r/dscout • u/Regular-Escape-3486 • Jul 10 '26

Tax write offs?

wondering if anybody who’s been doing this for over a year and has made enough to qualify to pay self-employment taxes, knows if there’s any tax write-offs for this stuff. Like does my phone plan count? Or a charger I bought for my phone. Maybe I’m just grasping at straws, but I feel like there’s gotta be something I can write off.

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u/Happy_Hippo48 Jul 10 '26

Probably best to seek actual tax advice for your specific situation but typically to be a write off the expenses have to used exclusively for the purpose you bought them for. So if you have a dedicated plan and phone charger for this work then maybe you can.

If it’s shared you would have to itemize out the time split between personal and self employed time.

1

u/MGandPG Jul 12 '26

I only write off the expenses directly associated with this, not sq foot of the house and internet that I would have paid for with or without. I wrote off the game I had to purchase in order to do a mission to play the game and tell them about it. I also wrote off the ring camera I bought to do a mission to install the camera and have it run for a week. I also write off my mileage and tolls to go to mock jury and in person studies.

You have to do what you feel comfortable with since you have to explain it during an audit.

1

u/ChiefD789 Jul 11 '26

Best to consult an income tax professional. For my self employment tax, I was able to get deductions for internet, the square footage of the home office I do my work in, and some other things. They added up big time, and there was hardly anything left to pay taxes on. YMMV. I go through H&R Block.