2024 Instructions for Form 1040-SC — Schedule C — Profit or Loss From Business (Sole Proprietorship)

2024 Instructions for Schedule C
Profit or Loss
From Business

# Section references are to the Internal

Revenue Code unless otherwise noted.
Future Developments
For the latest information about developments related to Schedule C and its instructions, such as legislation enacted after they were published, go to IRS.gov/
ScheduleC.

# What's New

Form 1040-SS filers and business use of home. For 2024, taxpayers who file Form 1040-SS and claim a deduction for business use of home will report the expense on Schedule C (Form 1040). Filers will use Form 8829, Expenses for Business Use of Your Home, if applicable, to figure the deduction and report the amount on Schedule C, line 30.
Standard mileage rate. The business standard mileage rate for 2024 is 67 cents per mile.
Bonus depreciation. The bonus depreciation deduction under section 168(k) continues its phaseout in 2024 with a reduction of the applicable limit from 80% to 60%.
Reminders
Redesigned Form 1040-SS. Schedule C (Form 1040) is available to be filed with Form 1040-SS, if applicable.
It replaces Form 1040-SS, Part IV. For Use Schedule C (Form 1040) to report income or (loss) from a business you operated or a profession you practiced as a sole proprietor. An activity qualifies as a business if your primary purpose for engaging in the activity is for income or profit and you are involved in the activity with continuity and regularity. For example, a sporadic activity, a not-for-profit activity, or a hobby does not qualify as a business. To report income from a nonbusiness activity, see the instructions for Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 8j.
Also, use Schedule C to report (a) wages and expenses you had as a statutory employee; (b) income and deductions of certain qualified joint ventures; and (c) certain amounts shown on a Form 1099, such as Form 1099-MISC, Form 1099-NEC, and Form 1099-K. See the instructions on your Form 1099 for more information about what to report on Schedule C.
You may be subject to state and local taxes and other requirements such as business licenses and fees. Check with your state and local governments for more information. additional information, see the Instruc- See Form 461 and its instructions for tions for Form 1040-SS. details on the excess business loss limitation.
Business meals deduction. The business meals deduction is 50%. Small Business and Self-Employed
(SB/SE) Tax Center. Do you need help Reporting nontaxable Medicaid waivwith a tax issue or preparing your return, er payments. Certain Medicaid waiver or do you need a free publication or payments that are reported to you on form? SB/SE serves taxpayers who file Form 1099-MISC or Form 1099-NEC Form 1040, 1040-SR, Schedules C, E, F, may be nontaxable. For information on or Form 2106, as well as small business how to report those payments on Schedtaxpayers with assets under $10 million. ule C, see Medicaid waiver payments, For additional information, go to the later.
Small Business and Self-Employed Tax
Gig economy tax center. The gig (or Center at IRS.gov/SmallBiz. on-demand, sharing, or access) economy refers to an activity where people earn General income providing on-demand work, Instructions services, or goods. Go to IRS.gov/Gig to get more information about the tax con-Other Schedules and Forms sequences of participating in the gig economy.
You May Have To File
Excess business loss limitation. If you

• Schedule A (Form 1040) to deduct report a loss on line 31 of your Schedinterest, taxes, and casualty losses not ule C (Form 1040), you may be subject related to your business. to a business loss limitation. The disal-
• Schedule E (Form 1040) to report lowed loss resulting from the limitation rental real estate and royalty income or will not be reflected on line 31 of your

(loss) that is not subject to Schedule C. Instead, use Form 461 to self-employment tax. determine the amount of your excess

• Schedule F (Form 1040) to report business loss, which will be included as profit or (loss) from farming. income on Schedule 1 (Form 1040),
• Schedule J (Form 1040) to figure line 8p. Any disallowed loss resulting your tax by averaging your farming or from this limitation will be treated as a fishing income over the previous 3 net operating loss that must be carried years. Doing so may reduce your tax. forward and deducted in a subsequent
• Schedule SE (Form 1040) to pay year. self-employment tax on income from any trade or business.

Instructions for Schedule C (Form 1040) (2024) Catalog Number 24329W Department of the Treasury Internal Revenue Service www.irs.gov
Dec 6, 2024

• Form 461 to report an excess business loss.
• Form 3800 to claim any of the general business credits.
• Form 4562 to claim depreciation and amortization on assets placed in service in 2024, to claim amortization that began in 2024, to make an election under section 179 to expense certain property, or to report information on listed property.
• Form 4684 to report a casualty or theft gain or (loss) involving property used in your trade or business or income-producing property.
• Form 4797 to report sales, exchanges, and involuntary conversions (not from a casualty or theft) of trade or business property.
• Form 6198 to apply a limitation to your loss if you have a business loss and you have amounts invested in the business for which you are not at risk.
• Form 6252 to report income from an installment agreement.
• Form 7205 to claim the IRC 179D deduction for qualifying energy efficient commercial building expenses.
• Form 8582 to apply a limitation to your loss from passive activities.
• Form 8594 to report certain purchases or sales of groups of assets that constitute a trade or business.
• Form 8824 to report like-kind exchanges.
• Form 8829 to claim actual expenses for business use of your home.
• Form 8936 to claim the commercial clean vehicle credit.
• Form 8960 to pay Net Investment Income Tax on certain income from your passive activities.
• Form 8990 to determine whether your business interest deduction is limited.
• Form 8995 or 8995-A to claim a deduction for qualified business income. Single-member limited liability company (LLC). Generally, a single-member domestic LLC is not treated as a separate entity for federal income tax purposes. If you are the sole member of a domestic LLC, file Schedule C (or Schedule E or F, if applicable) unless you have elected to treat the domestic LLC as a corporation. See Form 8832 for details on making this election and for information about the tax treatment of a foreign LLC.

Single-member LLCs with employees.
A single-member LLC must file employment tax returns using the LLC's name and employer identification number (EIN) rather than the owner's name and EIN, even if the LLC is not treated as a separate entity for federal income tax purposes.
Heavy highway vehicle use tax. If you use certain highway trucks, truck-trailers, tractor-trailers, or buses in your trade or business, you may have to pay a federal highway motor vehicle use tax.
See the Instructions for Form 2290 to find out if you must pay this tax and go to IRS.gov/Trucker for the most recent developments.
Information returns. You may have to file information returns for wages paid to employees, and certain payments of fees and other nonemployee compensation, interest, rents, royalties, real estate transactions, annuities, and pensions.
See Line I, later, and IRS.gov/Form1099 for details and other payments that may require you to file a Form 1099.
If you received cash of more than $10,000 in one or more related transactions in your trade or business, you may have to file Form 8300. For details, see the Instructions for Form 8300 and Pub.

1. See also the IRS Form 8300 Reference Guide, available at IRS.gov/

Businesses/Small-Businesses-Self-
Employed/IRS-Form-8300-Reference-
Guide.
E-filing Forms 1099. The Taxpayer First Act of 2019 authorized the Department of the Treasury and the IRS to issue regulations that reduce the 250-return e-file threshold. T.D. 9972, published February 23, 2023, lowered the e-file threshold to 10 (calculated by aggregating all information returns), effective for information returns required to be filed after 2023. Go to IRS.gov/filing/e-fileinformation-returns for e-file options.
Business Owned and
Operated by Spouses
Generally, if you and your spouse jointly own and operate an unincorporated business and share in the profits and losses, you are partners in a partnership, whether or not you have a formal partnership agreement. You generally have to file Form 1065 instead of Schedule C for your joint business activity; however, you may not have to file Form 1065 if either of the following applies.

• You and your spouse elect to be treated as a qualified joint venture. See Qualified Joint Venture next.
• You and your spouse wholly own the unincorporated business as community property and you treat the business as a sole proprietorship. See Community Income, later.

Otherwise, use Form 1065. See Pub. 541 for information about partnerships.
Qualified Joint Venture
You and your spouse can elect to treat an unincorporated business as a qualified joint venture instead of a partnership if you:

• Each materially participate in the business (see Material participation, later, in the instructions for line G);
• Are the only owners of the business; and
• File a joint return for the tax year.

Making the election will allow you to avoid the complexity of Form 1065, but still give each of you credit for social security earnings on which retirement benefits, disability benefits, survivor benefits, and insurance (Medicare) benefits are based. In most cases, this election will not increase the total tax owed on the joint return.
Jointly owned property. You and your spouse must operate a business to make this election. Do not make the election for jointly owned property that is not a trade or business.
Only businesses that are owned
! and operated by spouses as co-owners (and not in the name CAUTION of a state law entity) qualify for the election. Thus, a business owned and operated by spouses through an LLC does not qualify for the election of a qualified joint venture.
Making the election. To make this election, divide all items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit attributable to the business between you and your spouse based on your respective interests in the business. Each of you must file a separate Schedule C or F (Form 1040). Enter your share of the applicable income, deduction, or (loss) on the appropriate lines of your separate Schedule C or F (Form 1040). Each of you may also need to file a separate Schedule SE (Form 1040) to pay self-employment tax. If the business was taxed as a partnership before you made the election, the partnership will be treated as terminating at the end of the preceding tax year. For information on how to report the termination of the partnership, see Pub. 541.
Revoking the election. The election can be revoked only with the permission of the IRS. However, the election remains in effect only for as long as you and your spouse continue to meet the requirements to make the election. If you and your spouse fail to meet the requirements for any year, you will need to make a new election to be treated as a qualified joint venture in any future year.
Employer identification number (EIN). You and your spouse do not need to obtain an EIN to make the election. But you may need an EIN to file other returns, such as employment or excise tax returns. To apply for an EIN, see the Instructions for Form SS-4 or go to IRS.gov/EIN.
Rental real estate business. If you and your spouse make the election for your rental real estate business, you must each report your share of income and deductions on Schedule E (Form 1040).
Rental real estate income is not generally included in net earnings from self-employment subject to self-employment tax and is generally subject to the passive loss limitation rules. Electing qualified joint venture status does not alter the application of the self-employment tax or the passive loss limitation rules.
More information. For more information on qualified joint ventures, go to IRS.gov/QJV.
Community Income
If you and your spouse wholly own an unincorporated business as community property under the community property laws of a state, foreign country, or U.S. territory, you can treat your wholly owned, unincorporated business as a sole proprietorship, instead of a partnership. Any change in your reporting position will be treated as a conversion of the entity.
Report your income and deductions as follows.

• If only one spouse participates in the business, all of the income from that business is the self-employment earnings of the spouse who carried on the business.
• If both spouses participate, the unincorporated business is generally treated as a partnership and the income and deductions are allocated to the spouses based on their distributive shares.
• If either or both spouses are partners in a partnership, see Pub. 541.
• If both spouses elected to treat the business as a qualifying joint venture, see Qualified Joint Venture, earlier.

States with community property laws include Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. See Pub.
555 for more information about community property laws.
Reportable Transaction
Disclosure Statement
Use Form 8886 to disclose information for each reportable transaction in which you participated. Form 8886 must be filed for each tax year that your federal income tax liability is affected by your participation in the transaction. You may have to pay a penalty if you are required to file Form 8886 but don’t do so. You may also have to pay interest and penalties on any reportable transaction understatements. The following are reportable transactions.

