Entertainment, meals, gifts, and lodging: Deduction and recordkeeping requirements (Tax management portfolios)
by Ira B. Stechel
Category: Income tax deductions for expenses

" ... explains the substantive and procedural rules for deducting the costs of business entertainment, gifts and meals, and for excluding from an employee's income the value of meals and lodging provided by the employer. This Portfolio contains an exhaustive analysis of the limitations imposed by [sections] 162 and 274, as well as by other relevant statutory, regulatory, and case law limitations, on deductions for the costs of entertainment and gifts, as well as expenses for meals and unreimbursed employee business expenses. This Portfolio also analyzes the problems which arise in the context of determining whether a particular expense is a personal or business expenditure and whether an expense is deductible by the employer or by the employee incurring the cost. Additionally, this Portfolio discusses the impact of tax withholding on business expenses. Finally, because it is imperative that the taxpayer claiming the deduction of an expense be capable of substantiating the various elements of the expense, this Portfolio discusses in detail all relevant recordkeeping and reporting requirements"--P. iii.