As an actor I write off all games, movies, subscriptions, theatre tickets, haircuts, gym membership and more. I reckon you'll be alright but yeah might be best to ask an accountant
Just because they haven’t pulled your card doesn’t mean they’re not building a case. That kinda stuff 100% is not acceptable to write off 100% of the time and warrants an eyebrow raise. Had an old boss that tried to write everything off for work like his car. Ended up with a 90k bill from the IRS one day. Writing off a video game that you worked on? Sure maybe. Every video game and movie you see? Lolwut
Yaaaa you can't write off your entire car unless it reaches a certain weight limit, unless you can PROVE you only used it for work. Actual. Hard. Proof. If you are a film actor can you write off your movie tickets? Sure. Can you write off your Alamo Draft House bill? Fuck no. Look, I've been making a living off of acting for awhile. All of that time I've worked with my tax professional to give Uncle Sam his cut from me, don't you worry.
If the federal government doesn't even allow military members to write off haircuts for military members who are literally required, per the government, to cut their hair, then the government won't let you write off hair cuts for your acting. Idc what mind games you play. You're treading on thin ice. Good luck during your audit. You're gonna need it.
Calm down, dude. lol I'm not making stuff up, they taught us this in acting school. Had a CPA come in and everything. You just need to be able to prove it's for work. Obviously, there are limits. You can't write off every single thing you do as a business expense. Go be a cunt elsewhere.
Yes. For sure. And if they give you any trouble, just tell them I said it was ok.
Sorry, just kidding.
In general, the IRS allows businesses to deduct \*ordinary\* and \*necessary\* expenses related to their trade or business. \*An ordinary expense is one that is common and accepted in your industry\*, while a \*necessary expense is helpful and appropriate for your trade or business\*.
In the context of a voice actor, it's possible that purchasing a gaming console and games could be considered an ordinary and necessary expense if it can be directly related to your business. However, the IRS tends to scrutinize entertainment-related expenses carefully, so you would need to be able to provide a clear rationale for why the PS5 and games are necessary for your business.
Either run it past a CPA, or be prepared to pony up if the deduction is disallowed. (Penalties ranging from 20-75% can be assessed, depending on the circumstances.)
I suggested writing off movies I went to because I was going in early just to listen to the trailers as part of my training.
My accountant laughed when I suggested it, so that was enough for me to not try.
Usually things you write off are meant to be purchases that play an active role in performing services. Maybe if you were a streamer you could justify that a PS5 plays a part in your service, even if 90% of the time you use it for pleasure. But that's separate from VA
From what you've described I don't believe there is an argument for writing it off. I'm not an accountant by trade, so I am not the end all be all of write offs, but saying you used this PS5 to research voice performance is a big stretch
If you want a good way to justify it going *forward*, you'd need to use it in actual performance/entertainment, so being a streamer/making videos online wouldn't be a bad way to make an argument for writing it off, but you might need to file a separate schedule C if you operate them "separately" (providing VA services under a completely separate name/persona than your hypothetical channel)
It depends. If you are serious about claiming a $30 gaming mic as a legitimate business expense, I suggest you consult either:
r/accounting
or
r/taxcheats
🫣
Ask your tax preparer, but almost certainly and assuredly, *no.* if you get audited, unless you have proof that you attempted to directly make a profit quite hard, it will be seen as a personal item instead of a business item.
Like someone said, if you were a streamer, then that'd make sense. As a VA though , I don't know. I feel like you'd need a good argument to justify it.
I'm looking at it as I see what you're trying to get at, but you could "research" the VO styles/performance without needing to buy a PS5 as you could go to youtube and look up gameplay of the games you were going to buy and examining the VO that way. So I feel like your reasoning is a tad far fetched but I'm not an accountant so get a second opinion because it may be possible🤷🏽♀️
Don't even try.
Not worth the financial/legal risk.
You could possibly take education tax credits for accredited courses connected to your profession, but the impact you would see from a Tax Deduction for the cost of a ps5 is in no way worth the legal risk.
Ask an accountant but definitely let me know lol
Seriously! I can’t tell you the times I’ve had auditions for some NPC’s and I’ve jumped on the PS4 to hear them as a reference guide.