• Any listed transaction that is the same as or substantially similar to tax avoidance transactions identified by the IRS in published guidance.
• Any transaction offered to you or a related party under conditions of confidentiality for which you paid an advisor a fee of at least $50,000.
• Certain transactions for which you or a related party have contractual protection against disallowance of the tax benefits.
• Certain transactions resulting in a loss of at least $2 million in any single tax year or $4 million in any combination of tax years. (At least $50,000 for a single tax year if the loss arose from a foreign currency transaction defined in section 988(c)(1), whether or not the loss flows through from an S corporation or partnership.)
• Certain transactions of interest entered into that are the same or substantially similar to one of the types of transactions that the IRS has identified by published guidance as a transaction of interest.

See the Instructions for Form 8886 for more details. See also chapter 2 of
Pub. 550.
Capital Construction Fund
Do not claim on Schedule C the deduction for amounts contributed to a capital construction fund set up under chapter 535 of title 46 of the United States
Code. Instead, reduce the amount you would otherwise enter on Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 15, by the amount of the deduction. Next to line 15, enter “CCF” and the amount of the deduction. For details, see Pub. 595.
Additional Information
See Pub. 334 for more information for small businesses.

# Specific Instructions

Filers of Form 1041. Do not complete the block labeled “Social security number (SSN).” Instead, enter the EIN issued to the estate or trust on line D.
Line A
Describe the business or professional activity that provided your principal source of income reported on line 1. If you owned more than one business, complete a separate Schedule C for each business. Give the general field or activity and the type of product or service. If your general field or activity is wholesale or retail trade, or services connected with production services (mining, construction, or manufacturing), also give the type of customer or client; for example, “wholesale sale of hardware to retailers” or “appraisal of real estate for lending institutions.”
Line B
Enter on line B the six-digit code from the Principal Business or Professional Activity Codes chart at the end of these instructions. For nonstore retailers, select the PBA code by the primary product that your establishment sells. For example, establishments primarily selling prescription and non-prescription drugs, select PBA code 456110 Pharmacies & drug retailers.
Line D
Enter on line D the EIN that was issued to you on Form SS-4. Do not enter your SSN on this line. Do not enter another taxpayer's EIN (for example, from any Forms 1099-MISC that you received). If you do not have an EIN, leave line D blank.
You need an EIN only if you have a qualified retirement plan or are required to file employment, excise, alcohol, tobacco, or firearms returns, or are a payer of gambling winnings. If you need an EIN, see the Instructions for Form SS-4.
Single-member LLCs. If you are the sole owner of an LLC that is not treated as a separate entity for federal income tax purposes, enter on line D the EIN that was issued to the LLC (in the LLC's legal name) for a qualified retirement plan, to file employment, excise, alcohol, tobacco, or firearms returns, or as a payer of gambling winnings. If you do not have such an EIN, leave line D blank.
Line E
Enter your business address. Show a street address instead of a box number.
Include the suite or room number, if any.
If you conducted the business from your home located at the address shown on page 1 of your tax return, you don’t have to complete this line.
Line F
Generally, you can use the cash method, an accrual method, or any other method permitted by the Internal Revenue Code.
In all cases, the method used must clearly reflect income. Unless you are a small business taxpayer (defined later under Part III), you must use an accrual method for sales and purchases of inventory items. Special rules apply to long-term contracts (see section 460 for details).
See also Rev. Proc. 2024-23 for changes in methods of accounting, available at
IRS.gov/irb/2024-23_IRB#REV-
PROC-2024-23. If you use the cash method, show all items of taxable income actually or constructively received during the year (in cash, property, or services). Income is constructively received when it is credited to your account or made available to you without restriction. Also, show amounts actually paid during the year for deductible expenses. However, if the payment of an expenditure creates an asset having a useful life that extends beyond 12 months or the end of the next tax year, it may not be deductible or may be deductible only in part for the year of the payment. See chapter 2 of Pub. 334, Tax Guide for Small Business.
For amounts includible in income and deductible as expense under an accrual method, see Pub. 538.
To change your accounting method, you must generally file Form 3115. You may also have to make an adjustment to prevent amounts of income or expense from being duplicated or omitted. This is called a section 481(a) adjustment.
Example. You change to the cash method of accounting and choose to account for inventoriable items in the same manner as non-incidental materials and supplies for the 2024 tax year. You accrued sales in 2023 for which you received payment in 2024. You must report those sales in both years as a result of changing your accounting method and must make a section 481(a) adjustment to prevent duplication of income.
A net negative section 481 adjustment is generally taken into account in the year of change. A net positive section 481(a) adjustment is generally taken into account over a period of 4 years. Include any net positive section 481(a) adjustments on line 6. If the net section 481(a) adjustment is negative, report it in Part V.
More information. For more information about changing your accounting method and the section 481(a) adjustment, see the Instructions for Form

1. Additional information is also available in various revenue procedures.

See Rev. Proc. 2024-23 (and any subsequent revenue procedures modifying
Rev. Proc. 2024-23) for a list of automatic changes, including a description of its effect on prior lists of automatic changes. Rev. Proc. 2024-23 is available at IRS.gov/irb/2024-23_IRB#REV-PROC-2024-23.
Line G
If your business activity is not a rental activity and you meet any of the material participation tests, explained next, or the exception for oil and gas applies, check the “Yes” box. Otherwise, check “No.” If you check “No,” this activity is passive. If you have a loss from a passive activity, see Limit on losses, later. If you have a profit from the rental of property to a nonpassive activity, see Recharacterization of Passive Income in
Pub. 925 to find out how to report the net income.
Material participation. For purposes of the seven material participation tests listed later, participation generally includes any work you did in connection with an activity, if you owned an interest in the activity at the time you did the work. The capacity in which you did the work does not matter. However, work is not treated as participation if it is work that an owner would not customarily do in the same type of activity and one of your main reasons for doing the work was to avoid the disallowance of losses or credits from the activity under the passive activity rules.
Work you did as an investor in an activity is not treated as participation unless you were directly involved in the day-to-day management or operations of the activity. Work performed as an investor includes:

• Studying and reviewing financial statements or reports on the activity,
• Preparing or compiling summaries or analyses of the finances or operations of the activity for your own use, and
• Monitoring the finances or operations of the activity in a nonmanagerial capacity.

Participation by your spouse during the tax year in an activity in which you own an interest can be counted as your participation in the activity. This rule applies even if your spouse did not own an interest in the activity and whether or not you and your spouse file a joint return. However, this rule does not apply for purposes of determining whether you and your spouse can elect to have your business treated as a qualified joint venture instead of a partnership (see Qualified Joint Venture, earlier).
For purposes of the passive activity rules, you materially participated in the operation of a trade or business activity during 2024 if you met any of the following seven tests.

1. You participated in the activity for more than 500 hours during the tax year.
2. Your participation in the activity for the tax year was substantially all of the participation in the activity of all individuals (including individuals who did not own any interest in the activity) for the tax year.
3. You participated in the activity for more than 100 hours during the tax year, and you participated at least as much as any other person for the tax year. This includes individuals who did not own any interest in the activity.
4. The activity is a significant participation activity for the tax year, and you participated in all significant participation activities for more than 500 hours during the year. An activity is a “significant participation activity” if it involves the conduct of a trade or business, you participated in the activity for more than 100 hours during the tax year, and you did not materially participate under any of the material participation tests (other than this test 4).
5. You materially participated in the activity for any 5 of the prior 10 tax years.
6. The activity is a personal service activity in which you materially participated for any 3 prior tax years. A personal service activity is an activity that involves performing personal services in the field of health, law, engineering, architecture, accounting, actuarial science, performing arts, or consulting, or any other trade or business in which capital is not a material income-producing factor.
7. Based on all the facts and circumstances, you participated in the activity on a regular, continuous, and substantial basis for more than 100 hours during the tax year. Your participation in managing the activity does not count in determining if you meet this test if any person (except you) (a) received compensation for performing management services in connection with the activity, or (b) spent more hours during the tax year than you spent performing management services in connection with the activity (regardless of whether the person was compensated for the services).

Rental of personal property. Generally, a rental activity (such as long-term equipment leasing) is a passive activity even if you materially participated in the activity. However, if you met any of the five exceptions listed under Rental Activities in the Instructions for Form 8582, the rental of the property is not treated as a rental activity and the material participation rules explained earlier apply.
Exception for oil and gas. If you are filing Schedule C to report income and deductions from an oil or gas well in which you own a working interest directly or through an entity that does not limit your liability, check the “Yes” box.
The activity of owning a working interest is not a passive activity, regardless of your participation.
Limit on losses. Your business activity loss may be limited if you checked the “No” box on line G. In addition, your rental activity loss may be limited even if you materially participated. In general, a business activity in which you do not materially participate or a rental activity is a passive activity and you have to use Form 8582 to apply a limitation that may reduce the loss, if any, that you may enter on Schedule C, line 31. For details, see Pub. 925.
Note. Line G doesn't apply to filers of Form 1040-SS.
Line H
If you started or acquired this business in 2024, check the box on line H. Also, check the box if you are reopening or restarting this business after temporarily closing it, and you didn’t file a 2023 Schedule C for this business.
Line I
If you made any payment in 2024 that would require you to file any Forms 1099, check the “Yes” box. Otherwise, check the “No” box.
You may have to file information returns for wages paid to employees, certain payments of fees and other nonemployee compensation, interest, rents, royalties, real estate transactions, annuities, and pensions. You may also have to file an information return if you sold $5,000 or more of consumer products to a person on a buy-sell, a deposit-commission, or other similar basis for resale.
Note. Line I doesn't apply to filers of Form 1040-SS.
The Guide to Information Returns in the 2024 General In-TIP structions for Certain Information Returns identifies which Forms 1099 must be filed, the amounts to report, and the due dates for the required
Forms 1099. For information, see
IRS.gov/instructions/Form1099.

# Part I. Income

Except as otherwise provided in the Internal Revenue Code, gross income includes income from whatever source derived. In certain circumstances, however, gross income does not include extraterritorial income that is qualifying foreign trade income. Use Form 8873 to figure the extraterritorial income exclusion. Report it on Schedule C as explained in the Instructions for Form 8873.
If you were a debtor in a chapter 11 bankruptcy case during 2024, see Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Cases in the Instructions for Form 1040 (under Income) and the Instructions for Schedule SE.
Be sure to report all income attributable to your trade or business from all sources. You may receive one or more Forms 1099 from people who are required to provide information to the IRS listing amounts that may be income you received as a result of your trade or business activities. The following is a list of some of the common Forms 1099.

• 1099-MISC. For more information about what is reported on Form 1099-MISC, see the Instructions for Recipient included on that form.
• 1099-NEC. For more information about what is reported on Form 1099-NEC, see the Instructions for Recipient included on that form.
• 1099-K. For more information about what is reported on Form 1099-K, see the Instructions for Payee included on that form and go to IRS.gov/Gig.

Income you report on Schedule C may be qualified business TIP income and entitle you to a deduction on Form 1040 or 1040-SR, line 13. See Forms 8995 and 8995-A, and IRS.gov/Newsroom/Facts-Aboutthe-Qualified-Business-Income-
Deduction.

