Weirdest Tax Deductions

15 Sep Weirdest Tax Deductions

Have you ever pondered writing off something on your taxes that is not so run of the mill?  Maybe you thought about writing off your clothes for work even if they weren’t a uniform?  Well here are some of the wildest tax deductions around. I’m pretty sure you never deducted your car repairs from your drunk driving accident, the cost of moving your animals when relocating for a job, or your sexual reassignment surgery.  P.S. you can’t write off that great outfit if you could wear it anyplace other than work.

Drunk Driving Expenses-Mr. Rohrs v. The Internal Revenue Service

Mr. Rohrs wrecked his car in a drunk driving accident.  This of course created some expenses related to the repairs of the vehicle etc. When the insurance company refused to pay out on the claim due to the the fact that he was intoxicated at the time of the accident.  So instead of viewing it as a total loss Mr. Rohrs deducted the expenses as casualty loss on his income tax returns.  When the IRS denied the deduction the case went to U.S. Tax Court.  In the end they decided in his favor siting that he thought he was sober enough to drive so he did not willing-fully break the law.  The tax deduction was allowed.

Moving Your Pets

Yes if you are involved in a move that meets the tax deduction requirements any additional costs associated with moving your family pets can also be deducted.  Family pets are considered goods or property by the U.S. government for tax purposes.  This means you can’t deduct them as dependents, but you can deduct the cost to move them. According to IRS publication 521 outlining allowable moving expenses

“You can deduct the cost of packing, crating, and transporting your household goods and personal effects and those of the members of your household from your former home to your new home. For purposes of moving expenses, the term “personal effects” includes, but is not limited to, movable personal property that the taxpayer owns and frequently uses.

So therefore that crate, the sedatives,  and the doggy hotel etc can all be deducted. Who would have thought.

Sexual Reassignment Surgery

A Boston court ruled that Rhiannon O’Donnabhain, who was born a man, sued the Internal Revenue Service after the agency rejected a $5,000 deduction for approximately $25,000 in medical expenses associated with the sex-change surgery.  The deduction was rejected on the grounds that it was cosmetic not medically necessary surgery.  The courts however ruled that the reassignment surgery was appropriate treatment for those that suffer from certain medical disorders and that the medical costs should be deductible.