A spouse's airfare on your business trip is not a deductible business expense.
Why it is not deductible
A companion's travel is not deductible just because you were traveling for business. It becomes deductible only if that person is an employee of the business, travels for a genuine business purpose of their own, and would have been able to deduct the cost themselves. Company at dinner, help with the driving and keeping you organised do not meet it. The practical consequence is narrower than people expect: you deduct what the trip would have cost you alone, so a double room is deductible at the single rate rather than not at all, and a second seat on the plane is simply not deductible.
Log it once, with the line already on it. Type an expense in plain words in ClaryBook and it is filed with a date, vendor, amount and what it was for, so the number your preparer needs for a spouse's airfare on your business trip is already written down.
Start for freeWhat a spouse's airfare on your business trip is confused with
- Line 24a, travel
- If the spouse is a bona fide employee traveling to perform real services the business needs, their fare is an ordinary travel cost on line 24a like any employee's.
- Line 26, wages
- Employing a spouse is only real if they are actually on payroll with wages reported on line 26 and payroll filings behind it, which is the fact that decides whether their travel can ever be deducted.
Examples people try to deduct here
- A $340 second seat on a client trip, not deductible
- A room deducted at the $150 single rate rather than the $190 double rate
- A spouse on payroll flying to staff a trade show booth, deductible
- A spouse's conference ticket bought so they could sit in, not deductible
- A $90 extra bag for a companion's luggage, not deductible
What does not belong here
- A second ticket deducted because the spouse helped with driving or notes.
- The full double room rate when only you had a business reason to be there.
- A child's travel on a trip described as a family business.
- Meals for a companion, which fail for the same reason the fare does.
The limit that applies
Deductible only if the companion is an employee traveling for a bona fide business purpose. Otherwise deduct what the trip would have cost you alone.
What to keep
If a spouse's travel is deducted, keep the payroll record that makes them an employee and a written description of the services they performed on the trip. Without both, the cost is a personal expense on a business card.
Other things that are not deductible
| Expense | Line |
|---|---|
| a business suit | Not deductible |
| a government fine or penalty | Not deductible |
| a parking ticket | Not deductible |
| a personal expense on the business card | Not deductible |
| a traffic ticket | Not deductible |
| an unpaid invoice | Not deductible |
| commuting mileage | Not deductible |
| country club dues | Not deductible |
| estimated tax payments | Not deductible |
| federal income tax | Not deductible |
| groceries for your home | Not deductible |
| interest on underpaid federal income tax | Not deductible |
Related lookups
Sources
This page explains how Schedule C lines work. It is general information, not tax advice for your situation. If an expense is large or the answer turns on a fact about your business, confirm it with your tax preparer.
Looking for a different expense? The full Schedule C line lookup has every line from 8 to 27 with the expenses that belong on each, and Schedule C expense categories walks the whole form in order.
Log it once, with the line already on it. Type an expense in plain words in ClaryBook and it is filed with a date, vendor, amount and what it was for, so the number your preparer needs for a spouse's airfare on your business trip is already written down.
Start for free