# Line 1

Enter gross receipts from your trade or business. Be sure to check any Forms 1099 you received for business income that must be reported on this line.
If you received one or more Forms 1099-NEC, be sure line 1 includes amounts properly shown on your Forms 1099-NEC. If the total amounts that were reported in box 1 of Forms 1099-NEC are more than the total you are reporting on line 1, attach a statement explaining the difference.
Statutory employees. If you received a Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, and the "Statutory employee" box in box 13 of that form was checked, report your income and expenses related to that income on Schedule C. Enter your statutory employee income from box 1 of Form W-2 on line 1 of Schedule C and check the box on that line. Social security and Medicare tax should have been withheld from your earnings; as a result, you do not owe self-employment tax on these earnings. Statutory employees include full-time life insurance agents, certain agent or commission drivers and traveling salespersons, and certain homeworkers.
If you had both self-employment income and statutory employee income, you must file two Schedules C. You cannot combine these amounts on a single Schedule C.
Note. Statutory employees information doesn’t apply to Form 1040-SS filers.
Qualified joint ventures should
! report rental real estate income not subject to self-employment CAUTION tax on Schedule E. See Qualified Joint Venture, earlier, and the Instructions for
Schedule E.
Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) income.
If you are a student-athlete, any monetary or financial gain, including non-cash compensation like merchandise or gift cards, you receive from a transaction in which you benefit from the use of your name, image, or likeness is NIL income. Generally, student-athletes are considered independent contractors for tax purposes and report NIL income and related expenses as self-employment income on Schedule C. However, report royalties and other NIL income that is not self-employment income on Schedule E instead.
Medicaid waiver payments. If you are a sole proprietor in a business of providing home care services, certain Medicaid waiver payments you receive may be nontaxable. If you receive Medicaid waiver payments on a Form 1099-MISC or Form 1099-NEC that are excludable from gross income under Notice 2014-7, report the full amount of the payments as income on Schedule C, line 1. Then report the nontaxable and excludable amount as an expense in Part V, Other Expenses, and write “Notice 2014-7” next to the amount. These payments are nontaxable and excludable from income.
Notice 2014-7 is available at IRS.gov/irb/2014-04_IRB#NOT-2014-7.
For more information about these payments see the related questions and answer at Certain Medicaid Waiver Payments May Be Excludable From Income, available at IRS.gov/ individuals/certain-medicaid-waiverpayments-may-be-excludable-fromincome.
Installment sales. Generally, the installment method cannot be used to report income from the sale of (a) personal property regularly sold under the installment method, or (b) real property held for resale to customers. But the installment method can be used to report income from sales of certain residential lots and timeshares if you elect to pay interest on the tax due on that income after the year of sale. See section 453(l)(2)
(B) for details. If you make this election, include the interest in the total on Schedule 2 (Form 1040), line 14, and enter the amount of interest and “453(l) (3)” on the line next to the entry space.
If you use the installment method, attach a statement to your return. Show separately for 2024 and the 3 preceding years: gross sales, cost of goods sold, gross profit, percentage of gross profit to gross sales, amounts collected, and gross profit on amounts collected.

# Line 2

Report your sales returns and allowances as a positive number on line 2. A sales return is a cash or credit refund you gave to customers who returned defective, damaged, or unwanted products.
A sales allowance is a reduction in the selling price of products, instead of a cash or credit refund.

# Line 6

Report on line 6 business income not reported elsewhere in Part I. Be sure to include amounts from the following.

• Finance reserve income.
• Scrap sales.
• Bad debts you recovered.
• Interest (such as on notes and accounts receivable).
• State gasoline or fuel tax refunds you received in 2024.
• Any amount of credit for biofuel claimed on line 3 of Form 6478.
• Any amount of credit for biodiesel, renewable diesel, and sustainable aviation fuel claimed on line 11 of Form 8864.
• Credit for federal tax paid on fuels claimed on your 2023 Form 1040 or 1040-SR.
• Prizes and awards related to your trade or business.
• Amounts you received in your trade or business as shown on Form 1099-PATR.
• Any amount of credit for COBRA premium assistance. See your Form(s) 941 or Form 944 for 2024 for the nonrefundable and refundable portions of this credit that you claimed against your employment taxes.
• Other kinds of miscellaneous business income.

If the business use percentage of any listed property (defined under Line 13, later) dropped to 50% or less in 2024, report on this line any recapture of excess depreciation, including any section 179 expense deduction. Use Part IV of Form 4797 to figure the recapture. Also, if the business use percentage drops to 50% or less on leased listed property (other than a vehicle), include on this line any inclusion amount. See chapter 5 of Pub. 946 to figure the amount.

# Part II. Expenses

Capitalizing costs of producing property and acquiring property for resale. If you produced real or tangible personal property or acquired real or personal property for resale, you must generally capitalize certain expenses in inventory or other property. These expenses include the direct costs of the property and any indirect costs properly allocable to that property. Reduce the amounts on lines 8 through 26, 27b, and Part V by amounts capitalized. See Pub.
538 for a discussion of the uniform capitalization rules.
Exception for a small business taxpayer. A small business taxpayer (defined later under Part III) is not required to capitalize certain expenses to inventory or other property. See Pub. 538 for more details.
Exception for creative property. If you are a freelance artist, author, or photographer, you may be exempt from the capitalization rules. However, your personal efforts must have created (or reasonably be expected to create) the property. This exception does not apply to any expense related to printing, photographic plates, motion picture films, videotapes, or similar items. These expenses are subject to the capitalization rules.
For details, see Uniform Capitalization Rules in Pub. 538.

# Line 9

You can deduct the actual expenses of operating your car or truck or take the standard mileage rate. This is true even if you used your vehicle for hire (such as a taxicab). You must use actual expenses if you used five or more vehicles simultaneously in your business (such as in fleet operations). You can’t use actual expenses for a leased vehicle if you previously used the standard mileage rate for that vehicle.
You can take the standard mileage rate for 2024 only if you:

• Owned the vehicle and used the standard mileage rate for the first year you placed the vehicle in service, or
• Leased the vehicle and are using the standard mileage rate for the entire lease period.

If you take the standard mileage rate:

• Multiply the number of business miles driven by 0.67. For example, 1,250 business miles driven × 0.67 = $837.50.
• Add to this amount your parking fees and tolls; and
• Enter the total on line 9. Do not deduct depreciation, rent or lease payments, or your actual operating expenses.

If you deduct actual expenses:

• Include on line 9 the business portion of expenses for gasoline, oil, repairs, insurance, license plates, etc.; and
• Show depreciation on line 13 and rent or lease payments on line 20a.

For details, see chapter 4 of Pub. 463.
Information on your vehicle. If you claim any car and truck expenses, you must provide certain information on the use of your vehicle by completing one of the following.

1. Complete Schedule C, Part IV, if

(a) you are claiming the standard mileage rate, you lease your vehicle, or your vehicle is fully depreciated; and (b) you are not required to file Form 4562 for any other reason. If you used more than one vehicle during the year, attach a statement with the information requested in Schedule C, Part IV, for each additional vehicle.

1. Complete Form 4562, Part V, if you are claiming depreciation on your vehicle or you are required to file Form 4562 for any other reason (see Line 13, later).

# Line 10

Enter the total commissions and fees for the tax year. Do not include commissions or fees that are capitalized or deducted elsewhere on your return.
You must file Form 1099-NEC to report certain commissions and fees of $600 or more during the year. See the Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC for details.
Sales of property. Generally, commissions and other fees paid to facilitate the sale of property must be capitalized.
However, if you are a dealer in property, enter on line 10 the commissions and fees you paid to facilitate the sale of that property.
Note. A dealer in property is a person who regularly sells property in the ordinary course of their trade or business.
For more information on the capitalization of commissions and fees, see the examples under Regulations section 1.263(a)-1(e)(3).

# Line 11

Enter the total cost of contract labor for the tax year. Contract labor includes payments to persons you do not treat as employees (for example, independent contractors) for services performed for your trade or business. Do not include contract labor deducted elsewhere on your return, such as contract labor includible on line 17, 21, 26, or 37. Also, do not include salaries and wages paid to your employees; instead, see Line 26, later.
You must file Form 1099-NEC to report contract labor payments of $600 or more during the year. See the Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC for details.

# Line 12

Enter your deduction for depletion on this line. If you have timber depletion, attach Form T (Timber). See chapter 7 of Pub. 225 for additional details.
Depletion is generally an item
! of tax preference under the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT).
CAUTION
See section 57.

# Line 13

Depreciation and section 179 expense deduction. Depreciation is the annual deduction allowed to recover the cost or other basis of business or investment property having a useful life substantially beyond the tax year. You can also depreciate improvements made to leased business property. However, stock in trade, inventories, and land are not depreciable. Depreciation starts when you first use the property in your business or for the production of income. It ends when you take the property out of service, deduct all your depreciable cost or other basis, or no longer use the property in your business or for the production of income. You can also elect under section 179 to expense part or all of the cost of certain property you bought in 2024 for use in your business. See the Instructions for Form 4562 and Pub. 946 to figure the amount to enter on line 13.
When to attach Form 4562. You must complete and attach Form 4562 only if you are claiming:

• Depreciation on property placed in service during 2024;
• Depreciation on listed property (defined later), regardless of the date it was placed in service; or
• A section 179 expense deduction.

If you acquired depreciable property for the first time in 2024, see Pub. 946.
Listed property. Listed property generally includes, but is not limited to:

• Passenger automobiles weighing 6,000 pounds or less;
• Any other property used for transportation if the nature of the property lends itself to personal use, such as motorcycles, pickup trucks, etc.; and
• Any property used for entertainment or recreational purposes (such as photographic, phonographic, communication, and video recording equipment).

Exception. Listed property does not include photographic, phonographic, communication, or video equipment used exclusively in your trade or business or at your regular business establishment. For purposes of this exception, a portion of your home is treated as a regular business establishment only if that portion meets the requirements under section 280A(c)(1) for deducting expenses for the business use of your home.
Recapture. See Line 6, earlier, if the business use percentage of any listed property dropped to 50% or less in 2024.

# Line 14

Deduct contributions to employee benefit programs that are not an incidental part of a pension or profit-sharing plan included on line 19. Examples are accident and health plans, group-term life insurance, and dependent care assistance programs. If you made contributions on your behalf as a self-employed person to a dependent care assistance program, complete Form 2441, Parts I and III, to figure your deductible contributions to that program.
You cannot deduct contributions you made on your behalf as a self-employed person for group-term life insurance.
Do not include on line 14 any contributions you made on your behalf as a self-employed person to an accident and health plan. However, you may be able to deduct on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 17, the amount you paid for health insurance on behalf of yourself, your spouse, and dependents, even if you do not itemize your deductions. See the instructions for line 17, Schedule 1, contained within the Instructions for Form 1040.
You must reduce your line 14 deduction by the amount of any credit for small employer health insurance premiums determined on Form 8941. See Form 8941 and its instructions to determine which expenses are eligible for the credit.

