Temporary Residence with Temporary Work location

[KC-CPA]

Client lives in city was hired by temp agency to work at location about 100 miles from her permanent residence.

She drives to temporary residence for the week (provided by temp hiring agency) 33 miles from her home, she then drives on a daily basis to temporary work location 70 miles from her temporary residence. The temp agency gives her a per diem for her living costs (apartment, food) but not mileage to and from temporary residence to temporary job site. She does not have any other job, this is her only job.

Can she deduct any of the mileage from temp residence to temporary work location. The job lasted 6 months.

[Roland Slugg]

Can she deduct any of the mileage from temp residence to temporary work location. The job lasted 6 months.

No. A person's "tax home" is the city/area where he works, not where he actually resides. The key fact in your post was this:

She does not have any other job, this is her only job.

Since she has no "regular" place of employment, her "100-miles-away" job IS her tax home, and her 70-mile, one-way, daily commute is not deductible.

You may wish to consult IRS Pub 463 ... pages 3 and 4 in particular.

Commentary: Those mileage/distance figures in your post are sure weird. If I was hired to work at a location 100 miles from my home, I don't think I'd be too impressed if the company offered me a temporary place to live that's still 70 miles from the job site. Circumstances and people's needs vary, though, so maybe the whole package was attractive anyway.

[KC-CPA]

I thought the same thing, if the job is 100 miles away, why would the company place you 70 miles away from the location. The temp location is a power plant in the middle of nowhere so I am thinking it is the only nice hotel close to the site.

My thought was since it was temporary it doesn't technically become her tax home since it was 1 year or less.