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Are Merchant Processing Fees Tax-Deductible?

The IRS has a detailed breakdown of changes, exceptions, and points of importance in their Publication 535 (sidenote: the IRS announced on January 22nd, 2024 that Publication 535 will not receive any future revisions. Because of this, the 2022 edition is the most up-to-date document for businesses to use). This publication gives businesses everything they need to know about business expenses and tax season. In summary:

 

  • Merchant service fees are a tax-deductible cost of running your business.

  • Businesses can deduct the full cost of merchant services fees on line 17 of their Schedule C (Legal and Professional Services) form.

  • Your processor is required to provide a 1099-K no later than January 31st, detailing the payment card and third-party network transactions – this will also have the details you need to deduct the fees on your Schedule C.

  • The deduction doesn’t affect your company’s total tax liability; the tax deduction is subtracted from your gross earnings which will lower the total taxable income amount.

  • Businesses are eligible to deduct credit or debit card processing fees associated with paying taxes, but individuals are not.

Processing Fees Tax-Deductible

The IRS recognizes merchant fees (commonly referred to as credit card fees) as an essential operating cost. So, that means that, yes, businesses can claim the merchant processing fees they accrued in 2023 as a tax-deductible expense. 

Additional Tax Season Resources

  1. For more information on tax season for businesses, you can visit the Business section on the IRS website.

  2. If you are a part of a corporation, you’ll fill out Form 1120. Any other businesses will fill out a Schedule C form.

Manage & grow your business

POS systems for auto/vehicle repair businesses can improve the way owners handle transactions, employee schedules, and inventory management.

Modern payment processing services complement beauty services. POS systems make accepting payments a breeze.

Merchant solutions for enterprises allow business owners to grow sales, serve customers better, and simplify the way their businesses are run.

Full-service restaurant owners and their employees need to operate with dynamic floor plans as well as cater tableside service and manage guests.

POS systems take care of your accounting work so that the team can focus on helping clients build muscle and burn calories.

Online Products & Services

Savvy consumers are increasingly shopping and paying bills online. A secure ecommerce payment processing solution can help generate revenue!

Professional Services

Professional trade specialists never have to turn away another sale with a POS system. This also means more opportunities to expand your business's customer base!

Improve customer satisfaction by offering more payment options. POS systems are useful tools when it comes to attracting sales.

Merchant solutions allow cashiers to swipe customers' cards right at the table. These services help save time and money while processing payments.

In the realm of coffee shops, there is a high turnover among customers. Coffee shop POS terminals help increase efficiency when tracking inventory, managing the counter, and more.

Good point-of-sale systems keep food businesses organized, keep orders straight, manage payments, and even process coupons and gift cards.

From calculating purchase orders to tracking inventory in real-time, installing the right POS system for your convenient or grocery store is critical to its success.

With mobile and wireless POS solutions, you can accept payments anywhere on the road. This means you never miss a sale!

Collect and process payments efficiently and securely with a professional merchant solution. Pharmacy business owners can even invoice patients online.

Quick service restaurants are busy environments; business owners and their employees need the best point-of-sale systems to efficiently perform their roles. 

Many seasonal businesses still need to collect payments even in the off-season. Make sure that your stores have the right POS systems.

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