# Line 15

Deduct premiums paid for business insurance on line 15. Deduct on line 14 amounts paid for employee accident and health insurance. Do not deduct amounts credited to a reserve for self-insurance or premiums paid for a policy that pays for your lost earnings due to sickness or disability. For details, see Pub. 334, chapter 8.
Lines 16a and 16b
Interest allocation rules. The tax treatment of interest expense differs depending on its type. For example, home mortgage interest and investment interest are treated differently. “Interest allocation” rules require you to allocate (classify) your interest expense so it is deducted (or capitalized) on the correct line of your return and receives the right tax treatment. These rules could affect how much interest you are allowed to deduct on Schedule C.
Generally, you allocate interest expense by tracing how the proceeds of the loan were used. See chapter 4 of Pub.
225, generally, for details.
Limitation on business interest. You must file Form 8990 to deduct any interest expenses of this trade or business unless you are a small business taxpayer (defined under Part III) or meet one of the other filing exceptions listed in the Instructions for Form 8990.
If you must file Form 8990, figure the limit on your business interest expenses on Form 8990 before completing lines 16a and 16b. Follow the instructions under How to report, later, but report the reduced interest on lines 16a and 16b. The interest you can't deduct this year will carry forward to next year on Form 8990.
If you are a small business taxpayer or meet one of the other filing exceptions for Form 8990, follow the instructions under How to report, later, and report all of your deductible interest on lines 16a and 16b.
How to report. If you have a mortgage on real property used in your business, enter on line 16a the interest you paid for 2024 to banks or other financial institutions for which you received a Form 1098 (or similar statement). If you did not receive a Form 1098, enter the interest on line 16b.
If you paid more mortgage interest than is shown on Form 1098, include the amount on line 16a. Attach a statement to your return explaining the difference and enter “See attached” in the margin next to line 16a. Don’t include mortgage interest that must be capitalized, for example, added to basis. See Pub. 551, under Uniform Capitalization Rules, for details.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, sec-
! tion 11043, limited the deduction for mortgage interest paid CAUTION on home equity loans and lines of credit.
See section 163(h)(3)(F).
If you and at least one other person (other than your spouse if you file a joint return) were liable for and paid interest on the mortgage and the other person received the Form 1098, include your share of the interest on line 16b. Attach a statement to your return showing the name and address of the person who received the Form 1098. In the margin next to line 16b, enter “See attached.” If you paid interest in 2024 that also applies to future years, deduct only the part that applies to 2024.

# Line 17

Include on this line fees charged by accountants and attorneys that are ordinary and necessary expenses directly related to operating your business.
Include fees for tax advice related to your business and for preparation of the tax forms related to your business. Also, include expenses incurred in resolving asserted tax deficiencies related to your business.
For more information, see Pub. 334.

# Line 18

Include on this line your expenses for office supplies and postage.

# Line 19

Enter your deduction for the contributions you made for the benefit of your employees to a pension, profit-sharing, or annuity plan (including SEP, SIM-PLE, and SARSEP plans described in
Pub. 560). If the plan included you as a self-employed person, enter the contributions made as an employer on your behalf on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 16, not on Schedule C.
This deduction may be subject to limitations. For more information on potential limitations, see Pub. 560.
In most cases, you must file the applicable form listed below if you maintain a pension, profit-sharing, or other funded-deferred compensation plan. The filing requirement is not affected by whether or not the plan qualified under the Internal Revenue Code, or whether or not you claim a deduction for the current tax year. There is a penalty for failure to timely file these forms.
Form 5500-EZ. File this form if you have a one-participant retirement plan that meets certain requirements. A one-participant plan is a plan that covers only you (or you and your spouse).
Form 5500-SF. File this form electronically with the Department of Labor (at efast.dol.gov) if you have a small plan (fewer than 100 participants in most cases) that meets certain requirements.
Form 5500. File this form electronically with the Department of Labor (at efast.dol.gov) for a plan that does not meet the requirements for filing Form 5500-EZ or Form 5500-SF.
For details, see Pub. 560.
Lines 20a and 20b
If you rented or leased vehicles, machinery, or equipment, enter on line 20a the business portion of your rental cost. But if you leased a vehicle for a term of 30 days or more, you may have to reduce your deduction by the inclusion amount.
See Leasing a Car in chapter 4 of Pub.
463 to figure this amount.
Enter on line 20b amounts paid to rent or lease other property, such as office space in a building.

# Line 21

Deduct the cost of incidental repairs and maintenance that do not add to the property's value or appreciably prolong its life. Do not deduct the value of your own labor. Do not deduct amounts spent to restore or replace property; they must be capitalized.

# Line 22

In most cases, you can deduct the cost of materials and supplies only to the extent you actually consumed and used them in your business during the tax year (unless you deducted them in a prior tax year).
However, if you had incidental materials and supplies on hand for which you kept no inventories or records of use, you can deduct the cost of those you actually purchased during the tax year, provided that method clearly reflects income. You can also deduct the cost of books, professional instruments, equipment, etc., if you normally use them within a year. However, if their usefulness extends substantially beyond a year, you must generally recover their costs through depreciation.

# Line 23

You can deduct the following taxes and licenses on this line.

• State and local sales taxes imposed on you as the seller of goods or services.

If you collected this tax from the buyer, you must also include the amount collected in gross receipts or sales on line 1.

• Real estate and personal property taxes on business assets.
• Licenses and regulatory fees for your trade or business paid each year to state or local governments. But some licenses, such as liquor licenses, may have to be amortized. See the Instructions for Form 4562, Depreciation and Amortization, for more information on amortization.
• Social security and Medicare taxes paid to match required withholding from your employees’ wages. Reduce your deduction by the amount shown on Form 8846, line 4.
• Federal unemployment tax paid.
• Federal highway use tax.
• Contributions to a state unemployment insurance fund or disability benefit fund if they are considered taxes under state law.

Do not deduct the following.

• Federal income taxes, including your self-employment tax. However, you can deduct one-half of your self-employment tax on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 15 (but if filing Form 1040-NR, then only when covered under the U.S. social security system due to an international social security agreement).
• Estate and gift taxes.
• Taxes assessed to pay for improvements, such as paving and sewers.
• Taxes on your home or personal use property.
• State and local sales taxes on property purchased for use in your business.

Instead, treat these taxes as part of the cost of the property.

• State and local sales taxes imposed on the buyer that you were required to collect and pay over to state or local governments. These taxes are not included in gross receipts or sales nor are they a deductible expense. However, if the state or local government allowed you to retain any part of the sales tax you collected, you must include that amount as income on line 6.
• Other taxes and license fees not related to your business.

# Line 24a

Enter your expenses for lodging and transportation connected with overnight travel for business while away from your tax home. In most cases, your tax home is your main place of business, regardless of where you maintain your family home. You can’t deduct expenses paid or incurred in connection with employment away from home if that period of employment exceeds 1 year. Also, you cannot deduct travel expenses for your spouse, your dependent, or any other individual unless that person is your employee, the travel is for a bona fide business purpose, and the expenses would otherwise be deductible by that person.
Do not include expenses for meals on this line. Instead, see Line 24b, later. Do not include entertainment expenses on this line.
Instead of keeping records of your actual incidental expenses, you can use an optional method for deducting incidental expenses only if you did not pay or incur meal expenses on a day you were traveling away from your tax home. The amount of the deduction is $5 a day. Incidental expenses include fees and tips given to porters, baggage carriers, bellhops, hotel maids, stewards or stewardesses and others on ships, and hotel servants in foreign countries. They do not include expenses for laundry, cleaning and pressing of clothing, lodging taxes, or the costs of telegrams or telephone calls. You cannot use this method on any day that you use the standard meal allowance (as explained under Line 24b, later).
You can’t deduct expenses for attending a convention, seminar, or similar meeting held outside the North American area unless the meeting is directly related to your trade or business and it is as reasonable for the meeting to be held outside the North American area as within it. These rules apply to both employers and employees. Other rules apply to luxury water travel.
For details on travel expenses, see chapter 1 of Pub. 463.

# Line 24b

Enter your deductible business meal expenses. This includes expenses for meals while traveling away from home for business. Your deductible business meal expenses are a percentage of your actual business meal expenses or standard meal allowance. See Amount of deduction, later, for the percentage that applies to your actual meal expenses or standard meal allowance. In most cases, the percentage is 50%.
Do not include entertainment expenses on this line.
Business meal expenses. You can deduct a percentage of the actual cost of a meal if the following conditions are met.

• The meal expense was an ordinary and necessary expense in carrying on your trade or business.
• The expense was not lavish or extravagant under the circumstances.
• You or your employee was present at the meal.
• The meal was provided to a current or potential business customer, client, consultant, or similar business contact.
• In the case of food or beverages provided during or at an entertainment event, the food and beverages were purchased separately from the entertainment, or the cost of the food and beverages was stated separately from the cost of the entertainment on one or more bills, invoices, or receipts.

You cannot avoid the entertain-
! ment disallowance rule by inflating the amount charged for CAUTION food and beverages.
See Notice 2018-76 for examples and more information. Notice 2018-76 is available at IRS.gov/irb/
2018-42_IRB#NOT-2018-76. Standard meal allowance. Instead of deducting the actual cost of your meals while traveling away from home, you can use the standard meal allowance for your daily meals and incidental expenses. Under this method, you deduct a specified amount, depending on where you travel, instead of keeping records of your actual meal expenses. However, you must still keep records to prove the time, place, and business purpose of your travel.
The standard meal allowance is the federal meals and incidental expenses (M&IE) rate. You can find these rates for locations inside and outside the continental United States by going to the General Services Administration's website at GSA.gov/travel/plan-book/perdiem-rates/mie-breakdown. See chapter 2 of Pub. 463 for details on how to figure your deduction using the standard meal allowance, including special rules for partial days of travel.
For special per diem rates and rules of high cost locales, see Notice 2023-68, available at IRS.gov/irb/
2023-41_IRB#NOT-2023-68. See also Notice 2024-68, available at
IRS.gov/irb/
2024-41_IRB#NOT-2024-68. Amount of deduction. For business meals, you can deduct 50% of your business meal expenses, including meals incurred while away from home on business. However, for individuals subject to the Department of Transportation (DOT) hours of service limits, the percentage for other business meals is increased to 80% for business meals consumed during, or incident to, any period of duty for which those limits are in effect. Individuals subject to the DOT hours of service limits include the following.

• Certain air transportation workers (such as pilots, crew, dispatchers, mechanics, and control tower operators) who are under Federal Aviation Administration regulations.
• Interstate truck operators who are under DOT regulations.
• Certain merchant mariners who are under Coast Guard regulations.

However, you can fully deduct meals and incidentals furnished or reimbursed to an employee if you properly treat the expense as wages subject to withholding. You can also fully deduct meals and incidentals provided to a nonemployee to the extent the expenses are includible in the gross income of that person and reported on Form 1099-NEC. See chapter 5 of Pub. 15 (Circular E), Employer’s Tax Guide, for details and other exceptions. See also chapter 8 of Pub. 334.
Daycare providers. If you qualify as a family daycare provider, you can use the standard meal and snack rates, instead of actual costs, to figure the deductible cost of meals and snacks provided to eligible children. If you receive reimbursement under a food program of the Department of Agriculture, only deduct the cost of food that exceeds reimbursement, if any.
See Pub. 587 for details, including recordkeeping requirements.

# Line 25

Deduct utility expenses only for your trade or business.
Local telephone service. If you used your home phone for business, do not deduct the base rate (including taxes) of the first phone line into your residence.
But you can deduct any additional costs you incurred for business that are more than the base rate of the first phone line.
For example, if you had a second line, you can deduct the business percentage of the charges for that line, including the base rate charges.

# Line 26

Enter the total salaries and wages for the tax year reduced by the amount of the following credit(s), if applicable.

• Work Opportunity Credit (Form 5884).
• Empowerment Zone Employment Credit (Form 8844).
• Credit for Employer Differential Wage Payments (Form 8932).
• Employer Credit for Paid Family and Medical Leave (Form 8994).

Do not reduce your deduction for any portion of a credit that was passed through to you from a pass-through entity. See the instructions for the credit form for more information.
Do not include salaries and wages deducted elsewhere on your return or amounts paid to yourself.
If you provided taxable fringe
! benefits to your employees, such as personal use of a car, CAUTION do not deduct as wages the amount applicable to depreciation and other expenses claimed elsewhere.
In most cases, you are required to file Form W-2 for each employee. See the General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3.

