Deductions You Can Claim Without Receipts

While most business expenses require receipts to prove the purchase in case of an IRS audit, there are some that you can claim with alternative documentation. This makes it easier to lower your taxable income while putting minimal effort into your record keeping.

How to claim business expenses without a receipt

Claiming business expenses helps lower your tax burden, but the IRS requires some kind of documentation to verify the expense, the date of the transaction, and how much it cost. While receipts are the easiest record to keep, there are some scenarios in which you can take tax deductions without them. 

Tax deductions you can claim without a receipt

Wondering what deductions you can claim without receipts? Here are seven that are eligible for alternative documentation.

Home office expenses

If your home is your primary place of business and you have an area used exclusively for work, then you can deduct part of your home-related expenses. Eligible expenses for the home office deduction include:

• Mortgage interest
• Insurance
• Utilities
• Repairs
• Depreciation

There are two ways you can calculate this deduction. The regular method is to tally your total eligible expenses and then calculate the same percentage as the square footage used for your workspace. For instance, if your home is 1,000 square feet and your office is 200 square feet, you could deduct 20% of your eligible expenses. With this option, the IRS recommends keeping receipts, canceled checks, or other evidence of your payments.

You can use the simplified method for up to 300 square feet in your home. For home-based businesses, you can deduct home office expenses without a receipt by multiplying the square footage of the workspace by $5. So, in the same scenario as a 200-square-foot home office, the simplified deduction would be $1,000.

Eligible retirement plan contributions

When you are self-employed, you can contribute to eligible retirement plans and take a tax deduction up to the allowable limits. Each plan has its own maximums and forms required to fill out in order to claim the deduction.

Instead of keeping receipts on file, your plan provider will issue a Form 1099, which confirms your eligible contributions for the appropriate tax year.

Health insurance premiums

Health insurance premiums are another eligible tax deduction for self-employed individuals, but only if you and/or your spouse don’t have access to an employer-sponsored health plan. Use Form 7206 to include how much you paid for coverage during the tax year. 

You don’t need receipts for this tax deduction; instead, you can log into your health insurance online account and download your payment history for your records. 

Self-employment taxes

When you run your own business, you’re responsible for self-employment taxes, which include both employer and employee contributions to Social Security and Medicare. The total tax is 15.3% of your gross income. 

As a self-employed individual, you can deduct the employer portion of this tax (50%) from your adjusted gross income. You don’t need any kind of receipt for this. Instead, you’ll list it in Part II of your Schedule 1 form after calculating your self-employment tax on Schedule SE.

Cell phone expenses

You can deduct the purchase price of a cell phone as well as your monthly service bill as a business expense. But if the device is used for both personal and business purposes, you can only deduct the percentage used for work. 

For record-keeping, you can download statements from your service provider. You should also keep a spreadsheet to track how much you use the phone for business to justify the amount you deduct in case of an IRS audit.

Charitable contributions

If you’re a sole proprietor or a single-member LLC, any charitable contributions made through your business are counted on your personal income tax return. There are a couple of instances where you can list donations without receipts:

• Donations to one charity under $250 per transaction
• Charity mileage deduction for traveling in service of an eligible charitable organization

Regardless of contribution size, you still need to keep some sort of record, such as a bank account statement or written confirmation, even if it’s not a formal receipt.

In order to claim the charitable mileage deduction, you can deduct $0.14 per mile driven. You don’t need receipts for this, but you do need to log how much you drove your personal vehicle on behalf of the nonprofit.

Vehicle expenses and mileage

When you drive your car for business-related purposes, you can claim your mileage as an expense without using receipts. Instead, you need to keep a log of the miles driven, the date, the destination, and the purpose. You can keep these details in a spreadsheet or an app in case of an audit. The standard mileage rate is $0.67 per mile for 2024.

Alternatively, you can use the actual expenses method instead of the standard method, but you’ll need to keep receipts for all of your deductible expenses, such as gas and oil, tires, repairs, registration fees, insurance, and more.

Standard vs. itemized deductions

Many of the deductions that don’t require receipts also don’t require you to itemize them. Here’s a breakdown of when you need to itemize to qualify and what business expenses still apply when taking the standard deduction.

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Alternative documentation for business expense deductions

The IRS offers several ways you can claim without receipts, even though it still requires record keeping. Here are some alternatives you may use:

• Canceled checks reflecting proof of payment
• Account statements
• Credit card receipts and statements
• Invoices

In some cases, you may need a combination of these records. For instance, an invoice may outline the purpose of an expense, while a credit card statement could prove that you actually paid it.

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