Hi guys,

It's tax time again and I've got a question. Is the money I spent on getting my instrument rating (part 61) tax deductible? Since I was an instrument student, do I qualify for an education credit? My tax person says I can go ahead and claim it since learning to fly counts as an educational activity.

I read a year old thread on something similar.

http://www.airlinepilotforums.com/money-talk/14930-tax-write-off-flight-training.html

"Actually there is a provision for education to facilitate a career change. If you're fresh out of college it does not apply, but if you're a career changer you can probably get a significant tax CREDIT (not just a deduction but an actual credit) for flight training. Ask a tax specialist for details."


"An employee can deduct expenses incurred for education as ordinary and necessary business expenses provided the expenses are incurred for either of the two reasons:

- To maintain or improve existing skills required in the present job.
- To meet the express requirements of the employer or the requirements imposed by law to retain his or her employment status.

Education expenses are not deductible if the education is for either of the following purposes:

- To meet the minimum educational standards for qualification in the taxpayers existing job.
- To qualify the taxpayer for a new trade or business.

Your answer in short is no, you may not deduct flight expenses. There is an allowance for a portion of your qualified tuition in obtaining a basic skill to be deducted, but whether flight expenses are considered tuition is debatable. Talk to a CPA for further advice."

Those 2 posts are contradictory, and the tax guy didn't seem like he had dealt with a pilot before. One post suggests since my current job is not aviation-related, I can proceed; but the the next post says I can only claim it if I'm in the profession.

What have you guys done in the past?