Four Tax Write-Offs for Small Businesses

Are you wondering if your write-offs are truly write-offs? Don't learn the hard way from the CRA. Even if you work from home, there are lots of things you can expense.

Even if your desk is just your dining room table, that just might be a write-off!

Here are some common home office expenses:

• Mortgage interest

• Property taxes

• Utilities

• Home insurance

• Repairs and maintenance

• Internet

• Telephone

• Furniture, computers, office equipment, phones, etc.

Remember when we talked about expenses vs. assets? That's where this becomes important. Office expenses are items like pens, printer ink, and paper. Depreciable assets are items like laptops, phones, cameras, and furniture. Each year, you claim a portion of the depreciated asset amount on your taxes.

Auto Expenses

Do you use your car to drive to meetings, client photoshoots, or to pick up supplies? You can write off a portion of your personal vehicle expenses like:

• Gas

• Parking

• Repairs and maintenance

• Vehicle registration fees

• Capital cost allowance (if you own)

• Lease payments (if you lease)

Meals and Entertainment

Do you take clients out for lunch meetings or invite them to sporting events as a means of doing business? These can count as expenses, but are 50% deductible rather than 100%.

Don't forget the most important part: Keep your receipts!

Advertising Costs

Depending on the medium, you can write-off a portion or all of your media advertising costs.

• Online Advertising: Online advertising is 100% deductible. This includes the website’s domain name registration and web hosting costs.

• Television and Radio Advertising: Television and radio advertising is 100% deductible for Canadian stations.

• Magazines and Newspapers: According to FBC, both mediums are fully deductible, but only under some strict conditions. To write-off 100% of the costs, at least 80% of the material in the magazine or newspaper must be journalistic in nature. This means advertising cannot take up a majority of the space. If the journalistic content is less than 80% in nature, only 50% of the costs can be written-off.

Bad Debts

Do you have a delinquent client who hasn't paid in over a year? You may be able to write it off. Have questions about what qualifies? We can help! Connect with us and learn more at info@onyxaccounting.ca.