half a trip (if you did, that means you never came home!). It's either all the miles or none for each trip.

You would only need to know the starting and ending odometer readings when using the standard mileage rate to determine how much of your car loan interest you can deduct. If you don't have car loan interest, forget about this. If you do, do you best to estimate the total miles driven.

Don’t miss my February 4th webinar “Tax Changes for 2013: How to Avoid Mistakes When Filling Out Your 2013 Tax Forms.” It starts at 9pm Eastern Time and is sponsored by Daycare.com. Register here:http://events.r20.constantcontact.co...&llr=yatrx4cab
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Unregistered 02:52 PM 02-01-2014
Thank you so much Tom, this completely clears everything up. This was the last thing I needed to finish before filing, so I cannot thank you enough for responding today.

Also, thank you for all of the incredibly helpful information in your book! I have ALWAYS done my own taxes but was completely in the dark with daycare taxes. Your book is a lifesaver!
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