Another tax season has come and gone, but here’s two questions to consider for the future.
Are you taking advantage of every tax deduction you are entitled to claim for your business? And here’s the second one: What’s the main obstacle that prevents you from sheltering more of your money from business taxes?
The complexity of the tax code is certainly a factor, but don’t blame it all on bureaucrats. Often it comes down to a bookkeeping routine. If you don’t have a reliable, consistent method of tracking expenses and income, you’re undoubtedly missing opportunities to shelter more of your money.
Here’s two suggestions for making sure you don’t overpay your tax bill.
First, devise a way to track those under $20 outlays. Truth be told, many business owners throw away those receipts. Maybe it’s not intentional, but those deductions add up. Did you know those 50 cups of Joe over the course of a year shared during a business networking meeting are usually tax deductible? And don’t forget to keep track of parking fees. Municipalities around the country are installing more parking meters to offset the costs of running City Hall.
Here’s the second tip: Devise a reliable routine for storing receipts for deductible business expense. Don’t use the shoebox! Those are for shoes, not important documents. And next time you’re ready to throw that middling receipt in the trash, picture the pocket change you just tossed away.
There’s lots of ways to loose money, but no one should toss out tax-deductible receipts. Keep your pocket change. It adds up!