Per diem?

**per diem is an amount of money that you dont pay taxes on. for instance if you make $100 you typically pay taxes on all of that $100. But if your per diem is $20, then 100-20=80, youd only pay taxes on $80 which lowers your tax burden...right now per diem for otr truckers is $63 per day.**

So the IRS allows individuals whose work requires them to be away from home to deduct their travel expenses from their taxes...this is per diem. It applies to train operators, airline pilots, airline stewardess, congressmen, business people...and otr truckers...anyone whose job takes them away from home. Now for different jobs the IRS lets you deduct a different amount; for truckers the going rate is $63 dollar per day for each day your away from home.

However, there is a loophole in the law that allows companies to automatically deduct the per diem from your paycheck, in which case you forfeit your own ability to deduct per diem at tax time...because either you deduct per diem yourself, or your company does it for you on your paycheck, you cant do both.

Trucking companies want to deduct your per diem for you versus you doing it yourself because it reduces your taxable income which reduces the amount THEY pay on payroll tax. However, depending on the drivers situation it may be better for them to do deduct per diem themselves especially if they have other large tax write offs like a house, property tax, etc. It just depends on your situation.

Since the new tax bill was made law last year there has been a full course disinformation campaign by trucking companies telling their drivers that they can no longer itemize per diem themselves, only the trucking company can do it for them. This is 100%, pure bonified b.s. Consider...if per diem was now unavailable to people whose jobs keep them away from home, then that would also apply to all pilots, stewardesses, train operators, politicians, business people, etc...and this is simply not the case. Tax code doesnt discriminate against otr drivers versus everyone else.

Drivers can still itemize per diem themselves if they feel it will benefit them more such as if they have other things to itemize that would reduce their tax burden more than company per diem, or they can let their company do it for them. If your does not give you a choice and forces you to let them deduct your per diem, kindly ask them to stop. If they refuse find an attorney and sue for financial damages based on your company denying you the ability to maximize your deductions.

 

Bro...whats up with the disinformation? “The irs used to, but not anymore, allow transportation workers to deduct $50 something dollars daily”...lmao. Anybody (pilots, train operators, business people, congressmen, ship masters...and otr drivers) whose job takes them away from home can itemize per diem themselves...and irs set rate for otr drivers is currently $63, but will likely be going up soon. Gees

 

Per Diem was removed from all those jobs you mentioned too. Only business owners get it (including owner operators.) The standard deduction for company drivers doubled from $6,000 to $12,000 for us single folks and $12,000 to $24,000 for the married suckers. It's not disinformation or that big of a deal. If your company offers per diem on top of the standard deduction you can actually claim more non taxable income if you want.

 

No it did not. The mechanism for reporting it was changed.

 

If they removed the deduction the companies could not offer it.

 

How Per Diem works now

 

to me, whatever the company offers you as a "deal" it is really not, like per diem and attorney service and such. my company wants to reduce my base pay for the per diem and told me it is better which im not sure how lol im getting less paid and even i file maybe just a little less tax but then it will affect my retirement paycheck also. just deny all, get health, dental, and or vision only, you are getting a deal from that

 

My company takes 25% of miles run and pays it in per diem.

 

If your company is charging you to help you with per diem, then you're with the wrong company.

 

My per diem is paid in cheese sandwiches