Ask Maxi · Deductions
Can I write off meals?
Generally half the cost, when the meal has a business purpose and you or an employee is present. A client lunch, a meal while traveling for work, a meal with a prospect or a vendor.
Fully deductible in a few cases, including food provided at a company party for employees.
Not deductible: eating alone on a normal workday near your office, groceries for the house, or entertainment — tickets, greens fees, a box at a game — which has not been deductible since 2018 even when business gets discussed.
What you need on the receipt: the date, the amount, where it was, who you were with and what the business purpose was. A name and four words on the back of the receipt is enough. Snap it into Cadence and it is done.
The practical test: if the meal would have happened anyway, it is not a business expense. If it happened because of the business, it is.
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