What expenses are deductible when traveling for prolonged periods on business?

In the past, I've always gotten a high-enough per diem that my expenses were covered and I didn't need to keep detailed records. I am about to start a new project that was only willing to offer $50/day per diem which would not cover my expenses so I opted to take all my pay as taxible and keep records to deduct at the end of the year. I wanted to make sure I didn't overlook any deductible expenses.

1) Travel expenses on initial trip to work site and final trip from work site (fuel, lodging and meals) - pretty sure all deductible
2) Travel expenses on any trips home during project (airfare and airport parking) - not sure about this one; work site 1000 miles from home so only able to return once a month or so
3) Lodging in work city - housing itself obviously deductible, what about utilities (power, phone), cable?
3) Meals in work city - any deductible?
4) Fuel/parking fees in work city - any deductible?
5) Other expenses? (pretty sure laundry expense is covered, anything else?)
A few details about the situation:
1) Work site is >1000 miles from home, so 50-mile exclusion doesn't apply.
2) Spouse remaining home, so will be maintaining tax residence.
3) Contract slated to run 7-9 months, so well within the 1 year cutoff.
4) Driving to work site with own car and flying home every 5-6 weeks for visit (work schedule and rising airfare prices unlikely to allow more frequent visits)

Meals are pro-rated because you have to eat anywhere!
Fuel is pro-rated unless you taxi,subway,bus, etc. But parking is 100%. Any books pertaining to the business itself is
deductible. I am not sure about laundry because again you
launder at home. #3 is entirely deductible!! Mileage between
trips from business to business is also deductible!! Research
costs for business, letters, portfolios, resumes, rent on speaking engagement places, office rental!! Phone costs
pertaining to business,computer time, and etc. are deductible. That is about all I can think of , Good Luck!!

How long will this engagement last? If it's longer than 1 year then only the moving expenses to the new location are deductible as are the costs of the return move.

If it's less than one year AND you maintain your current tax home then travel, lodging, meals (at 50%) and incidental expenses (laundry, etc.) are fully deductible. If you don't maintain hour current tax home, then it's just treated as a move and you deduct the moving expenses IF you otherwise qualify.

Here is a list of what can be deducted if you are not taking the per diem pay (make sure it is not listed on your pay stub as per diem either or it may not have been taxed.

Unless you use a company car or vehicle and have a gas card by company - keep a mileage log and document distances for trips to correspond with gas/travel expenses. Yes even airfare to and from working city will be totally deductible. (If you pay to get there you have to get back home)Save all receipts for gas and other transportation daily if you are not commuting but on a long term stay without your own personal vehicle. All paid parking and storage is covered.
Lodging - unless otherwise set up by company/ and you must have a permanent residence/ then all expenses accrued for lodging, phone, and internet are all deductible. Cable is not. If you use cable internet and it comes with cable tv package you will only be able to claim the cost of internet and only 60% to 70% of all utilities if you purchase your own. If they are supplied with the rental then you can not deduct.
All out of town laundry can be deducted if you are using a laundry or drycleaning service with receipts. If you are doing your own laundry then there is no true proof of how much was paid.
All clothing used for work such as work boots, pants, shirts, gloves, and a coat, can be deducted at a percentage. The only way it can be a full deductible is if you subscribe to a uniform service.
Food - 75% can be claimed if you are renting an apartment and are cooking for yourself. If you are in a hotel with no other facilities for cooking, lunch and dinner are usually the only deductible food expenses the IRS will consider since most hotels serve some type of continental breakfast or offer a free breakfast.
All business products needed for job can be deducted. Paper, pens, copies, portfolios, photo development (keep negatives or extra copies with receipt), faxes or portable fax/printer and printer ink, some construction tools (depends if company supplies or requires you to have your own) make sure you have a letter or statement stating such needs.
All outside recreational things such as gyms, movies, concerts, amusement parks, and even dvd rentals are not deductible unless you can prove you were doing them due to good business such as for company clients and you will need a letter from your supervisor to that effect.
This is all I can remember but you can always call a professional accountant or contact your companies administrator and they may have more info of deductible expenses.

Okay, boston covered the basics--particularly the trip is expected to last less than one year issue. If the contract is indefinite or is expected to last longer than a year, it's not a business trip, but a move. Keep a copy of your contract...and keep your records showing you maintained your present home. (It's not unusual for the IRS to audit an employer and then decide to audit every employee when they question the trip vs move situation.)

Keep detailed records, especially if you decide that renting an apartment is cheaper than extended hotel stays.

You may have shot yourself in the foot when you said give me the per diem as pay, I'll take my own deductions.

1. If the company was on an accountable plan, the $50/day would have been excluded from income (assuming you meet the less than one year rule). You still could have kept records and tried to deduct the excess only. Instead, you will be trying to deduct 100%.

2. As an employee, the expenses will land on schedule A. You will presumably have a *lot* of expenses. They will be reduced by 2% of your AGI (again, the take as pay shoots you here as your AGI went up). If you have other deductions/credits affected by your AGI, you may get less benefit.

On the 1040, when your schedule A exceeds the standard deduction, this lowers your taxable income.

On the form 6251 (Alternative Minimum Tax), you will ADD THEM back to your income. I had someone the other day who had so many travel expenses that on the 1040, he had virtually no tax liabity, but when he finished the 6251, he owed $3000 anyway.

Knowing what your tax liability for 2008 will be will include a game of chicken with congress. Last year, congress waited until December 19th to patch the amt exemption amount. Without the patch, you could expect to owe yet another $3000 in tax. This played havoc with anyone trying to manage their withholding/estimated tax payments because they couldn't figure out what they owed. Either they were conservative and got a larger refund if Congress did the patch or they runned the risk of estimated tax penalties if they aimed for a smaller refund and congress *didn't*.

Hi, While I don't have any advice beyond what others said here, you might want to talk to a certain brother-in-law of ours. Remember "R" was on the road a lot during the Perot campaign.

Just a thought. Have a good trip.