Tax Home vs. Residence Home

[FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]Question Posed[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]

The question posed is: [/FONT]

[FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]What is the tax home for an over the road truck driver based out of a home terminal? [/FONT]​

[FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]Based out of a home terminal [/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]means that the driver regularly gets his load assignments from, and reports to dispatchers at, that terminal. He may also report his hours of service logs there.

One variable raised would be how often the driver shows up at that home terminal, ranging from as often as several times a week to as seldom as only a few times per year. Another variable is that he could either be a company driver or an owner operator contracted primarily to that one company.[/FONT]

[FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]Case Law[/FONT]
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This issue has been well settled since 1954. Revenue Ruling 54-497 (1954-2 C.B. 75, 77) concluded that railroad employees' [/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]"[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]post of duty[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]"[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] is not aboard the train, but at the terminal.[/FONT]
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The 9[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]th[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] circuit Court, in [/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]Folkman v. U.S.,[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] 615 F.2d 493 (1980), in a case about the tax homes for airline pilots, concluded "that each taxpayer's tax home was his airline duty base."[/FONT]
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Just last year, the 7[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]th[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] Circuit, in [/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]Wilbert v. Commissioner,[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] 553 F.3d 544, quoting [/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]Andrews v. Commissioner,[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] 931 F.2d 132 (1stCir. 1991), stated:[/FONT]

[FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]There is no case law to support the idea that the tax home for a truck driver with a "home terminal" would be at his residence.[/FONT]

[FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]Analysis[/FONT]

[FONT=verdana, sans-serif]There is a significant pay differential between airline pilots and truck drivers. Also, train workers and and pilots usually get paid based upon time, whereas over the road truck drivers are mostly paid by the mile. There are some other differences in the occupations as well. Nonetheless, none of these differences in the occupations would have any bearing on the tax home issue.[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]
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[FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]Just as railroad employees' "post of duty" is not aboard the train, the "post of duty" for a truck driver with a home terminal is not in the truck.[/FONT]
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Conclusion[/FONT]
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The tax home for a truck driver with a [/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]"[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]home terminal[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]"[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] would be his [/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]"[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]post of duty[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]"[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] ' his home terminal.[/FONT]
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Effects of Variables Posed[/FONT]
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Generally, it would make no difference how often the driver were to show up at his home terminal. His reporting to that terminal makes it his [/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]post of duty[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] and, therefore, his tax home.[/FONT]
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It makes no difference whether the driver is an employee or an independent contractor. In either case, the home terminal is his [/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif]main place of business[/FONT][FONT=DejaVu Sans, sans-serif] and, therefore, his tax home.[/FONT]
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If You Get Audited[/FONT]
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The authority cited above can be given to the IRS if you are examined (audited). Most IRS examiners (auditors) are not tax attorneys who research tax law. However, they do know how to check with legal experts within the IRS to confirm what the law is, if you point it out to them. You can even give them a link to this post.

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I sure as heck hope that my "tax home" of Wisconsin doesn't want any money from me, as I pay all my state and local taxes where my mortgaged home is, Pennsylvania!

 

I was considering the "Truckers Home Base" thing for a minute and I ran the idea by my accountant who is a practicing tax attorney, He made some inquiries and has suggested that it's a very bad idea and that I should look into something a little more "realistic".

He looked at the website and just laughed and said, "Great way to set yourself up for problems with the IRS!"

I spoke on the phone with this guy Jerry that is setting up this "Truckers Home Base" and wasn't impressed at all with the whole operation.
It smells like a scam to me!


I like Tennessee and I'm gonna relocate there, But I'm gonna stay FAR AWAY from this deal!

 

As a computer consultant I often found myself working at locations away from my residence.

My CPA daughter-in-law and friend who is a tax lawyer told me the same thing.

I can not claim expenses related to travel to an from my primary work location no matter where I personally lived; however, if my primary work location required me to work say 5 miles down the road I could claim expenses as if I had traveled from my primary work location to that location down the road and back. In the same regard you cannot claim expenses from your residence to a place 5 miles from your work location. I could only claim expenses on that five miles and back to my work location.Which also doesn't meet the per diem criteria.

IRS doesn't care where you reside in relation to where you "work" unless you try to claim expense traveling to and from "work" from your "residence"

For the record the IRS tax codes are a whole lot thicker than the FMCSA codes and rules and a 1000 times more confusing..

 

ok im sooooooooooo confused so how does it work ...

my hubby works for s.t and we live in san antonio tx but the company is based out of dallas so since our state is the same as our company and home state than how do we do the pier diem tax thingy