# Line 27b

Energy efficient commercial buildings deduction. You may be able to deduct part or all of the expenses of modifying an existing commercial building to make it energy efficient. For details, see Form 7205 and its instructions. Attach Form 7205 to your tax return.

# Line 30

Business use of your home. You may be able to deduct certain expenses for business use of your home, subject to limitations. To claim a deduction for business use of your home, use Form 8829, or you can elect to determine the amount of the deduction using a simplified method.
If you have a business use of another If you conduct more than one busihome, you can’t use the simplified meth- ness that qualifies for this deduction in od for that home. You can use the Form your home, your election to use the sim-8829 to claim expenses for business use plified method applies to all your qualiof the other home. fied business uses of your home. You are limited to a maximum of 300 square feet Beginning in tax year 2024, filers of for all of the businesses you conduct in Form 1040-SS can use Form 8829 to your home that qualify for this deducfigure their business use of home deduction. Allocate the actual square footage tion, if applicable. used (up to the maximum 300 square For additional information about feet) among your qualified business uses claiming this deduction, see Pub. 587. in any reasonable manner you choose, If you are not using the simpli- but you may not allocate more square fied method to determine the TIP feet to a qualified business use than you amount of expenses you may actually use in that business. deduct for business use of a home, do not complete the additional entry spaces on line 30 for total square footage of your home and of the part of the home used for business. Instead, include the amount from line 36 of your Form 8829 on line 30.
Simplified method. The simplified method is an alternative to the calculation, allocation, and substantiation of actual expenses. In most cases, you’ll figure your deduction by multiplying the area (measured in square feet) used regularly and exclusively for business, regularly for daycare, or regularly for storage of inventory or product samples, by $5. The area you use to figure your deduction cannot exceed 300 square feet.
You cannot use the simplified method to figure a deduction for rental use of your home.
Electing to use the simplified method. You choose whether or not to use the simplified method each tax year.
Make the election by using the simplified method to figure the deduction for the qualified business use of a home on a timely filed, original federal income tax return for that year. An election for a year, once made, is irrevocable. A change from using the simplified method in one year to actual expenses in a succeeding year, or vice versa, is not a change in method of accounting and does not require the consent of the Commissioner.
If you share your home with someone else who uses the home for a separate business that qualifies for this deduction, each of you may make your own election, but not for the same portion of the home.
Instructions for the Simplified Method Worksheet
Use this worksheet to figure the amount of expenses you may deduct for a qualified business use of a home if you are electing to use the simplified method for that home. If you are not electing to use the simplified method, use Form 8829.
Line 1. If all gross income from your trade or business is from this qualified business use of your home, figure your gross income limitation as follows.
A. Enter the amount from Schedule C, line 29 …
B. Enter any gain derived from the business use of your home and shown on Form 8949 (and included on Schedule D) or Form 4797 …
C. Add lines A and B …
D. Enter the total amount of any losses (as a positive number) shown on Form 8949 (and included on Schedule D) or Form 4797 that are allocable to the business, but not allocable to the business use of the home …
E. Gross income limitation. Subtract line D from line C. Enter the result here and on line 1 of the simplified method worksheet … If some of the income is from a place of business other than your home, you must first determine the part of your gross income (Schedule C, line 7, and gains from Form 8949, Schedule D and Form 4797) from the business use of your home. In making this determination, consider the amount of time you spent at each location as well as other facts. After determining the part of your gross income from the business use of your home, subtract from that amount the total expenses shown on Schedule C, line 28, plus any losses shown on Form 8949 (and included on Schedule D) or Form 4797 that are allocable to the business in which you use your home but that are not allocable to the business use of the home. Enter the result on line 1 of the simplified method worksheet.
Note: If you had more than one home in which you conducted this business during the year, include only the income earned and the deductions attributable to that income during the period you owned the home for which you elected to use the simplified method.
Line 2. If you used the same area for the entire year, enter the smaller of the square feet you actually used or 300. If you and your spouse conducted the business as a qualified joint venture, split the square feet between you and your spouse in the same manner you split your other tax attributes. If you shared space with someone else, used the home for business for only part of the year, or the area you used changed during the year, see Figuring your allowable expenses for business use of the home, before entering an amount on this line. Do not enter more than 300 square feet or, if applicable, the average monthly allowable square footage on this line. See Part-year use or area changes (for simplified method only), later, for more information on how to figure your average monthly allowable square footage.
Line 3b. If your qualified business use is providing daycare, you may need to account for the time that you used the same part of your home for other purposes.
If you used the part of your home exclusively and regularly for providing daycare, enter 1.0 on line 3b. If you did not use the part of your home exclusively for providing daycare, complete the Daycare Facility Worksheet to figure what number to enter on line 3b.
Line 6. Because you are using the simplified method this year, you cannot deduct the amounts you entered on lines 6a and 6b this year. If you file Form 8829 in a later year for your qualified business use of this home, you will be able to include these expenses when you figure your deduction.
6a. If you didn’t file a 2023 Form 8829, your carryover of prior-year operating expenses is the amount of operating expenses shown in Part IV of the last Form 8829, if any, that you filed to claim a deduction for business use of the home. If you filed Form 1040-SS prior to 2024 and used a worksheet in Pub. 587 to figure your carryover of unallowed expenses, your carryover of prior-year operating expenses is the amount of operating expenses shown on your last worksheet from Pub. 587, if any, that you used to claim a deduction for business use of the home. This will be the amount from line 6a of the Simplified Method Worksheet or line 41 of the Worksheet to Figure the Deduction for Business Use of Your Home in Pub. 587.
6b. If you didn’t file a 2023 Form 8829, your carryover of prior-year excess casualty losses and depreciation is the amount of excess casualty losses and depreciation shown in Part IV of the last Form 8829, if any, that you filed to claim a deduction for business use of the home. If you filed Form 1040-SS prior to 2024 and used a worksheet in Pub. 587 to figure your carryover of unallowed expenses, your carryover of prior-year excess casualty losses and depreciation is the amount of excess casualty losses and depreciation shown on your last worksheet from Pub. 587, if any, that you used to claim a deduction for business use of the home. This will be the amount from line 6b of the Simplified Method Worksheet or line 42 of the Worksheet to Figure the Deduction for Business Use of Your Home in Pub.
587.
Simplified Method Worksheet Keep for Your Records

1. Enter the amount of the gross income limitation. See the Instructions for the Simplified Method Worksheet above … 1.
2. Allowable square footage for the qualified business use. Don’t enter more than 300 square feet. See the Instructions for the Simplified Method Worksheet above … 2.
3. Simplified method amount a. Maximum allowable amount … 3a. $5 b. For daycare facilities not used exclusively for business, see the instructions for line 3b of this worksheet above, and enter the decimal amount from the Daycare Facility Worksheet; otherwise, enter 1.0 … 3b. c. Multiply line 3a by line 3b and enter the result to 2 decimal places … 3c.
4. Multiply line 2 by line 3c … 4.
5. Allowable expenses using the simplified method. Enter the smaller of line 1 or line 4 here and include that amount on Schedule C, line 30. If zero or less, enter -0- … 5.
6. Carryover of unallowed expenses from a prior year that are not allowed in 2024. Form 1040-SS filers, see the instructions above before completing. a. Operating expenses. Enter the amount from your last Form 8829, line 43 (line 42 if before 2018). See the instructions for line 6a above … 6a. b. Excess casualty losses and depreciation. Enter the amount from your last Form 8829, line 44 (line 43 if before 2018). See the instructions for line 6b above … 6b.

Instructions for the Daycare Facility Worksheet
Use this worksheet to figure the percentage to use on line 3b of the Simplified Method Worksheet. If you don’t use the area of your home exclusively for daycare, you must reduce the prescribed rate before figuring your deduction using the simplified method.
TIP
If you used at least 300 square feet for daycare regularly and exclusively during the year, then you don’t need to complete this worksheet. This worksheet is only needed if you did not use the allowable area exclusively for daycare.
Line 1. Enter the total number of hours the facility was used for daycare during the year.
Example. Your home is used Monday through Friday for 12 hours per day for 250 days during the year. It’s also used on 50 Saturdays for 8 hours a day. Enter 3,400 hours on line 4 (3,000 hours for weekdays plus 400 hours for Saturdays).
Line 2. If you used your home for daycare during the entire year, multiply 365 days (366 for a leap year) by 24 hours, and enter the result.
If you started or stopped using your home for daycare during the year, you must prorate the number of hours based on the number of days the home was available for daycare. Multiply 24 hours by the number of days available and enter the result.
Daycare Facility Worksheet (for simplified method)

1. Multiply days used for daycare during the year by hours used per day … 1.
2. Total hours available for use during the year. See the Instructions for the Daycare Facility Worksheet … 2.
3. Divide line 1 by line 2. Enter the result as a decimal amount here and on line 3b of the Simplified Method Worksheet … 3.

