42GO

IF you fly Intl use EZ PerDiem it WILL save you money, but if domestic...not worth the time. I have been audited and you do get all of the IRS perdiem rates if intl.

EZ PerDiem is very simple to use calculates your amounts gives you great suggestions on many other items you can deduct...etc It is worth it.

Adlerdriver

Yes, I just did this. My per diem company (I'll leave the name out to emphasize I have no agenda) beat FedEx by enough to warrant the cost.

The other thing I found out (looking at 2013 data I paid for and all my 2013 per diem recaps) is that many of the city per diem rates FedEx uses are wrong. I assume this is an international problem since those fluctuate more frequently than the domestic rates. Many common international cities (NRT, TPE, SIN, CAN, CGN to name a few) were flat out wrong on my per diem recaps when I compared them to those listed on the government website.

Perhaps that's why the column is not totaled, I don't know. I don't think FedEx is under any obligation to provide us with accurate per diem calculations for our taxes. Using their numbers doesn't alleviate our responsibility for putting accurate data on our returns.

Bottom line: I will continue to pay for my per diem data to save me valuable time, money and ensure what I sent the IRS is accurate.

Adlerdriver

Purple, maybe I'm not understanding what you're saying here completely so I apologize in advance if you know all this.

But, if I read the process you outline above correctly, what you say there isn't correct.

The column labeled "Xcludbl Alownce" is not what you can deduct on your taxes for the year. It's the company's calculation of our per diem for each layover using government rates. As I already mentioned, some of those rates FedEx is using are not always accurate.

Assuming they were accurate, if you added up that column on a year's worth of recaps, you would have a total government allowed per diem figure based on whatever method FedEx uses. It wouldn't be as high as the figure that my per diem company would provide you (their method is IRS approved and proprietary), but it would be useable just the same.

However, regardless of the source of your total, you can't just "fill in that number" on an IRS form. You also don't add that number to the per diem figure that FedEx actually paid you for the year listed in box 12L on your W-2.

You actually subtract those two numbers and get the difference between the government rate total and what FedEx paid. Once you have the difference, you then take 80% of that difference to arrive at your total deductible employee business expense.

Hopefully that helps. Cheers.

MaydayMark

Do any of you FDX tax experts know ...

Concerning FedEx Corporate Long Term Disability (LTD) payments (paid by Aetna) ... the Crew Bus Driver says (sometimes a reliable source) that because FDX self insures and thus LTD payment are not taxable (similar to LTD insurance premiums payments that you might pay yourself (it looks like the APLA LTD policy falls in this category!).

If, in fact, FedEx LTD payment ARE NOT TAXABLE does anyone (in APC land) have an IRS reference.

"Rumor mill" says we had a pilot file for a tax refund under this premise that was paid?

Thanks,


MM

Raptor

No, I'm not a tax attorney, but I am a crew bus supervisor.

I don't think it matters what FedEx's role in this is, it's what your role as a pilot is. If you pay premiums for a benefit such as LTD, life insurance, Loss of License then when you qualify, the payments received are tax free. If you don't pay and receive benefits, then you are taxed.

From my understanding the FedEx LTD payments are taxed, but your ALPA disability wouldn't be.

If you think otherwise, I would definitely pay for real tax advice from an aviation specialist such as the Romer law firm.