Verus Tax Service › Trucking & Delivery
Owner-operator taxes without the guesswork
Owner-operators are among the most over-taxed people I meet, almost always because deductions they were entitled to went unclaimed. The records exist. They are just in a glovebox instead of a system.
What I watch for
Per diem and meals
Drivers subject to hours-of-service rules may deduct meal costs while away from home, and there is a standard daily allowance available rather than tracking every receipt. Drivers who do not know this leave real money behind every year.
The truck itself
A tractor is a large depreciable asset and there are several ways to take it. Which one is right depends on your income this year and what you expect next year. This is a planning decision, not a data entry decision.
Fuel, tolls and maintenance
Routine but substantial. The issue is never whether they are deductible, it is whether you have the records when asked. Multi-state operators also carry fuel tax reporting obligations separate from income tax.
Settlement statements
Your settlements already contain most of what your books need — gross, deductions, advances, escrow. Read correctly they reconcile cleanly. Read carelessly, advances get counted twice and you pay tax on money you never received.
Quarterly estimates
Self-employment tax on top of income tax catches most first-year owner-operators badly. Estimated payments spread it across the year instead of dropping it on you in April.
If you have never deducted per diem, bring three years of returns. There may be amended returns worth filing.
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