If you used your home for more
! than one business, you will need to file a separate Sched-CAUTION ule C for each business. Don’t combine your deductions for each business use on a single Schedule C.
Business use of more than one home. You may have used more than one home in your business. If you used more than one home for the same business during 2024, you may elect to use the simplified method for only one home; you must file a Form 8829 to claim a business use of the home deduction for any additional home. If one or more of the homes were not used for the entire year (for example, you moved during the year), see Part-year use or area changes (for simplified method only), later, and Columns (a) and (b) in the Instructions for Form 8829.
Other requirements must still be met. You must still meet all the use requirements to claim a deduction for business use of the home. The simplified method is only an alternative to the calculation, allocation, and substantiation of actual expenses. The simplified method is not an alternative to the exclusivity and other tests that must be met in order to qualify for this deduction. For more information about qualifying business uses, see Qualifying for a Deduction in
Pub. 587.
Gross income limitation. The amount of your deduction is still limited to the gross income derived from qualified business use of the home reduced by the business deductions that are not related to your use of the home. If this limitation reduces the amount of your deduction, you can’t carry over the difference to another tax year.
Carryover of actual expenses from
Form 8829. If you used Form 8829 in a prior year, and you had actual expenses that you could carry over to the next year, you can’t claim those expenses if you are using the simplified method. Instead, the actual expenses from Form 8829 that were not allowed will be carried over to the next year that you use actual expenses to figure your deduction.
Carryover of actual expenses for
Form 1040-SS filers. If you filed Form 1040-SS prior to 2024 and used a worksheet in Pub. 587 to figure your actual expenses that you could carry over to the next year, you can't claim those expenses if you are using the simplified method. Instead, the amount of your Operating expenses and Excess casualty losses and depreciation from your worksheet in Pub. 587 that were not allowed will be carried over to the next year that you use actual expenses to figure your deduction. The next time you claim actual expenses you need to file Form 8829.
Depreciation of home. You can’t deduct any depreciation (including any additional first-year depreciation) or section 179 expense for the portion of your home that is used in a qualified business use if you figure the deduction for the business use of your home using the simplified method. The depreciation deduction allowable for that portion of the home for that year is deemed to be zero.
Although you can’t deduct any depreciation or section 179 ex-TIP pense for the portion of your home that is a qualified business use because you elect to use the simplified method, you may still claim depreciation or the section 179 expense deduction on other assets (for example, furniture and equipment) used in the qualified business use of your home.
Figuring your allowable expenses for business use of the home. You will figure the deduction using Form 8829 or the Simplified Method Worksheet, or both.
You may not use the simplified
! method and also file Form
8829 for the same qualified
CAUTION business use of the same home.
Using Form 8829. Use Form 8829 to figure and claim this deduction for a home if you are not or cannot use the simplified method for that home. For information about claiming this deduction using Form 8829, see the Instructions for Form 8829 and Pub. 587.
Using the simplified method. Use the Simplified Method Worksheet in these instructions to figure your deduction for a qualified business use of your home if you are electing to use the simplified method for that home.
Shared use (for simplified method only). If you share your home with someone else who uses the home for a separate business that also qualifies for this deduction, you may not include the same square feet to figure your deduction as the other person. You must allocate the shared space between you and the other person in a reasonable manner.
Example. Taylor and Logan are roommates. Taylor uses 300 square feet of their home for a qualified business use. Logan uses 200 square feet of their home for a separate qualified business use. The qualified business uses share 100 square feet. In addition to the portion that they don’t share, Taylor and Logan can both claim 50 of the 100 square feet or divide the 100 square feet between them in any reasonable manner.
If divided evenly, Taylor could claim 250 square feet using the simplified method and Logan could claim 150 square feet.
Part-year use or area changes (for simplified method only). If your qualified business use was for a portion of the tax year (for example, a seasonal business, a business that begins during the year, or you moved during the year) or you changed the square footage of your qualified business use, your deduction is limited to the average monthly allowable square footage. You figure the average monthly allowable square footage by adding the amount of allowable square feet you used in each month and dividing the sum by 12.
When determining the average monthly allowable square footage, you can’t take more than 300 square feet into account for any one month. Additionally, if your qualified business use was less than 15 days in a month, use -0- for that month.
Example 1. Finley files a federal income tax return on a calendar year basis.
On July 20, Finley began using 400 square feet of the home for a qualified business use. Finley continued to use the 400 square feet until the end of the year.
Finley's average monthly allowable square footage is 125 square feet (300 square feet for August through December divided by the number of months in the year ((300 + 300 + 300 + 300 + 300)/12)).
Example 2. Riley files a federal income tax return on a calendar year basis.
On April 20, Riley began using 100 square feet of the home for a qualified business use. On August 5, Riley expanded the area of qualified business use to 350 square feet. Riley continued to use the 350 square feet until the end of the year. Riley's average monthly allowable square footage is 150 square feet (100 square feet for May through July and 300 square feet for August through December divided by the number of months in the year ((100 + 100 +100 + 300 + 300 + 300 + 300 + 300)/12)).
Example 3. Carter files a federal income tax return on a calendar year basis.
From January 1 through July 16, Carter used 300 square feet of the home for a qualified business use. On July 17, Carter moved to a new home and immediately began using 200 square feet of the new home for the same qualified business use. Using the simplified method to deduct expenses for the qualified business use for the previous home, Carter’s average monthly allowable square footage is 175 square feet (300 square feet for January through July divided by the number of months in the year ((300 + 300 + 300 + 300 + 300 + 300 + 300)/ 12)). Carter also prepared Form 8829 to deduct the actual expenses associated with the qualified business use of the new home.
Once you have determined your allowable square footage, enter the result on line 2 of the Simplified Method Worksheet.
If you moved during the year,
! your average allowable square footage will generally be less CAUTION than 300.
You can use the Area Adjustment Worksheet in Pub. 587 to TIP help you determine the allowable square footage to enter on line 2 of the Simplified Method Worksheet.
Reporting your expenses for business use of the home. If you didn’t use the simplified method, include the amount from line 36 of Form 8829 on line 30 of the Schedule C you are filing for that business.
If you used the simplified method. If you elect to use the simplified method for the business use of a home, complete the additional entry spaces on line 30 for that home only. Include the amount from line 5 of the Simplified Method Worksheet on line 30.
If you itemize your deductions on Schedule A (Form 1040), you may deduct your mortgage interest, real estate taxes, and casualty losses on Schedule A (Form 1040) as if you didn’t use your home for business. You can’t deduct any excess mortgage interest, excess real estate taxes, or excess casualty losses on Schedule C for this home.
Use Part II of Schedule C to deduct business expenses that are unrelated to the qualified business use of the home (for example, expenses for advertising, wages, or supplies, or depreciation of equipment or furniture).
Deduction figured on multiple forms. If you used more than one home for a business during the year, use a Form 8829 for each home or use the simplified method for one home and Form 8829 for any other home. Combine the amount you figured using the simplified method and the amounts you figured on your Forms 8829, and then enter the total on line 30 of the Schedule C for that business.

# Line 31

Figuring your net profit or loss. If your expenses (including the expenses you report on line 30) are more than your gross income, don’t enter your loss on line 31 until you have applied the at-risk rules and the passive activity loss rules. To apply these rules, follow the instructions under Line 32, later, and the Instructions for Form 8582. After applying those rules, the amount on line 31 will be your loss, and it may be smaller than the amount you figured by subtracting line 30 from line 29.
If your gross income is more than your expenses (including the expenses you report on line 30), and you don’t have prior year unallowed passive activity losses, subtract line 30 from line 29.
The result is your net profit.
If your gross income is more than your expenses (including the expenses you report on line 30), and you have prior year unallowed passive activity losses, don’t enter your net profit on line 31 until you have figured the amount of prior year unallowed passive activity losses you may claim this year for this activity.
Use Form 8582 to figure the amount of prior year unallowed passive activity losses you may include on line 31. Be sure to indicate that you are including prior year passive activity losses by entering "PAL" to the left of the entry space.
If you checked the "No" box on line G, see the Instructions for Form 8582; you may need to include information from this schedule on Form 8582, even if you have a net profit.
Rental real estate activity. Unless you are a qualifying real estate professional, a rental real estate activity is a passive activity, even if you materially participated in the activity. If you have a loss, you may need to file Form 8582 to apply a limitation that may reduce your loss. See the Instructions for Form 8582.
Reporting your net profit or loss.
Once you have figured your net profit or loss, report it as follows.
If you enter a loss on line 31,
! you may have an excess business loss. Use Form 461 to fig-CAUTION ure your excess business loss.
Individuals. Enter your net profit or loss on line 31 and include it on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 3. Also, include your net profit or loss on Schedule SE, line 2. However, if you are a statutory employee or notary public, see Statutory employees or Notary public, later.
Nonresident aliens. Enter your net profit or loss on line 31 and include it on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 3. You should also include this amount on Schedule SE, line 2, if you are covered under the U.S. social security system due to an international social security agreement currently in effect. See the Instructions for Schedule SE for information on international social security agreements. However, if you are a statutory employee or notary public, see Statutory employees or Notary public, later.
Trusts and estates. Enter the net profit or loss on line 31 and include it on Form 1041, line 3.
Statutory employees. Enter your net profit or loss on line 31 and include it on Schedule 1 (Form 1040), line 3. However, do not report this amount on Schedule SE, line 2. If you were a statutory employee and you are required to file Schedule SE because of other self-employment income, see the Instructions for Schedule SE.
Notary public. Do not enter your net profit from line 31 on Schedule SE, line 2, unless you are required to file Schedule SE because you have other self-employment income. See the Instructions for Schedule SE.
You can deduct one-half of your self-employment tax on Sched-TIP ule 1 (Form 1040), line 15. See the Instructions for Schedule SE for details.
Community income. If you and your spouse had community income and are filing separate returns, see the Instructions for Schedule SE before figuring self-employment tax.
Earned income credit (EIC). If you have a net profit on line 31, this amount is earned income and may qualify you for the EIC.
To figure your EIC, use the in-
! structions for Form 1040, line 27. Complete all applica-CAUTION ble steps plus Worksheet B. If you are required to file Schedule SE, remember to enter one-half of your self-employment tax in Part 1, line 1d, of Worksheet B.

# Line 32

You don’t need to complete line 32 if line 7 is more than the TIP total of lines 28 and 30.
At-risk rules. In most cases, if you have a business loss and amounts invested in the business for which you are not at risk, complete Form 6198 to apply a limitation that may reduce your loss.
The at-risk rules generally limit the amount of loss (including loss on the disposition of assets) you can claim to the amount you could actually lose in the business.
Check box 32b if you have amounts invested in this business for which you are not at risk, such as the following.

• Nonrecourse loans used to finance the business, to acquire property used in the business, or to acquire the business that are not secured by your own property (other than property used in the business), and for which you are not personally responsible to repay. However, there is an exception for certain nonrecourse financing borrowed by you in connection with holding real property. See the Instructions for Form 6198 and Pub.

925.

• Cash, property, or borrowed amounts used in the business (or contributed to the business, or used to acquire the business) that are protected against loss by a guarantee, stop-loss agreement, or other similar arrangement (excluding casualty insurance and insurance against tort liability).
• Amounts borrowed for use in the business from a person who has an interest in the business, other than as a creditor, or who is related under section 465(b)(3)(C) to a person (other than you) having such an interest.

Figuring your loss. Before determining your loss, check box 32a or 32b to indicate whether the loss from your business activity is limited by the at-risk rules.
Follow the instructions, next, that apply to your box 32 activity.
Note. Line 32 doesn't apply to filers of Form 1040-SS.
All investment is at risk. If all amounts are at risk in this business, check box 32a. If you answered “Yes” on line G, your loss will not be reduced by the at-risk rules or the passive activity loss rules. See Line 31, earlier, for how to report your loss.
If you answered “No” on line G, you may need to complete Form 8582 to figure your loss to enter on line 31. See the Instructions for Form 8582 for details.
Some investment is not at risk. If some investment is not at risk, check box 32b; the at-risk rules apply to your loss. Be sure to attach Form 6198 to your return.
If you answered "Yes" on line G, complete Form 6198 to figure the loss to enter on line 31. The passive activity loss rules do not apply. See Line 31, earlier, for how to report your loss.
If you answered "No" on line G, the passive activity loss rules may apply.
First, complete Form 6198 to figure the amount of your profit or (loss) for the at-risk activity, which may include amounts reported on other forms and schedules, and the at-risk amount for the activity. Follow the Instructions for Form 6198 to determine how much of your Schedule C loss will be allowed.
After you figure the amount of your loss that is allowed under the at-risk rules, you may need to complete Form 8582 to figure the passive activity loss to enter on line 31. See the Instructions for Form 8582 for details.
If you checked box 32b because
! some investment is not at risk and you do not attach Form
CAUTION
6198, the processing of your return may be delayed.
At-risk loss deduction. Any loss from this business not allowed for 2024 only because of the at-risk rules is treated as a deduction allocable to the business in 2025.
More information. For details, see the Instructions for Form 6198 and Pub.
925.

