Hairstylist

[Gretel]

and there is a lot of case law to guide us with respect to that. On the other hand there are fewer cases I know of dealing with shoes and tans.

Are you serious about the suits? My understanding is that no work clothes are deductible, which are suitable for everyday wear and that even a painter or wood floor worker can not deduct jeans worn on the job and ruined after the first use.

[erchess]

Suit would be work clothing

and there is a lot of case law to guide us with respect to that. On the other hand there are fewer cases I know of dealing with shoes and tans.

[Jiggers]

What about the lawyer?

I wonder if he "writes off" his suit, shoes, etc., because "he needs to look good"?

[sea-tax]

I would concur with Jiggers none of it is deductible. The fact is that every job has some sort of non deductible cost associated with choosing that profession, she/he is no more put out than the next.

[Jiggers]

Let the attorney do the return

She is self employed. She has to look good on the job. Remember, the attorney says ok.

Has to look good? We don't? I can't write off my suit, shoes, and weekly visits to the hairstylist.

Zero write off on all items for the hairstylist.

They don't need safety shoes.

[zeros]

Hairstylist-This is what she does

She is self employed. She has to look good on the job. Remember, the attorney says ok.

[BP.]

She said a lawyer told her she could deduct these.

What do you think?

When I get this sort of comment, I just can't help myself from advising that they have the lawyer prepare their return.

But I agree with geekgirldany on deductibility of the items questioned.

[geekgirldany]

I would like to double check the profession also. The title says "Hairstylist". If the person is in that profession then I would say the shoes could possibly be deductible if they are specialty type shoes. Like nurses shoes. Tan... I would say no. Hair styling... no.

The only other professions these may be deductible is in an entertainment profession. Maybe the person is a drag queen

[erchess]

My Two Cents

I would like more detail on what trade or profession the taxpayer is in, whether employed or self employed and about why the individual and the alleged lawyer think that the shoes, tanning, and hairstyling are "ordinary and necessary" for that activity

Re the shoes - I agree that if they are safety shoes and are needed for the job eg in construction or factory work, then they are clearly in. I don't think that especially comfortable shoes that you wear on the job and only there because you are on your feet all day are deductible unless either they are of an appearance that would draw stares off the job site or they have steel toes or some similar safety feature that makes sense in terms of the work being done.

Re the tan - I would probably only allow this on a return I wrote if the employer required tans of the employees or I could be convinced that all the other people who do this kind of work are tanned. Maybe at a beach resort even the indoor workers are required to be tanned. Maybe an outdoor lifeguard finds that a tan is expected or is the only practical alternative to a constant sunburn although when I was a lifeguard in that situation I used the sun's rays to tan.

Re the hairstyle - Like the tan I would need convincing that the individual really does have to have a specific kind of hairdo and even then I would only allow a business deduction for the additional cost of this do over whatever the person had been getting before. For example I cut my own hair and I don't charge myself for the work. I am bald and have a closely trimmed beard. If I took a job where I had to have or seem to have foot long permed purple hair on my scalp and beard I would deduct the entire expense of gaining this appearance as a business expense of some kind. We're not talking about probable scenarios here.

[taxea]

The lawyer is wrong. However, depending on her job if the shoes are safety equipment they might qualify. Items that can be or are also worn in public while not working are not deductible. taxea

[S T]

Employment

And the Taxpayer in question is engaged in what type of employment or profession?

Sandy

[zeros]

Somebody called and was wondering about the deductibility of tans, cost of hairstyling, and special shoes. She said a lawyer told her she could deduct these. I thought the shoes would be, maybe the tanning, but the hairstyling, I didn't think. She said she needs all this to be presentable. Of course, the lawyer did say she could deduct all these. What do you think?