Industries
Transportation Tax Help
Recordkeeping and tax preparation for transportation businesses, plus insurance questions from Concord.
Transportation businesses live on mileage, fuel, repairs, and sometimes a fleet. We organize those records and prepare the return from the logs and statements you keep.
In-person meetings are by appointment in San Pablo or Concord. Remote work is available statewide. Commercial auto and other business coverage questions go to Josephine in Concord.
Services that usually fit
Documents to start
- Mileage or trip logs
- Fuel and repair receipts
- Vehicle list
- 1099s from brokers or platforms
- Payroll reports if you have drivers on payroll
Your chart of accounts, built for transportation
Stanza creates and maintains a chart of accounts so the deductions you are allowed to claim are identified and documented.
We set up income, cost of goods or job costs, and expense accounts organized around this industry’s deductible categories and the tax form lines they map to (Schedule C, or Form 1065 or Form 1120-S when the business files as a partnership or an S corporation). Sub-accounts separate items with a special tax treatment, so a repair is not mixed with a capital purchase and a liability is not booked as an expense.
Fuel
Fuel for the business vehicles is an operating expense when the vehicle is used for the business. Personal miles stay out.
Repairs
Ordinary repairs that keep a vehicle in service are generally a current expense. An overhaul that improves or restores the asset may have to be capitalized.
Tires
Tires are usually a current expense. Tracking them apart from the truck purchase keeps a capital asset from being expensed twice.
Tolls
Tolls on business routes are generally deductible. The account, plus the trip log, supports which trips were business.
Per diem
Per diem for meals and incidentals may be allowed when you are traveling away from home for business and the IRS rules for that method are met. Not every day on the road qualifies.
Truck depreciation
The truck is a capital asset. Depreciation or Section 179 may apply when the rules are met. The account keeps the asset off the repairs line.
IFTA and HVUT
IFTA fuel tax and the heavy vehicle use tax are tracked on their own so the filings and the return can find them. A penalty is not the same as the tax.
Driver pay
Wages and amounts paid to drivers who are contractors are different. Contractor payments are what you review for Form 1099 when a form is required.
How it is managed
- Each month we categorize transactions and reconcile the accounts to the bank.
- Receipts and mileage stay with the transactions they support.
- Personal spending stays out of the business accounts.
- Capital purchases are reviewed against repairs before anything is expensed.
- Vendors are tracked so a Form 1099 can be prepared when a form is required.
- A quarterly review of profit can be used to adjust estimated tax payments when those payments apply.
- At year end we review the accounts with the preparer so deductions are captured and the records support them.
Whether a deduction is allowed depends on your facts and on IRS and FTB rules. We help you claim what you are entitled to and keep records that support it. We do not guarantee savings or a dollar amount.
Book bookkeeping and QuickBooks setup with Lucia Leiva, Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisorCommon questions
- We work from the log you have and tell you what is missing. We do not fill gaps with estimated miles.
- If you already treat them as employees, we can run that payroll. We do not decide worker status.
- No. We do not name carriers here. Josephine can take a quote request and talk through the coverage you describe.
- Fuel, repairs, tires, tolls, per diem, truck depreciation, and IFTA or HVUT belong in their own accounts. Per diem and depreciation are allowed only when the IRS rules for that item are met. A penalty is not deducted as if it were the tax.
Offices in San Pablo (510-778-1579) and Concord (925-349-6924). Remote work is available in California.
Ready when you are
Ready to get organized? Book an appointment today.
Pick a time that works for you — in person at San Pablo or Concord, or fully remote.