# Part III. Cost of

Goods Sold
In most cases, if you engaged in a trade or business in which the production, purchase, or sale of merchandise was an income-producing factor, you must take inventories into account at the beginning and end of your tax year.
Exception for small business taxpayers. If you are a small business taxpayer, you can choose not to keep an inventory, but you must still use a method of accounting for inventory that clearly reflects income. If you choose not to keep an inventory, you won't be treated as failing to clearly reflect income if your method of accounting for inventory treats inventory as non-incidental material or supplies, or conforms to your financial accounting treatment of inventories. If, however, you choose to keep an inventory, you must generally value the inventory each year to determine your cost of goods sold in Part III of Schedule C.
Small business taxpayer. You qualify as a small business taxpayer if you (a) have average annual gross receipts of $30 million or less for the 3 prior tax years, and (b) are not a tax shelter (as defined in section 448(d)(3)).
If your business has not been in existence for all of the 3-tax-year period used in figuring average gross receipts, base your average on the period it has existed, and if your business has a predecessor entity, include the gross receipts of the predecessor entity from the 3-tax-year period when figuring average gross receipts. If your business (or predecessor entity) had short tax years for any of the 3-tax-year period, annualize your business' gross receipts for the short tax years that are part of the 3-tax-year period.
See Pub. 538 for more information.
Treating inventory as non-incidental material or supplies. If you account for inventories as materials and supplies that are not incidental, you deduct the amounts paid to acquire or produce the inventoriable items (treated as materials and supplies) in the year in which they are first used or consumed in your operations.
Financial accounting treatment of inventories. Your financial accounting treatment of inventories is determined with regard to the method of accounting you use in your applicable financial statement (as defined in section 451(b) (3)) or, if you don’t have an applicable financial statement, with regard to the method of accounting you use in your books and records that have been prepared in accordance with your accounting procedures.
More information. For more information about this exception for small businesses using this method of accounting for inventoriable items, see Pub.
538.
Changing your method of accounting for inventory. If you want to change your method of accounting for inventory, file Form 3115. For details, see Line F, earlier.
Certain direct and indirect ex-
! penses may have to be capitalized or included in inventory.
CAUTION
See Part II, earlier. See Pub. 538 for additional information.

# Line 33

Your inventories can be valued at cost, the lower of cost or market, or any other method approved by the IRS.
Line 33 doesn't apply to filers of Form 1040-SS.

# Line 35

If you are changing your method of accounting beginning with 2024, refigure last year's closing inventory using your new method of accounting and enter the result on line 35. If there is a difference between last year's closing inventory and the refigured amount, attach an explanation and take it into account when figuring your section 481(a) adjustment.
For details, see the example under Line F, earlier.

# Part IV. Information on Your Vehicle

# Line 44b

In most cases, commuting is travel between your home and a work location. If you converted your vehicle during the year from personal to business use (or vice versa), enter your commuting miles only for the period you drove your vehicle for business.
Travel that meets any of the following conditions isn't commuting; it is considered deductible business travel.

• You have at least one regular work location away from your home and the travel is to a temporary work location in the same trade or business, regardless of the distance. Generally, a temporary work location is one where your employment is expected to last 1 year or less. See Pub. 463 for more details.
• The travel is to a temporary work location outside the metropolitan area where you live and normally work.
• Your home is your principal place of business under section 280A(c)(1)(A) (for purposes of deducting expenses for business use of your home) and the travel is to another work location in the same trade or business, regardless of whether that location is regular or temporary and regardless of distance.

# Line 47

Specific recordkeeping rules apply to car or truck expenses. For more information about what records you must keep, see Pub. 463.
You may maintain written evidence by using an electronic storage system that meets certain requirements. For more information about electronic storage systems, see Pub. 583.

# Part V. Other

Expenses. Line 48
Include all ordinary and necessary business expenses not deducted elsewhere on Schedule C. List the type and amount of each expense separately in the space provided. Enter the total on lines 48 and
27a. Do not include the cost of business equipment or furniture; replacements or permanent improvements to property; or personal, living, and family expenses.
Do not include charitable contributions.
Also, you can’t deduct fines or penalties paid to a government for violating any law. For details on business expenses, see Pub. 334, chapter 8.
Amortization. Include amortization in this part. For amortization that begins in 2024, complete and attach Form 4562.
You can amortize such costs as:

• The cost of pollution-control facilities;
• Amounts paid for research and experimentation;
• Amounts paid to acquire, protect, expand, register, or defend trademarks or trade names; or
• Goodwill and certain other intangibles.

In most cases, you cannot amortize real property construction period interest and taxes. Special rules apply for allocating interest to real or personal property produced in your trade or business.
For a complete list, see the instructions for Form 4562, Part VI.
At-risk loss deduction. Any loss from this business that was not allowed last year because of the at-risk rules is treated as a deduction allocable to this business in 2024.
Bad debts. Include debts and partial debts from sales or services that were included in income and are definitely known to be worthless. If you later collect a debt that you deducted as a bad debt, include it as income in the year collected. For details, see Pub. 334, chapter 8.
Business startup costs. If your business began in 2024, you can elect to deduct up to $5,000 of certain business startup costs. The $5,000 limit is reduced (but not below zero) by the amount by which your total startup costs exceed $50,000. Your remaining startup costs can be amortized over a 180-month period, beginning with the month the business began.
For details, see IRS.gov/Newsroom/ Heres-how-businesses-can-deductstartup-costs-from-their-federal-taxes. For amortization that begins in 2024, complete and attach Form 4562.
Deduction for removing barriers to individuals with disabilities and the elderly. You may be able to deduct up to $15,000 of costs paid or incurred in 2024 to remove architectural or transportation barriers to individuals with disabilities and the elderly. However, you can’t take both a credit (on Form

1. and a deduction for the same expenditures.

