Tickets to sporting events

Technical topics regarding tax preparation.
#1
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Washington State
Client bought sporting events tickets and gives to clients & employees to go to (separately).
For the employee issue
Pub 15-B says that de minimis benefits can be excluded and specifically "occasion tickets for theater or sporting events".
1. Under the new law sporting event tickets are non deductible entertainment expense but are the deductible as something else if the tickets are given to employees?

2. Is the only way to deduct as a business expense to include in income?

3. Under the de minimis rules can they be deducted as employee morale or something and excluded on the employee's wages

4. Is there a dollar amount for de minimis? A de minimis fringe is any property or service provided to the employee that has such a minimal value that accounting for the receipt of such benefit would be administratively impractical or unreasonable. I see the explanation of de minimis but there is no quantitative amount that I can find, is there somewhere in the code where it is defined?
For client issue
1. If no one from the client's office goes and the tickets are given to the client is there any support to treat the expense as promotion or some other expense?
Last edited by RoamingCPA on 14-Nov-2018 7:13pm, edited 1 time in total.
 

#2
sjrcpa  
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Maryland
I just atteneded CPE on this. Speaker said the de minimis rule is gone, so that even coffee and snacks in the break room are only 50% deductible. I have not had a chance to reread the new Code on this. She also said IRS is on to the "trick" of reclassifying as advertising, promotion, marketing and will be looking for this.
 

#3
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150
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Location:
Washington State
So even if business owner doesn't use the tickets personally & doesn't attend just gives the tickets to the client there is no deduction, kind of like non deductible penalties?
 

#4
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11-Oct-2016 2:59am
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California
For the tickets given to clients arent those business gifts subject to $25 per year per client?

Haven't done my TCJA seminar yet so can't answer the one for employees.
 

#5
makbo  
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Is it even an ordinary and necessary business expense?
 


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