What is the Section 179 Deduction? Essentially, Section 179 of the IRS tax code allows any businesses to deduct the entire purchase price of qualifying equipment (see list below) purchased or financed during that tax year. This means that if you purchase (or lease to own) qualifying equipment (such as office furniture), you can deduct the FULL PURCHASE PRICE from your gross income for that given year.
All businesses that purchase, finance, and/or lease less than $2,000,000 in new or used business equipment during tax year 2016 should qualify for the Section 179 Deduction.
Most tangible goods qualify for the Section 179 Deduction. For basic guidelines on what property is covered under the Section 179 tax code, see the short list below, but you can also refer to this list of qualifying equipment from the IRS. Also, to qualify for the Section 179 Deduction, the equipment and/or software purchased or financed must be placed into service between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2016.
Qualifying Equipment- Please keep in mind that to qualify for the Section 179 Deduction, the equipment listed below must be purchased and put into use between January 1 and December 31 of the tax year you are claiming.
- Equipment (machines, etc) purchased for business use
- Tangible personal property used in business
- Business Vehicles with a gross vehicle weight in excess of 6,000 lbs (Section 179 Vehicle Deductions)
- Computers
- Computer “Off-the-Shelf” Software
- Office Furniture
- Office Equipment
- Property attached to your building that is not a structural component of the building (i.e.: a printing press, large manufacturing tools and equipment)
- Partial Business Use (equipment that is purchased for business use and personal use: generally, your deduction will be based on the percentage of time you use the equipment for business purposes).
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions:
How Much Can I Save on My Taxes in 2016?
It depends on the amount of qualifying equipment and software that you purchase and put into use.
When Do I Have to Do This?
Section 179 for 2016 expires midnight, 12/31/2016. If you wish to deduct the full price of your equipment from your 2016 taxes and take advantage of the new higher deduction limits, it must be purchased and put into service by then.
What is Section 179?
Most people think the Section 179 deduction is some mysterious or complicated tax code. It really isn’t, as you will see below.
Essentially, Section 179 of the IRS tax code allows businesses to deduct the full purchase price of qualifying equipment and/or software purchased or financed during the tax year. That means that if you buy (or lease) a piece of qualifying equipment, you can deduct the FULL PURCHASE PRICE from your gross income. It’s an incentive created by the U.S. government to encourage businesses to buy equipment and invest in themselves.
Several years ago, Section 179 was often referred to as the “SUV Tax Loophole” or the “Hummer Deduction” because many businesses have used this tax code to write-off the purchase of qualifying vehicles at the time (like SUV’s and Hummers). But, that particular benefit of Section 179 has been severely reduced in recent years, see ‘Vehicles & Section 179’ for current limits on business vehicles.
Today, Section 179 is one of the few incentives included in any of the recent Stimulus Bills that actually helps small businesses. Although large businesses also benefit from Section 179 or Bonus Depreciation, the original target of this legislation was much needed tax relief for small businesses – and millions of small businesses are actually taking action and getting real benefits.
