Does anyone know if the standard mileage rate is expected to go up for 2025? It was 67 cents per mile in 2024 and with gas prices still crazy I'm hoping for at least 70 cents. That makes a huge difference when you drive 20,000+ business miles annually!

Great question about mileage tracking! As someone who's dealt with similar situations, I wanted to add a few key points that might help clarify things for you and your brother. For your pet sitting business, since you work from your apartment for both your main job and run your pet care business from there, your home definitely qualifies as your principal place of business. This means you can deduct mileage from your apartment to each client's home - these are legitimate business trips to temporary work locations. For your brother's OT visits, the situation is a bit more nuanced. If he goes directly from his medical center job to client homes, he can deduct the full mileage from the medical center to the client location. The key is that he's traveling between two work locations for business purposes. However, if he goes home first and then to clients, he can only deduct from his home to the client. One thing I'd strongly recommend is starting a detailed mileage log RIGHT NOW if you haven't already. Include date, starting point, destination, business purpose, and actual miles driven. The IRS is pretty strict about contemporaneous records, so apps like MileIQ or even a simple notebook in your car can save you major headaches later. Also keep in mind that the standard mileage rate for 2024 is 67 cents per mile, which adds up quickly when you're doing a lot of business driving!

mine shows received 2/1 but still processing... anyone else waiting this long?

Check for code 846 too - that's your refund date if approved. Also look at the cycle date (top right) which can give you clues about processing timeline. If you see any 570 or 971 codes those might indicate holds or additional review needed. The transcript can be confusing but those are the key codes to focus on!

ya irs is a mess right now honestly. i filed on paper (big mistake) in march and am still waiting. at least you efiled so youll probably get urs before me 😂

I'm in a similar boat - filed February 5th and still waiting! The frustration is real. What's helped me understand what's going on is checking my tax transcript regularly. You can access it through the IRS website if you can get through their identity verification process. The transcript shows specific codes that explain why your refund might be delayed. For example, code 570 means there's a hold on your refund, and code 971 usually means they're sending you a notice requesting additional information. Also, if you claimed any credits like the Earned Income Credit, Child Tax Credit, or education credits, those automatically trigger additional review which can add months to processing time. The IRS has to manually verify these credits. Keep checking your transcript weekly and don't give up! Some people are getting refunds after 4-5 months with no explanation for the delay. The system is definitely overwhelmed right now.

I had exactly the same issue 27 days ago and was terrified I'd done something wrong! Called the IRS exactly 14 times before getting through. The agent told me it was flagged because I reported exactly $12,489 in business expenses on Schedule C which apparently triggered an automatic review. They verified everything within 16 days and my refund of $2,874 was deposited exactly 5 days later. Sometimes it really is just a random check like others have said!

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences! This is really helpful. I'm dealing with Tax Topic 151 for the first time and was panicking thinking I'd made some major error. Reading through all your stories makes me feel much better - sounds like it could just be routine verification. I did claim some home office expenses for my remote work setup this year, which I didn't have in previous years, so that might have triggered the review. Going to wait for the official notice before taking any action, but it's reassuring to know others have gone through this successfully. Will update the thread once I hear back from the IRS!

One thing nobody mentioned yet - if you use actual expense method the first year you use a vehicle for business, you CAN'T switch to standard mileage rate later. But if you use standard mileage rate first, you CAN switch to actual expenses in future years. Something to keep in mind before you commit to actual expenses!

This is such a helpful discussion! I'm a CPA and want to add a few key points that might help clarify the record-keeping requirements: 1. **Contemporaneous records are crucial** - The IRS requires that mileage logs be created at or near the time of travel, not reconstructed months later. This is true for both methods. 2. **Sampling can work** - You don't need to log every single trip if you can establish a representative sample that demonstrates your typical business use pattern. A 3-month detailed log that shows consistent business use can often support your claimed percentage for the full year. 3. **Digital solutions are IRS-acceptable** - Apps, GPS trackers, and other digital tools are perfectly valid as long as they capture the required elements: date, business purpose, destination, and mileage. 4. **The 70% estimate concern** - Your gut feeling of 70% business use needs documentation to back it up. Without records, the IRS could challenge this during an audit and potentially disallow the entire deduction. My recommendation? Start with the standard mileage rate method for your first year since it's simpler and keeps your options open. Use a mileage tracking app to build good habits, then evaluate both methods next year when you have solid data to compare the actual dollar benefits.