1. Forums
  2. Mystery Shopping Discussion

Has anyone had an IRS audit for just doing mystery shopping?

October 16, 2024 11:00PM
A little off topic and not to get political, but regarding corporate taxation, with some of these multinational companies, the government is outmatched and outnumbered in a number of ways. Know some people that worked at public accounting firms, and they often move over to industry and are able to specialize in areas like R&D, property, plant, and equipment, and employee stock compensation. Some of the resources, knowledge, and technology these companies will invest into is crazy.

For personal taxation, I think certain industries of small business and activities are more prone to being audited. Also, entity types where you may be a partner or shareholder. For example, reasonable compensation was something that's been more scrutinized and examined.

But I think John's question was in good nature! I think.

Edited to add: Also, not tax advice.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/16/2024 11:01PM by Okie.
Reply
Log In
x

Create an Account or Log In

Membership is free. Simply choose your username, type in your email address, and choose a password. You immediately get full access to the forum.

Already a member? Log In.

More About Mystery Shopping Taxes
October 24, 2024 11:30PM
*Aktchewally*, what could get you audited is the distinction between hobbyist vs career. If you are not making very much, someone could say that's just a hobby. Hobbyists are not entitled to deductions for unreimbursed expenses. If you are asking for deductions under unreimbursed business/employee expenses such as mileage, then you must have the documentation to back it up. If your expenses exceed your income for the mystery shopping, that could trigger an audit. I have never been audited. But my dad was audited. He had a travel agency and it was a nightmare. Mystery shopping is much easier.

And let's get real, even if the wealthiest are paying the highest percentage of the total pot of taxes to the government, they are also writing off the most. They may pay the highest percentage of the total pot, and still not be paying the full amount they should because they get access to better writeoffs and better attorneys who know all best writeoffs.

Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2024 11:56PM by cherubino3.
Reply
October 25, 2024 01:32AM
Yes, and they spend more money and are job creators as well, hence the write-offs. Asking the wealthy to pay more and more and more doesn't solve the problem, and will just discourage economic growth. We solve the problem by curtailing wild government spending, but no one seems to ever want to point the finger at the real problem.

We also have access to the same tax schedule and write-offs. Remember that to write something off, you have to spend money first. So not sure what you mean by access to the "best writeoffs".

Also, attorneys don't file taxes and find deductions - accountants do. And you can use one if you want - H&R block is really inexpensive. Tax accountants are not a thing "just for the rich". They are a thing for "the smart", imo!
Reply
October 25, 2024 03:05AM
I'm curious if anyone has ever generated a tax loss with regards to the mystery shopping portion? I've never been able to arrive at a loss. On my 2023 taxes, for mystery shopping, I had a large mileage deduction in proportion to gross receipts and large amount for business expenses. But doing more high reimbursement shops, most of the income was able to get offset.

I was still able to contribute a small amount to a SEP-IRA. The last some years, I have contributed to a SEP-IRA into a zero-fee mutual fund, and surprised actually how much it has grown relative to the small contribution amounts.
Reply
Sorry, only registered users may post in this forum.

Click here to login