Pub 946

Pub 946 allows taxpayers, other than trusts and estates, to elect to expense a specified amount of the cost of qualifying property purchased for use in a trade or business. This is known as the section 179 expensing allowance. The maximum deduction for tax years beginning in 2023 is $1,080,000.

Pub 946 greatly incentivizes businesses to purchase new equipment. It allows business owners to write off the entire amount of the equipment purchased for the year it was put into service, which can significantly reduce a company’s taxes.

To be eligible for section 179 deduction in Pub 946, the property must be acquired by a company using cash or another form of payment and used in its trade or business. It also can’t be acquired from a related party such as a spouse, sibling, or parent.

How The Section 179 Deduction Works?

The Section 179 deduction included in Pub 946 is designed to stimulate small business investment and to help owners of businesses deduct the purchase of equipment. It is available on the first year of purchase and allows immediate expense deductions that can be recaptured as ordinary income later.

However, the Section 179 deduction phase-outs once a company’s total investment in qualified assets (such as machinery and equipment) exceeds a specified dollar amount ($2,700,000 in 2018). This means that most small businesses should choose to apply bonus depreciation first, followed by the Section 179 expense deduction when the tax benefits are highest.

The expensing allowance has been in effect since 1958 and has been largely designed to encourage short-term, incremental investments in tangible property. It was introduced in response to a need to boost domestic growth. It was then perceived that the economy was slowing and lacked the investment needed to grow faster. For further information, you can read Pub 946 itself, included on the IRS’ official website.

What is the Maximum Section 179 deduction?

A business owner can claim the Section 179 deduction for qualified purchases made in the year they place them into service, and the business can elect to take a full Section 179 deduction or split it up over several years. In the case of split-year depreciation, however, any unused deduction is carried forward to the following year.

• The maximum Section 179 deduction is 100% through 2023 and then decreases to 80% through 2024, 60% through 2025, 40% through 2025, and 20% through 2026. Bonus depreciation is also an option for expensing beyond the Section 179 limit, but it has a phase-out threshold and doesn’t allow 100% expensing.

What is Bonus Depreciation?

Depreciation is a tax-deductible expense that allows businesses to write off the cost of their investment property over its useful life. This allows real estate investors to reduce their income taxes each year by claiming the depreciation allowance.

Business owners may also choose to use bonus depreciation, an additional allowance they can claim for certain new assets. This extra allowance speeds up the deduction of a qualifying asset in its first year of ownership.

The TCJA increased the amount of bonus depreciation that companies can take, but it’s important to understand that a lot of factors must be considered before you decide whether it makes sense for your company. For instance, you’ll need to consider how long the asset will last and if its value will likely increase in the future.

In addition, you should consider your current taxable income and tax bracket. If you have a low taxable income, it may make more sense to take regular depreciation in the year of purchase rather than bonus depreciation.

It’s also important to remember that bonus depreciation is only available for certain types of property. These include new tangible personal property, water utility property, computer software, and qualified improvement property.