How do I categorize a business communication expense?

GHebert

How do I categorize a business communication expense such as a cell phone or internet charge so that it goes to the Business Communication line on my Schedule C? I cannot find Communcation under Business Expense. I cannot find a Tax Reporting Category or Sub-Category for Schedule C: Communications so that I can make a Category. Thanks.

Tom Young

Looking at Schedule C at the IRS's site, I don't see a line called "Communications."  I'd guess you'd probably put that into "Office Expenses", line 18.

GHebert

It is called "Communication in Business Income and Expense in TurboTax. The entry goes to the Sch. C Worksheet under Communications. Here are images.

Tom Young

As far as what Category you choose to call it in Quicken, "Communications" is as good as any.  The Category name doesn't flow into the tax return.  Where it ends up on Schedule C of course depends on what Schedule C item you associate it with and, honestly, there's no hard and fast rule that I'm aware of that specifies EXACTLY where each type of business expense goes on Schedule C.   The most important thing is that it's included in the income tax return and your taxable income or loss is correctly stated.

That said, since you're using TurboTax why don't you see where TurboTax will include those costs and then mimic that in Quicken?  If you're using a desktop version you can go into Forms View and trace exactly where that cost ends up.  If you're using the online version you can't see that until you've paid for your income tax return so, for the moment, you could just leave that assigned to any tax line, then come back and change it once you can see where TurboTax puts it.  You could even just ask over in the TurboTax forum where that expense will end up.  I'm sure some user over there could answer that.

volvogirl

For Turbo Tax 

On Schedule C Communications goes on line 25 with Utilities

Communication and Utilities go to schedule C line 25 even though they are split out separately in the interview steps.   I enter $100 under Communications and $200 under Utilities and $300 showed up on Schedule C line 25 Utilities.

GHebert

Thanks to both of you. Yes, I put the internet costs to Utilities in Quicken and then took them from Utilities to Communications in TurboTax. Utilities in TurboTax are only for utilities in a standalone building, not a home office. Silly me, I thought since Quicken and TurboTax are from the same company and moving data from Quicken to TurboTax is a major selling point for both products, I thought the output of one would match up with the input of the other. Like I said. Silly me.

Greg_the_Geek

Quicken and TurboTax are no longer from the same company. Intuit sold off Quicken about six years ago.

GHebert

Ah! So, my main reason for using Quicken is gone. Thanks.

Tom Young

Quicken can generate a tax report that you can import into TurboTax, as can many other personal financial accounting programs.  But it's always been the case that YOU have to designate where data in your Quicken file is directed to in the income tax return.  Neither Quicken nor TurboTax are mind readers and couldn't possibly know where a Category you've name "XXXXXXX" needs to settle out in the income tax return.  In that respect I don't think the separation of the two companies has changed anything.

GHebert

Tom, it’s not about mind reading. The bottom line is, there is no place in Quicken to put Budiness Communication Costs that map sensibly into TurboTax. We have to jury rig it manually. As a programmer, I see that as sloppy.

Greg_the_Geek

Seems to me that Quicken does have a category for Communications.

GHebert

Thanks. Yes it does, under Business Utilities, which maps to Business Utilities in TurboTax, which can only be used “if it’s a standalone building. ”I wonder if that phrase in TurboTax is wrong. If Utilities and Communications all map to line 21 on the tax form, then it makes no difference and I should ignore that Instruction in TurboTax.

volvogirl

In TurboTax on the enter Utility Expenses screen click on See More Examples.  It says....Communications expenses you can deduct if you do not have a business office or properties.

GHebert

Thanks.

Tom Young

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