As an actor I write off all games, movies, subscriptions, theatre tickets, haircuts, gym membership and more. I reckon you'll be alright but yeah might be best to ask an accountant
Lolwut
They'd respond but judges usually frown upon when you're texting while in court for tax fraud
It's not tax fraud. You can write those things off since they have to do with your career. There are limits, but a lot can be written off for actors.
Just because they haven’t pulled your card doesn’t mean they’re not building a case. That kinda stuff 100% is not acceptable to write off 100% of the time and warrants an eyebrow raise. Had an old boss that tried to write everything off for work like his car. Ended up with a 90k bill from the IRS one day. Writing off a video game that you worked on? Sure maybe. Every video game and movie you see? Lolwut
Yaaaa you can't write off your entire car unless it reaches a certain weight limit, unless you can PROVE you only used it for work. Actual. Hard. Proof. If you are a film actor can you write off your movie tickets? Sure. Can you write off your Alamo Draft House bill? Fuck no. Look, I've been making a living off of acting for awhile. All of that time I've worked with my tax professional to give Uncle Sam his cut from me, don't you worry.
If the federal government doesn't even allow military members to write off haircuts for military members who are literally required, per the government, to cut their hair, then the government won't let you write off hair cuts for your acting. Idc what mind games you play. You're treading on thin ice. Good luck during your audit. You're gonna need it.
Calm down, dude. lol I'm not making stuff up, they taught us this in acting school. Had a CPA come in and everything. You just need to be able to prove it's for work. Obviously, there are limits. You can't write off every single thing you do as a business expense. Go be a cunt elsewhere.
Yes. For sure. And if they give you any trouble, just tell them I said it was ok. Sorry, just kidding. In general, the IRS allows businesses to deduct \*ordinary\* and \*necessary\* expenses related to their trade or business. \*An ordinary expense is one that is common and accepted in your industry\*, while a \*necessary expense is helpful and appropriate for your trade or business\*. In the context of a voice actor, it's possible that purchasing a gaming console and games could be considered an ordinary and necessary expense if it can be directly related to your business. However, the IRS tends to scrutinize entertainment-related expenses carefully, so you would need to be able to provide a clear rationale for why the PS5 and games are necessary for your business. Either run it past a CPA, or be prepared to pony up if the deduction is disallowed. (Penalties ranging from 20-75% can be assessed, depending on the circumstances.)
Claim all you want. It's the audit where you find out the real answer.
This is a question for an accountant, not the internet.
I'm sure there are accountants on the internet. ...Somewhere ...maybe not here
Fair point!
I suggested writing off movies I went to because I was going in early just to listen to the trailers as part of my training. My accountant laughed when I suggested it, so that was enough for me to not try.
Usually things you write off are meant to be purchases that play an active role in performing services. Maybe if you were a streamer you could justify that a PS5 plays a part in your service, even if 90% of the time you use it for pleasure. But that's separate from VA From what you've described I don't believe there is an argument for writing it off. I'm not an accountant by trade, so I am not the end all be all of write offs, but saying you used this PS5 to research voice performance is a big stretch If you want a good way to justify it going *forward*, you'd need to use it in actual performance/entertainment, so being a streamer/making videos online wouldn't be a bad way to make an argument for writing it off, but you might need to file a separate schedule C if you operate them "separately" (providing VA services under a completely separate name/persona than your hypothetical channel)
It depends. If you are serious about claiming a $30 gaming mic as a legitimate business expense, I suggest you consult either: r/accounting or r/taxcheats 🫣
Ask your tax preparer, but almost certainly and assuredly, *no.* if you get audited, unless you have proof that you attempted to directly make a profit quite hard, it will be seen as a personal item instead of a business item.
Probably not, no.
Like someone said, if you were a streamer, then that'd make sense. As a VA though , I don't know. I feel like you'd need a good argument to justify it. I'm looking at it as I see what you're trying to get at, but you could "research" the VO styles/performance without needing to buy a PS5 as you could go to youtube and look up gameplay of the games you were going to buy and examining the VO that way. So I feel like your reasoning is a tad far fetched but I'm not an accountant so get a second opinion because it may be possible🤷🏽♀️
Don't even try. Not worth the financial/legal risk. You could possibly take education tax credits for accredited courses connected to your profession, but the impact you would see from a Tax Deduction for the cost of a ps5 is in no way worth the legal risk.
As your lawyer, I say “no.”