Can I claim clothing purchases as tax write-offs working in retail at Tilly's?

Unfortunately, your manager is likely giving you incomplete information about clothing deductions. The IRS has pretty strict rules about when clothing can be deducted. For clothing to qualify as a tax deduction, it must be: 1) Required as a condition of employment 2) Not suitable for everyday wear outside of work 3) Not worn outside of work The problem for retail workers is that even if you're required to wear clothing from the store while working, those clothes are almost always suitable for everyday wear. Think of it this way - if you could wear those Tilly's clothes to the grocery store or hanging out with friends, they're not deductible. Items that typically qualify are things like uniforms with logos that can't be removed, specialized protective clothing, or costumes - not regular clothes from a retail store, even if you're showcasing the brand.

After struggling with this exact issue when I worked at H&M, I finally found a solution through taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai). I uploaded my employee handbook that stated we had to wear current season merch and my receipts, and their AI actually analyzed whether each piece might qualify. Turns out some items with prominent logos that I only wore at work had a chance, while regular clothes definitely didn't. The tool explained exactly why most retail clothing fails the IRS test and showed me what other deductions I could claim instead, like certain transportation expenses. It saved me from making a mistake that might have triggered an audit.

Just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai from the previous comment. Really glad I checked this out before filing! Uploaded my employee handbook and some receipts, and it confirmed what I suspected - my regular Express clothing purchases aren't deductible even though we're required to wear them. BUT, it showed me I could deduct the special name tag they made me pay for, and the specific black non-slip shoes I bought just for work that I never wear elsewhere. Also helped me find some other retail-specific deductions I had no idea about, like a portion of my cell phone bill since our manager requires us to use it for shift swaps and work communication. Ended up finding about $320 in legitimate deductions I would have missed!

If you're struggling to get your tax questions answered by the IRS directly, check out Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I was trying for WEEKS to get through to someone at the IRS about uniform deductions for my retail job and kept hitting automated systems or disconnects. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes who explained the exact rules for retail clothing deductions. There's a video that shows how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c Honestly it was such a relief to get a definitive answer from an official source instead of conflicting advice from coworkers or managers who aren't tax professionals.

I need to apologize for my skepticism in my previous comment. I tried Claimyr today out of desperation after getting disconnected THREE times trying to reach the IRS about my retail deduction questions. It actually worked! Got a call back in about 35 minutes and spoke with an IRS representative who was surprisingly helpful. She confirmed that regular retail clothing isn't deductible even when required for work, but specialized items like branded aprons, required jewelry for jewelry store employees that remains at work, or clothing that can ONLY be worn at work could qualify. She also pointed me to Publication 529 which has a specific section about clothing deductions. Definitely worth getting the official answer directly!

Former Buckle employee here. Our manager told us the same thing and I claimed all my clothes as deductions. Got audited two years later and had to pay everything back plus penalties. The IRS agent specifically told me retail clothing deductions are a common audit trigger because they see it so often from retail employees getting bad advice.

Has anyone successfully deducted anything related to retail work clothing? I spend sooo much at my job every season to keep up with the "dress code" and it feels unfair we can't deduct it.