Tax questions (per diem, etc..)
 

How do we extract the data to use in per diem calculations for our taxes? Is it something we have to manually input or is there a way to get it from sabre and import it to a tax prep software or give to a cpa.

What specifically are you looking for?

The amount received in per diem?

If you are talking about about the difference of what is paid and what is allowed based on actual location versus what was received and allowed to be deducted, you are probably going to have to use a specialty aviation CPA and or one of the subscription log book programs that keep track of it.

Yes, that’s what I was looking for. The difference between what was paid and what is allowed per location.

Is it worth it for a married line holder or will the standard deduction suffice, so long as I don’t have a lot of other deductions.

The standard deduction is set to double with the new tax law for 2018 earnings. It's going to be tough to itemize more than that, especially if you don't own a home or have kids. I would talk to an accountant if you want to go that route.

EZPerdiem is a good program to use though, to answer your question.

There is a DOT rate that does not require figuring out each location.

I assume he's working on what he's going to file this year which would be from 2017 earnings.

Keep in mind in 2018 unless things change you won't be able to deduct any expenses including per diem.

OP, if you don't have a mortgage and don't pay much in student loan interest it won't be worth it to itemize. You need to hit around $13k in itemized items. Per diem is normally around a $3k-$4k deduction.

EZ Perdium is what I used. You putbin your overnights from throughout the year, it calculates the local rate, and totals how much you're allowed. It also has an option to just average the national rate. Take the higher amount, and compare it to your total annual perdium recieved off of your last pay statement for the year. Then ez perdium will tell you what percentage of that total difference is deductible. Print it and take it to your tax preparer for your itemized deductions. Just keep in mind, all of your total itemized deductions have to beat the standard deduction in order to use them. If you own a house and / or have kids, yoi should be ok.

Pro Diem is another option. They do all the work. You give them one time access to your online schedule and they crunch the numbers in a day or two. The report they send even explains how to enter the data in Quicken.

Calculate it yourself. Not hard and you’ll know if it was worth it in the end.