A leased copier or printer belongs on Line 20a, rent or lease of vehicles, machinery and equipment.
Why line 20a
A copier or printer on a lease is machinery and equipment, so the lease payments go on line 20a rather than into office expense with the toner. The consumables and the per page service charge are separate costs and sit on line 18. If the agreement hands you ownership at the end for a nominal amount, it is a purchase dressed as a lease, so the machine is capitalised and depreciated instead.
On the printed form this is line 20a. Line 20 is the total of 20a and 20b, so a worksheet that reports one line 20 figure is adding the two together.
Stop looking up lines one at a time. ClaryBook totals your year into an IRS Schedule C worksheet in form order, Part I and Part II line by line, so a leased copier or printer lands on Line 20a without you sorting it.
Start for freeWhat a leased copier or printer is confused with
- Line 18, office expense
- The payment for the machine is 20a, while paper, toner and the per page service charge are office consumables on line 18.
- Form 4562, form 4562, carried to schedule c line 13
- A lease that transfers ownership for a nominal final payment is a financed purchase, so the machine is depreciated on Form 4562 and carried to line 13 and only the interest is an expense.
Examples that belong on line 20a
- $145 a month on a 60 month Xerox copier lease
- $89 a month for a leased colour laser printer
- $1,740 of annual lease payments on an office multifunction device
- $0.012 per page service charge billed alongside the lease, which is line 18
What does not belong here
- Toner and paper, which are office expense.
- A machine bought with a loan, where the machine is depreciated and only the interest is an expense.
- A buyout payment at the end of the lease, which is a purchase.
What to keep
Keep the lease agreement and the monthly invoices. The agreement is what shows whether this is a true lease or a financed purchase, which is the whole question.
Other expenses on line 20a
| Expense | Line |
|---|---|
| a leased trailer | Schedule C, Line 20a |
| a leased vehicle | Schedule C, Line 20a |
| a rented dedicated server | Schedule C, Line 20a |
| car lease payments | Schedule C, Line 20a |
| equipment and tool rental | Schedule C, Line 20a |
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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.
Stop looking up lines one at a time. ClaryBook totals your year into an IRS Schedule C worksheet in form order, Part I and Part II line by line, so a leased copier or printer lands on Line 20a without you sorting it.
Start for free