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It's that time of year when the W-2's are beginning to roll in. Many people don't like this time of year, unless a refund is expected. The bigger the refund the better, right! This article was written to help you hopefully increase your tax refund and in some cases take you from owing to getting a refund. Do you like the sound of that? There will be plenty of advice from many different sources about how to handle your taxes at tax-time; some ways may be legitimate and others may not be. Some things may apply to you and others may not so we caution you to consult your tax adviser.

The most important thing here is to save you money and not get yourself in a bind with the IRS. This is why you need receipts for all of your expenses. If you are ever questioned or audited, you will have to furnish proof of your deductions. Here is a little plan that can help with the task of keeping track of receipts. Each year make a file or get a huge envelope and mark it receipts - tax year 1999, 2000, 2001, etc. Each time you have a business expense put all receipts into the envelope at the end of the day. You may even want to have separate envelops for different categories of expenses (e.g. hotels, office supplies, phone, etc.) so you wont have to separate receipts at the end of the year. When it is tax time, total all your expenses up and take them to your tax advisor. If you don't have a receipt, don't claim it.

If you work in the entertainment industry, chances are you have a number of items that you can use as a tax write-off. The more you have to write-off, the better your chances of getting back a refund. Your chances of getting a refund increases if you have enough deductions to make a difference. If you are a freelancer (e.g. self-employed), you can really benefit from deductions. The definition of a freelancer or self-employed person is someone who is not an employee of any particular company but acquires and does work on a job by job basis. When you are self-employed, you have to bear responsibility for things that full-time employees don't have to. Lots of a freelancer’s business expenses such as, marketing, travel, lodging, meals, etc., are tax deductible. Even if you are a full-time employee but do some freelance work on the side, these tax deductions may help you come tax time. Once again, your chances of getting a refund increases only if you have enough deductions to make a difference. Talk to you tax advisor about this.

The rule of thumb is that if you need an item or service for your job, you may be able to use it as a deduction. For instance, if you are an audio engineer, you will need microphones, cords, batteries, etc. You must have these things in order to do your job so they are tax deductible business expenses. If you are a writer, you need a computer to write scripts, buy paper and make copies. Those are business expenses as well. If you are an actor, your headshots are tax deductible. The cost of the photographer, the make-up, the duplication services and the postage are all business expenses and tax deductible. Here is a list of some of the tax deductible items that you may be able to use to get a better refund or lower any additional taxes you may owe:

General

cell phone or pager service mileage and repairs to your car Postage
lodging (hotel) home office meals
office supplies business phone / long distance marketing
dry cleaning business equipment (including software) conferences
union dues office furniture car rental (tolls)
travel (plane, bus, train, etc.) client gifts parking

We hope this is enough to give you the idea. It may be more helpful if we give you a specific occupation and explain in a little more detail how the deductions work. Below you will find some very specific deductions for the acting profession. If this is not your profession, simply apply the ideas to your field.

Acting

As an actor there are many things that you pay for during the year and never realize that these are business expenses. Though you can't take the whole family as a deduction, your ticket to the theater is deductible so long as you are going to see the film or play for research and to stay abreast of what is going on in your field. The parking at the theatre is tax deductible as well.

If you have to purchase clothing specifically for a shoot, it is tax deductible. Your hair styling (male or female), manicures, the gym, make-up, and cable television are also deductible as long as you use it for business purposes.

You can also include headshots, printing of resumes, postage, acting classes, union dues, voice lessons, on camera training, motivational packages, networking functions, a camera or camcorder, a VCR and monitor, film, video tapes, audio cassettes, labels, professional publications, newspaper, etc.

Though this is a pretty extensive list, there are other deductions as well. Think about everything you do that is related to your business, including paying a tax advisor. Get in the habit of keeping track of all your "tax deductible" business expenses and it will eventually become second nature. As you begin to see how they can affect your bottom line, it will get easier and easier to keep those receipts and take those deductions … all the way to the bank.