Nontaxable Medicaid waiver payments. Include the nontaxable amount of your Medicaid waiver payments. See Medicaid waiver payments, earlier.
De minimis safe harbor for tangible property. Generally, you must capitalize costs to acquire or produce real or tangible personal property used in your trade or business, such as buildings, equipment, or furniture. However, if you elect to use the de minimis safe harbor for tangible property, you may deduct de minimis amounts paid to acquire or produce certain tangible property if these amounts are deducted by you for financial accounting purposes or in keeping your books and records.
If you have an applicable financial statement, you may use this safe harbor to deduct amounts paid for tangible property up to $5,000 per item or invoice. If you don't have an applicable financial statement, you may use the de minimis safe harbor to deduct amounts paid for tangible property up to $2,500 per item or invoice.
Only deduct these amounts as other expenses. Don't include these amounts on any other line.
For details on making this election and requirements for using the de minimis safe harbor for tangible property, see chapter 8 of Pub. 334. Film and television and live theatrical production expenses. You can elect to deduct costs of certain qualified film and television productions or qualified live theatrical productions. See section 181, for details.
Forestation and reforestation costs.
Reforestation costs are generally capital expenditures. However, for each qualified timber property, you can elect to expense up to $10,000 ($5,000 if married filing separately) of qualifying reforestation costs paid or incurred in 2024.
You can elect to amortize the remaining costs over 84 months. For amortization that begins in 2024, complete and attach Form 4562.
The amortization election and the expense election don’t apply to trusts. For details on reforestation expenses, see chapter 4 of Pub. 225.
Paperwork Reduction Act Notice. We ask for the information on Schedule C (Form 1040) to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the United States. You are required to give us the information.
We need it to ensure that you are complying with these laws and to allow us to figure and collect the right amount of tax.
You are not required to provide the information requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act unless the form displays a valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a form or its instructions must be retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any Internal Revenue law. Generally, tax returns and return information are confidential, as required by section 6103.
The time needed to complete and file Schedule C (Form 1040) will vary depending on individual circumstances.
The estimated burden for individual taxpayers filing this form is included in the estimates shown in the instructions for their individual income tax return. The estimated burden for all other taxpayers who file this form is approved under OMB control number 1545-1974 and is shown next.
Recordkeeping 3 hr., 36 min.
…
Learning about the law or the form 1 hr., 19 min.
…
Preparing the form … 1 hr., 39 min.
Copying, assembling, and sending the form to the IRS 34 min.
…
If you have comments concerning the accuracy of these time estimates or suggestions for making this form simpler, we would be happy to hear from you.
See the instructions for the tax return with which this form is filed.
Principal Business or
Professional Activity
Codes
North American Industry six-digit codes are based on the North American estate agent). Now find the six-digit code assigned to Industry Classification System (NAICS).
Classification System (NAICS). this activity (for example, 531210, the code for offices of real estate agents and brokers) and enter it on Select the category that best describes your These codes for the Principal Business or Professional Schedule C, line B. primary business activity (for example, Real Estate).
Activity classify sole proprietorships by the type of Then select the activity that best identifies the principal activity they are engaged in to facilitate the
Note. If your principal source of income is from source of your sales or receipts (for example, real administration of the Internal Revenue Code. These
Accommodation, Food
113000 Forestry & logging (including forest nurseries & timber tracts)
Services, & Drinking Places
114210 Hunting & trapping
Accommodation
Support Activities for Agriculture &
721310 Rooming & boarding houses, Forestry dormitories, & workers' camps 115210 Support activities for animal 721210 RV (recreational vehicle) parks production (including farriers) & recreational camps 115110 Support activities for crop 721100 Traveler accommodation production (including cotton (including hotels, motels, & bed ginning, soil preparation, & breakfast inns) planting, & cultivating)
Food Services & Drinking Places
115310 Support activities for forestry 722514 Cafeterias, grill buffets, & Arts, Entertainment, & buffets
Recreation
722410 Drinking places (alcoholic beverages)
Amusement, Gambling, & Recreation
Industries
722511 Full-service restaurants 713100 Amusement parks & arcades 722513 Limited-service restaurants 713200 Gambling industries 722515 Snack & non-alcoholic beverage bars 713900 Other amusement & recreation services (including golf courses, 722300 Special food services (including skiing facilities, marinas, fitness food service contractors & centers, bowling centers, skating caterers) rinks, miniature golf courses)
Administrative & Support and
Museums, Historical Sites, & Similar
Waste Management &
Institutions
Remediation Services
712100 Museums, historical sites, & similar institutions
Administrative & Support Services
Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, &
561430 Business service centers
Related Industries
(including private mail centers 711410 Agents & managers for artists, & copy shops) athletes, entertainers, & other 561740 Carpet & upholstery cleaning public figures services 711510 Independent artists, writers, & 561440 Collection agencies performers 561450 Credit bureaus 711100 Performing arts companies 561410 Document preparation services 711300 Promoters of performing arts, 561300 Employment services sports, & similar events 561710 Exterminating & pest control 711210 Spectator sports (including services professional sports clubs & 561210 Facilities support (management) racetrack operations) services Construction of Buildings 561600 Investigation & security services 236200 Nonresidential building 561720 Janitorial services construction 561730 Landscaping services 236100 Residential building 561110 Office administrative services construction 561420 Telephone call centers Heavy and Civil Engineering (including telephone answering Construction services & telemarketing 237310 Highway, street, & bridge bureaus) construction 561500 Travel arrangement & 237210 Land subdivision reservation services 237100 Utility system construction 561490 Other business support services 237990 Other heavy & civil engineering (including repossession services, construction court reporting, & stenotype services) Specialty Trade Contractors 561790 Other services to buildings & 238310 Drywall & insulation dwellings contractors 561900 Other support services 238210 Electrical contractors (including packaging & labeling 238350 Finish carpentry contractors services, & convention & trade 238330 Flooring contractors show organizers) 238130 Framing carpentry contractors
Waste Management & Remediation
238150 Glass & glazing contractors
Services
238140 Masonry contractors
562000 Waste management & remediation services 238320 Painting & wall covering Agriculture, Forestry, Hunting, & contractors Fishing 238220 Plumbing, heating & air- conditioning contractors 112900 Animal production (including 238110 Poured concrete foundation & breeding of cats and dogs) structure contractors 114110 Fishing 238160 Roofing contractors farming activities, you should file Schedule F.
238170 Siding contractors 621400 Outpatient care centers 238910 Site preparation contractors 621900 Other ambulatory health care services (including ambulance 238120 Structural steel & precast services, blood, & organ banks) concrete construction contractors Hospitals 238340 Tile & terrazzo contractors 622000 Hospitals 238290 Other building equipment Nursing & Residential Care Facilities contractors 623000 Nursing & residential care 238390 Other building finishing facilities contractors
Social Assistance
238190 Other foundation, structure, & 624410 Childcare services building exterior contractors 624200 Community food & housing, & 238990 All other specialty trade emergency & other relief contractors services
Educational Services
624100 Individual & family services 624310 Vocational rehabilitation 611000 Educational services (including services schools, colleges, & Information universities)
Finance & Insurance
Publishing Industries
Credit Intermediation & Related 513000 Publishing industries
Activities
Broadcasting & Content Providers &
522100 Depository credit intermediation Telecommunications (including commercial banking, 516000 Broadcasting & content savings institutions, & credit providers unions) 517000 Telecommunications (including 522200 Nondepository credit Wired, Wireless, Satellite, Cable intermediation (including sales & Other Program Distribution, financing & consumer lending) Resellers, Agents, Other 522300 Activities related to credit Telecommunications, & Internet intermediation (including loan service providers) brokers)
Data Processing, Web Search Portals, &
Insurance Agents, Brokers, & Related Other Information Services
Activities
518210 Computing infrastructure 524210 Insurance agencies & providers, data processing, web brokerages hosting, & related services 524290 Other insurance related 519200 Web search portals, libraries, activities archives, & other info. services Securities, Commodity Contracts, & Motion Picture & Sound Recording
Other Financial Investments & Related
512100 Motion picture & video Activities industries (except video rental) 523160 Commodity contracts 512200 Sound recording industries intermediation
Manufacturing
523150 Investment banking & securities intermediation 315000 Apparel mfg.
523210 Securities & commodity 312000 Beverage & tobacco product exchanges mfg.
523900 Other financial investment 334000 Computer & electronic product activities (including investment mfg. advice) 335000 Electrical equipment, appliance,
Health Care & Social Assistance
& component mfg.
332000 Fabricated metal product mfg.
Ambulatory Health Care Services
337000 Furniture & related product mfg.
621610 Home health care services 333000 Machinery mfg.
621510 Medical & diagnostic laboratories 339110 Medical equipment & supplies mfg.
621310 Offices of chiropractors 322000 Paper mfg.
621210 Offices of dentists
324100 Petroleum & coal products mfg.
621330 Offices of mental health practitioners (except physicians) 326000 Plastics & rubber products mfg.
621320 Offices of optometrists 331000 Primary metal mfg.
621340 Offices of physical, 323100 Printing & related support occupational & speech activities therapists, & audiologists 313000 Textile mills 621111 Offices of physicians (except 314000 Textile product mills mental health specialists) 336000 Transportation equipment mfg.
621112 Offices of physicians, mental 321000 Wood product mfg. health specialists 339900 Other miscellaneous mfg.
621391 Offices of podiatrists
Chemical Manufacturing
621399 Offices of all other
325100 Basic chemical mfg. miscellaneous health practitioners
North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). (Continued) 325500 Paint, coating, & adhesive mfg. 811190 Other automotive repair & maintenance (including oil 325300 Pesticide, fertilizer, & other 532282 Video tape & disc rental 459410 Office supplies & stationery retailers 532289 Other consumer goods rental change & lubrication shops & agricultural chemical mfg. car washes) 325410 Pharmaceutical & medicine 811310 Commercial & industrial mfg.
459910 Pet & pet supplies retailers
Religious, Grantmaking, Civic,
459510 Used merchandise retailers
Professional, & Similar
459990 All other miscellaneous retailers machinery & equipment (except 325200 Resin, synthetic rubber, &
Organizations
(including tobacco, candle, & automotive & electronic) repair artificial & synthetic fibers & & maintenance filaments mfg.
811210 Electronic & precision 325600 Soap, cleaning compound, & trophy retailers) 813000 Religious, grantmaking, civic, professional, & similar Nonstore Retailers organizations xx Nonstore retailers sell all types equipment repair & maintenance toilet preparation mfg. Retail Trade of merchandise using such Footwear & leather goods repair 811430 325900 Other chemical product & methods as Internet, mail-order
Building Material & Garden
Home & garden equipment &
811410 preparation mfg. catalogs, interactive television, Equipment & Supplies Dealers appliance repair & maintenance Food Manufacturing or direct sales. These types of 444140 Hardware retailers Reupholstery & furniture repair 811420 311110 Animal food mfg.
Retailers should select the PBA associated with their primary 444110 Home centers Other personal & household 811490 311800 Bakeries, tortilla, & dry pasta goods repair & maintenance mfg.
Professional, Scientific, &
311500 Dairy product mfg.
Technical Services
311400 Fruit & vegetable preserving & speciality food mfg.
541100 Legal services
311200 Grain & oilseed milling 541211 Offices of certified public accountants 311610 Animal slaughtering & processing 541214 Payroll services 311710 Seafood product preparation & 541213 Tax preparation services packaging 541219 Other accounting services 311300 Sugar & confectionery product line of products sold.
444200 Lawn & garden equipment & xx For example, establishments supplies retailers primarily selling prescription 444120 Paint & wallpaper retailers and non-prescription drugs, 444180 Other building materials dealers select PBA code 456110 Pharmacies & Drug Retailers.
Clothing & Accessories Retailers
Transportation & Warehousing
458110 Clothing & clothing accessories retailers 481000 Air transportation 458310 Jewelry retailers 485510 Charter bus industry 458320 Luggage & leather goods 484110 General freight trucking, local retailers Architectural, Engineering, & Related mfg.
Services
311900 Other food mfg. (including 541310 Architectural services coffee, tea, flavorings, & 541350 Building inspection services seasonings) 541340 Drafting services
Leather & Allied Product
Manufacturing 541330 Engineering services 316210 Footwear mfg. (including 541360 Geophysical surveying & leather, rubber, & plastics) mapping services 316110 Leather & hide tanning & 484120 General freight trucking, long 458210 Shoe retailers distance
Electronic & Appliance Retailers
485210 Interurban & rural bus 449210 Electronics & appliance retailers transportation (including computers) 486000 Pipeline transportation
Food & Beverage Retailers
482110 Rail transportation
445320 Beer, wine, & liquor retailers 487000 Scenic & sightseeing 445250 Fish & seafood retailers transportation 445230 Fruit & vegetable retailers 485410 School & employee bus Landscape architecture services 541320 finishing 445100 Grocery & convenience retailers transportation Surveying & mapping (except 541370 316990 Other leather & allied product geophysical) services mfg.
445240 Meat retailers 484200 Specialized freight trucking (including household moving 445290 Other specialty food retailers Testing laboratories & services 541380 Nonmetallic Mineral Product vans) 445132 Vending machine operators
Computer Systems Design & Related
Manufacturing
Services
327300 Cement & concrete product 485300 Taxi, limousine, & ridesharing Furniture & Home Furnishings service
Retailers
Computer systems design &
541510 mfg. related services 327100 Clay product & refractory mfg.
Specialized Design Services
327210 Glass & glass product mfg.
541400 Specialized design services 327400 Lime & gypsum product mfg.
485110 Urban transit systems 449110 Furniture retailers 483000 Water transportation 449120 Home furnishings retailers 485990 Other transit & ground Gasoline Stations & Fuel dealers passenger transportation (including interior, industrial, graphic, & fashion design) 327900 Other nonmetallic mineral product mfg.
Other Professional, Scientific, &
Technical Services
Mining
457100 Gasoline stations (including 488000 Support activities for convenience stores with gas) transportation (including motor 457210 Fuel dealers (including heating vehicle towing) oil & liquefied petroleum)
Couriers & Messengers
Advertising, public relations, & 541800 212110 Coal mining related services 211120 Crude petroleum extraction 541600 Management, scientific, & 212200 Metal ore mining
General Merchandise Retailers
492000 Couriers & messengers 455000 General merchandise retailers
Warehousing & Storage Facilities
Health & Personal Care Retailers technical consulting services 211130 Natural gas extraction 541910 Market research & public opinion polling 212300 Nonmetallic mineral mining & quarrying 541920 Photographic services 213110 Support activities for mining 541700 Scientific research & development services
Other Services
493100 Warehousing & storage (except 456120 Cosmetics, beauty supplies, & leases of miniwarehouses & perfume retailers self-storage units) 456130 Optical goods retailers Utilities 456110 Pharmacies & drug retailers 221000 Utilities 456190 Other health & personal care Wholesale Trade retailers Translation & interpretation 541930 Personal & Laundry Services services 812111 Barber shops 541940 Veterinary services 812112 Beauty salons Motor Vehicle & Parts Dealers Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods 441300 Automotive parts, accessories, 423200 Furniture & home furnishing & tire retailers 423700 Hardware, & plumbing & All other professional, scientific, 541990 812220 Cemeteries & crematories & technical services 812310 Coin-operated laundries & 441222 Boat dealers heating equipment & supplies 441227 Motorcycle, ATV, & all other 423600 Household appliances & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing drycleaners
Real Estate
812320 Drycleaning & laundry services motor vehicle dealers electrical & electronic goods 441110 New car dealers 423940 Jewelry, watch, precious stone, Lessors of real estate (including 531100 (except coin-operated) & precious metals 441210 Recreational vehicle dealers miniwarehouses & self-storage (including laundry & units) drycleaning drop-off & pickup sites) (including motor home & travel 423300 Lumber & other construction trailer dealers) materials Offices of real estate agents & 531210 brokers 812210 Funeral homes & funeral services 441120 Used car dealers 423800 Machinery, equipment, & supplies
Sporting Goods, Hobby, Book, Musical
Offices of real estate appraisers 531320 812330 Linen & uniform supply Instrument & Miscellaneous Retailers 423500 Metal & mineral (except Real estate property managers 531310 812113 Nail salons petroleum) 459210 Book retailers & news dealers Other activities related to real 531390 estate 812930 Parking lots & garages
Rental & Leasing Services
812910 Pet care (except veterinary) services (including newsstands) 423100 Motor vehicle & motor vehicle parts & supplies 459120 Hobby, toy, & game retailers 423400 Professional & commercial 459140 Musical instrument & supplies equipment & supplies Automotive equipment rental & 532100 leasing 812920 Photofinishing 532400 Commercial & industrial 812190 Other personal care services retailers 423930 Recyclable materials 459130 Sewing, needlework, & piece goods retailers 423910 Sporting & recreational goods & machinery & equipment rental (including diet & weight & leasing reducing centers) 532210 Consumer electronics & 812990 All other personal services appliances rental Repair & Maintenance supplies 459110 Sporting goods retailers 423920 Toy & hobby goods & supplies 459920 Art dealers 423990 Other miscellaneous durable 459310 Florists goods 459420 Gift, novelty, & souvenir Formal wear & costume rental 532281 811120 Automotive body, paint, interior, 532310 General rental centers & glass repair Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable retailers
Goods
459930 Manufactured (mobile) home Home health equipment rental 532283 811110 Automotive mechanical & electrical repair & maintenance 532284 Recreational goods rental 424300 Apparel, piece goods, & notions dealers
North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). (Continued) 424800 Beer, wine, & distilled alcoholic 424910 beverages 424930 424920 Books, periodicals, & newspapers 424400 424600 Chemical & allied products 424950 424210 Drugs & druggists' sundries 424100 424500 Farm product raw materials
Wholesale Trade Agents &
Farm supplies 424700 Petroleum & petroleum products
Brokers
Flower, nursery stock, & florists' 424940 Tobacco products & electronic supplies cigarettes 425120 Wholesale trade agents & Grocery & related products 424990 Other miscellaneous nondurable brokers goods Paint, varnish, & supplies 999000 Unclassified establishments Paper & paper products
(unable to classify)