How to Do a Per Diem on a Truck Driver's Taxes
A truck driver spends most of his workdays out on the open road. He eats at diners and rest stops and sleeps in motels. For many truckers, travel expenses aren't reimbursed by their employer. If you are a truck driver with unreimbursed expenses you can reduce the amount of your taxable income by deducting these costs. One way of doing this is by using the standard "per diem" rate to calculate your deductions.
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Instructions
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Record the locations where you incurred travel expenses throughout the year on a sheet of paper. Write down how many days and nights you spent at each location. Also include whether you slept in a motel, ate meals or both.
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Find the per diem rates for each location. Per diem rates can be found on the U.S. General Services Administration website (see Resources) or in Internal Revenue Service Publication 1542. They are set yearly by the GSA so it is very important that you use current information for the tax year for which you are filing.
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Multiply the per diem rate for each category -- meals and lodging -- for each location by the number of days and nights you were there. Keep the amounts for lodging and meals separate. Do this until you have per diem amounts for each location.
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Add the amounts of all your lodging expenses. Enter the total on line 24a of Schedule C: Profit or Loss From Business. Add the amounts for your meal expenses and enter that total on line 24b.
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