Deductible Expenses

• For self-employed individuals, when your main business office is your home, then the costs of transportation between your home to and from a client's location can be deducted. If you have no home office but you travel to multiple locations throughout the day, the costs for the first location visited are not tax deductible, but the costs for traveling to the other locations are deductible.
  
  

Non-Deductible Expenses

• Commuting expenses include taking a cab, bus, subway or driving your own vehicle between your main workplace and your home. The IRS defines theses costs as personal commuting expenses and they are not deductible.
  
  

Vehicle Expense Deductions

• If your vehicle is used primarily for your business, then there are deductions you can take. There are two deduction types: mileage rate and actual expenses. You can only choose one method for writing off costs associated with your vehicle. Actual expenses include lease payments, gas, oil, tolls paid, and registration costs. Also included are garage and repair fees, tires and insurance costs.
  
  

Mileage Rate

• The standard mileage rate as of 2010 is $.50 per mile. To be able to claim it, you must use the standard mileage rate in the first year that the vehicle is used by your business. The standard mileage rate cannot be claimed if your business is a vehicle-for-hire or it has a fleet of five or more cars.
  
  

Claiming Transportation Deductions

• The forms for claiming these deductions are forms 2106 and 2106-EZ. It is important to keep detailed records of business vs personal use of the vehicle in the event that there are questions from the Internal Revenue Service.