Simplifying Travel & Entertainment Rules & Recordkeeping

Please see below for additional instructions and information regarding this program.

Webinar Details$219

Webinar Length: 100 Minutes
Guest Speaker: Chuck Borek
Industry: Taxation and Accounting
Credit: CPE 2.0
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This webinar will help you develop an Accountable Plan for reimbursing employees and maintaining adequate accounting records thereby solidify the T&E expense deductions on the company’s annual income tax return.

Our helpful tips will be useful in training not only employees seeking reimbursement, but also the accounts payable staff reviewing the monthly employee expense reports, and tax staff reviewing records prior to preparation of the Federal income tax return.

Agenda:

Deductible and Non-deductible Meals
Developing a Fool Proof Accountable Plan
Records and Documents Needed for Meals Expenses
Records and Documents Needed for Travel Away from Home
Documents Needed When Reimbursing Expenses Using the Per Diem Method
Records and Documents Needed for Use of Employee’s Vehicles
Records and Documents Needed for Company Vehicles
Which Employee Reimbursements are Taxable Wages
Which Contractor Reimbursements go into Form 1099

Introduction
Travel, Meals, and Entertainment 00:01:13
Changes in TCJA 00:02:36
Moving Expense Reimbursements 00:07:12
No More Entertainment Deduction 00:10:28
Business Meals 00:14:25
On-Premises Meals Deduction 0:18:19
Meals 00:24:32
Meals Expense Generally 00:26:35
General Meal Per Diem Allowance 00:28:12
Transportation Workers 00:30:09
The 50% Meals Limit 00:31:54
The 50% Meals Limit Flow Chart 00:34:03
Home Office and Commuting 00:50:19
Summary of Deductibility 00:50:39
Tax Home 00:54:05
Temporary Assignments 00:56:22
Travel Primarily for Business 01:00:47
Business Days 01:03:44
Example: Counting Business Days 01:07:48
Exceptions to Trip Being Primarily for Business 01:11:08
Luxury Water Travel in General 01:15:40
Cruise Ships 01:17:35
Info Attached to Return 01:18:56
Conventions Outside North America Area 01:19:24
North America Area 01:21:54
Other Travel Related Expenses 01:22:39, 01:24:08
Documentation 01:27:03
Burden is Always on Taxpayer 01:27:18
Accountable Plans 01:28:10
Exceptions to Documentation 01:30:45
General Info Required 01:36:44
Hotel Documentation 01:37:07
Restaraunt Documentation 01:37:52
Expense Logs 01:38:24, 01:38:32
W-2 Reporting 01:42:00
W-2 Reporting of Reimbursements 01:42:03
1099 Reporting 01:44:49
Independent Contractor Consequences 01:45:01
The Common-Law IRS Factors 01:45:39
1099-MISC Filing Requirements 01:46:06
Timing 01:46:32
Exceptions 01:46:56
Form 1099-MISC 01:48:33
Attendee Questions 01:49:57
Presentation Closing 01:52:36

Accountable Plan 01:28:32, 01:42:37
Business Necessity 00:23:04
Commissioner v. Kowalski 00:22:27
Expense Reimbursement 00:01:17
Per Diem 00:27:56, 01:43:11
Section 119 00:20:16
Section 162 00:10:48
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act 00:02:40
Tax Home 00:54:05

Accountable Plan: An accountable plan is a plan that follows the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulations for reimbursing workers for business expenses in which reimbursement is not counted as income. ... However, these expenses must be business-related to fall under an accountable plan.

Business Necessity: Business necessity is an employer's defense of an employment-related decision that is based on the requirements of the business and is consistent with other such decisions. To establish business necessity an employer must prove that the practice is job-related and consistent with business necessity. A business necessity is a legitimate business purpose that justifies an employment decision as effective and needed to optimally achieve the organization's goals and ensure that operations run safely and efficiently.

Commissioner v. Kowalski: Commissioner v. Kowalski, 434 U.S. 77 (1977), is a decision of the United States Supreme Court relating to taxation of meals furnished by an employer.[1] In this case, the Court interpreted Internal Revenue Code §119(a)-(b)(4) and (d) and Treas. Reg. §1.119-1.[2][3] Most notably, the Court held that: §119 was intended to exclude meals received "in kind," and so does not exclude cash reimbursements for meals like the one in question.

Expense Reimbursement: Expense reimbursement is a method for paying employees back when they spend their own money on business-related expenses. These expenses generally occur when an employee is traveling for business but can occur in other work-related situations. (www.thebalancecareers.com)

Per Diem: (Latin for "per day" or "for each day") or daily allowance is a specific amount of money an organization gives an individual, often an employee, per day to cover living expenses when traveling for work. - Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org)

Section 119: For the value of meals to be excludable, the employer must provide them on the business premises for his convenience. Lodging is excludable only when a third requirement is met: the employee must be required to accept the lodging as a condition of his employment.

Section 162: Section 162(a) allows a deduction for all the ordinary and necessary expenses paid or incurred during the taxable year in carrying on any trade or business. Section 262, however, provides that no deduction is allowed for personal, living, or family expenses

Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: The Act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to titles II and V of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2018, Pub.L. 115–97, is a congressional revenue act of the United States originally introduced in Congress as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, that amended the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

Tax Home: A tax home is the general locality of an individual's primary place of work. It is the city or general vicinity where his or her primary place of business or employment is located, regardless of the location of the individual's residence.

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