Tax Saving Measures For Business Whether you're running your own business or simply in charge of the finances at someone else's company, you can do many things to reduce the tax load. In fact, it's often easier to get tax breaks as a business because you are contributing to the economy's stability and encouraging employees to pay taxes as well. Business expenses If you are self-employed, you will be directed to another form (Schedule C) to fill out and provide your total expenses on that form. This will help to reduce your overall income as it will be taken away from the gross income total. Some legitimate business expenses include:  Office supplies  Computer equipment  Internet access  Phones  Cell phones  Phone bills  Research tools  Software  Upgrades  Automobiles that are only used for work purposes  Repairs on your equipment  Training and development  Subscriptions  Fees But there are also a lot of business expenses that you can also deduct, though you might need to list them on different areas on your Schedule C form. Medical costs If you are self-employed or running a small business and paying for your own health insurance premiums, these are considered to be tax deductible. In an effort to help small businesses stay in business, the IRS allows for this deduction. Self employment savings plans As a small business or a self-employed person, you don't necessarily have the chance to contribute to a 401K in order to get a matching contribution from your employer. In order to make up for that, the IRS allows self-employed people to contribute to self-employed retirement plans without paying any taxes and giving businesses the ability to deduct that from the gross income. This encourages saving, plus it allows self-employed workers the chance to save for retirement. Office space Even if you work out of your home, you can still deduct costs associated with your office space. The only concern is that the space is used ONLY for business related tasks. That is, you can't work from an office that also doubles as a bedroom and count that portion of your home as office costs. Utilities Again, if you use certain amounts of utilities ONLY for your business, these can also be deducted from your taxes. This includes water, lights, and gas. Hire independent contractors Instead of hiring employees to work for you, be sure to hire independent contractors. This way, you don't have to give them any tax information at the end of the year, plus you don't have to withhold taxes for them. Be sure that they know their status, however, when they file their own taxes. Hire family members When you hire a spouse or a family member, you don't have to withhold any federal taxes for them and you also don't have to pay for any unemployment taxes. Travel If you are traveling for business, you can not only deduct the costs of the airplane tickets and the hotel, but if you drive, you can also deduct the mileage to and from your place of work. Entertainment If you needed to go to a conference that was clearly related to your work, then this is also deductible. Advertising You can deduct the costs of business cards, flyers, etc. from your taxes. Professional and legal fees Should you need any professional services for your business; these costs can also be deducted from your taxes. Depreciation costs If you have a computer for five years, you can deduct a certain percentage of the original cost each year after you buy it. The only trick with business deductions is that you don't want to deduct too much as it might look to the IRS as though you are simply trying to give 'excuses' for buying these pieces of equipment and that your business may not really need it. In fact, business deductions are a main source of many tax audits. If you're not sure whether or not you can deduct something, it's generally best to not only ask a tax preparer before you do, but also be sure that you can document that it was for business purposes.

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