Is everyone writing off their iPhones, Software, expenses?

design219

I'm no tax expert, but my accountant has assured me it's no problem to write off not only the phone, but the monthly data package as well!

Just thought I'd mention since tax season is here.

butterbean

Absolutely

Anything you've spent towards making games, anything purchased in 2009, your phone bill, the cost of your phone, supplies, computer, program, dev account, graphics, sounds, anything spent towards creating games you should be able to write off

JGary321

Can u do this even operating under a non business account?

adado

You should be able to. I went from a legally filed/created two person LLC to the IRS telling me that since my partner left, I would need to start filing as a sole proprietorship and report my business income on my personal return. And if I recall, if you are an individual "doing business as" (DBA) some "name", then you just file all your income/expenses for your "named" business along with your personal income tax. I believe most DBA classifications don't even require any sort of filing to establish such. It is how a lot of home daycare's do things. It just adds a little overhead in terms of some additional tax forms (for depreciation and such...even if you section 179 all your current years expenses).

You can even claim a small percentage of your home and utility expenses for the square footage that your desk and/or office occupy. Be aware though that it is easier to get all this done if those items being expensed are all used for strictly business. If you use some for personal use, it may exlude the item or force you to split its cost based on percentage used for business.

That was all U.S. perspective though and it may vary from state to state. I would imagine some of the bigger states are more formal with sole proprietorships filing establishment/registration paperwork to collect more revenue for the state in fees. Tangent: Setting up a business bank account in this midwest state required no special evidence other than me saying my name and DBA as such-and-such.

As always, consult a tax specialist/accountant. I was able to have a free consult with one just to flesh out what I had already researched when filing my LLC's first year's taxes. It was free and he even said I had a job if I ever needed one since I was up on most of it (at the time). :-)

synthesis

I write off my internet feed, my cpus, my coffee, etc.
Anything used or consumed while making apps.

if you do not have a business tax ID, your SSN is your business tax id.

Watch out for the self employment tax though...its painful!...especially if you aren't making very much money.

gregr209

I was able to write off my new 17inch MacBook Pro, my iPhone 3GS, my developer fees, my internet and several other things. It helped lower my overall tax payment for the 2009 :-)

Can't wait to write off my iPad for 2010 :-)