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Boating as Hobby Expenses ?
- Thread starter seabeagle
- Start date
Alyssa Jean
New member
Yes I have. Not all of them,but a nice little part. Join the USCG Auxiliary. Get qualified as Crew or Coxswain, and then have your boat inspected to the level of USCG Auxiliary Facility. Now when you go out on a patrol or other surface op under orders the government pays for your fuel, engine time, oil, food, ice. Your vessel is considered a US Government vessel and it and the crew are covered in all respects as if you were active duty. You spend a day on the water with other like minded folks.
You have accomplished several important things.
1. You helped yourself. You received valuable training.( there are multiple courses you can take in dozens of topics)
2. You helped your community. You can participate in boating safety classes, perform vessel safety checks,
3. You helped your country. Auxiliary is a force multiplier for the USCG in multiple areas including safety patrols, derilect vessel reporting, Marine Environment monitoring, etc.
Did I mention they pay your fuel?
Click HERE for the home page of the USCG Auxiliary.
You have accomplished several important things.
1. You helped yourself. You received valuable training.( there are multiple courses you can take in dozens of topics)
2. You helped your community. You can participate in boating safety classes, perform vessel safety checks,
3. You helped your country. Auxiliary is a force multiplier for the USCG in multiple areas including safety patrols, derilect vessel reporting, Marine Environment monitoring, etc.
Did I mention they pay your fuel?
Click HERE for the home page of the USCG Auxiliary.
After falling prey to an "Amway Ambush", we got to thinking about their points regarding business write-offs. At that time we were heavily involved in Soaring (flying and racing sailplanes). We started a small business dedicated to Soaring. We took and sold photos at events. We sold instruments, radios, tires, wheels, parachutes, etc.
Then our trips to Nevada were business trips. Meals with Soaring friends were business meals. Flights to calibrate new equipment were deductable. We didn't get carried away with this, but never showed much profit either.
There seems to be a number of folks on this site that have boating related businesses. Some of them just might be for similar reasons :wink:
Then our trips to Nevada were business trips. Meals with Soaring friends were business meals. Flights to calibrate new equipment were deductable. We didn't get carried away with this, but never showed much profit either.
There seems to be a number of folks on this site that have boating related businesses. Some of them just might be for similar reasons :wink:
As Roger points out the business needs to be boating related. A number of friends have used boats as "Test platforms" for marine products they were developing. (Sail makers, engine designers, machine shops, special cleaning or protection products)
A tax expert can varify what is legal, but I believe that you do have to show a profit every few years, or at least an honest attempt to show a profit. I have heard of cases where when trailering a boat which had commercial logos, the highway patrol in some states interputed this as requiring that the truck was then commercial, and subject to commercial laws, including drivers licenses, weight station stops etc. It would be unlikely that this would happen to a C Dory, but another consideration.
A tax expert can varify what is legal, but I believe that you do have to show a profit every few years, or at least an honest attempt to show a profit. I have heard of cases where when trailering a boat which had commercial logos, the highway patrol in some states interputed this as requiring that the truck was then commercial, and subject to commercial laws, including drivers licenses, weight station stops etc. It would be unlikely that this would happen to a C Dory, but another consideration.
starcrafttom
Active member
we have used our 22 and now our 27 as a second home on the taxes. saves a little. its amazing how much my business cars fuel mileage plummets in the summer :wink:
For years I wrote off my sailboat and all boating expenses because I was working as a free lance marine writer. Granted, I really had an income, if a modest one initially, from my writing, so I really could justify my expenses.
Surprisingly, according to my then tax prep person and the IRS agent who audited me twice, free lance writers do not have to show a profit per number of years. (was true then, not sure about now) Even though I also had a full-time job, the free lance gig could show losses forever. In retrospect and from different political leanings today, I don't feel very good about having worked the system the way I did, albeit legal or not.
Nick
"Valkyrie"
Surprisingly, according to my then tax prep person and the IRS agent who audited me twice, free lance writers do not have to show a profit per number of years. (was true then, not sure about now) Even though I also had a full-time job, the free lance gig could show losses forever. In retrospect and from different political leanings today, I don't feel very good about having worked the system the way I did, albeit legal or not.
Nick
"Valkyrie"
When we were doing the professional lecturing, we did write off all of the costs involved, but the income vs the amount of living and traveling on the boat full time were so different, that my accountant suggested that we not try to write off the boat (plus we didn't have much other income which was taxable). The free lance writing is an interesting concept....of course you have to produce articles which are sold. I doubt that a "Blog would count....