As an airline flight crewmember it is important to understand the concept of a tax home. Many flight crewmembers confuse this concept, and in some cases, this could get pilots and flight attendants in potential trouble with the IRS.
A taxpayer’s tax home is generally defined as their regular place of business, despite where the taxpayer keeps his or her family home. For flight crews, this usually means the tax home is their base. In this article, we use hub, base, and domicile interchangeably. A pilot or flight attendant’s tax home is the city that airport is located (not just the airport itself). A crewmember’s tax home could be in the same location as their family home if they live in the same city (or general area) that they work from. For example, assume an airline pilot or a flight attendant lives in
A common misconception that many flight crewmembers have is that they can deduct certain employee business expenses related to their commute to their tax home. Many pilots and flight attendants try to deduct their “crash pad.” YOU TYPICALLY CANNOT DO THIS. Commuting related travel expenses to a crewmember’s tax home are not tax deductible.
There are a few circumstances or exceptions to this rule. Pilots and flight attendants may be able to deduct travel expenses if they are displaced, or receive a temporary duty assignment (aka a TDY). A temporary assignment is defined in IRS Publication 463 as a taxpayer expecting the new work location to last less than one year (and it actually lasting less than one year). If this situation applies, then the taxpayer may deduct travel expenses.
Don't let the concept of a tax home be too confusing. 99% of the time, the tax home is simply the pilot or flight attendant's domicile. If it changes during the tax year, the tax home changes to whatever the new base is. Again, EZPERDIEM.COM takes care of that situation automatically for you.
