Can I deduct Fire Academy & EMT certification costs on taxes? (uniforms, books, etc)
I paid out of pocket for fire academy training and EMT certification this year. Had to buy all the books, uniforms, and other required materials. Anyone know if these expenses are tax deductible? Really hoping to get some money back since this was a huge investment for my career.
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Javier Garcia
Tax professional here. Unfortunately, since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, you can no longer deduct unreimbursed employee expenses or education costs that qualify you for a new career. These would've been deductible before 2018 on Schedule A. Your best bet is to check if your state still allows these deductions on your state return.
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NebulaNomad
•man that really sucks... wish I knew this before dropping all that cash ðŸ˜
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Emma Taylor
•what if my employer reimburses part of it later? does that change anything?
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Javier Garcia
•If your employer reimburses you, that portion isn't deductible since you didn't actually incur the expense. Keep good records tho!
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Lucas Notre-Dame
•@Javier Garcia thanks for the detailed explanation! Quick follow-up - are there any exceptions for first responders or public service careers? I ve'heard some states have special provisions for essential workers.
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Malik Robinson
Hey, I know dealing with tax situations like this can be confusing. I recently found this tool called taxr.ai that helped me figure out my complicated deductions. It costs $1 but its worth it - you upload your transcript and it tells you exactly what you can and cant deduct. Check it out: https://taxr.ai
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Isabella Silva
•interesting... does it actually work for specific situations like this? or is it just general advice?
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Malik Robinson
•It's super specific! It analyzes your actual transcript and gives personalized advice. Way better than googling random tax stuff for hours lol
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Isabella Silva
•just tried it and WOW 🙌 saved me so much headache trying to figure out what I could claim. 10/10 would recommend
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Ravi Choudhury
in the same boat as you... spent like 5k on paramedic school last year and couldn't write off a penny 🤡
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CosmosCaptain
Check with your employer! Some fire departments will reimburse these costs after you've been employed for a certain time. Worth asking about.
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NebulaNomad
•thanks for the tip! gonna ask about this in my interview next week
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Freya Johansen
idk about taxes but congrats on finishing the academy! its tough but worth it 💪
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NebulaNomad
•thanks fam! definitely wasn't easy but excited to start this journey
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Omar Fawzi
the tax system is so broken fr... we out here trying to better ourselves and serve the community and cant even get a break on taxes smh
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Chloe Wilson
•facts 💯 meanwhile billionaires paying zero
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Dallas Villalobos
I'm in a similar situation - just finished my EMT-B certification last month and was really hoping to deduct those costs too. One thing I discovered is that some volunteer fire departments will cover certification costs if you commit to volunteering for a certain period. Might be worth looking into if you're open to volunteer work while job hunting. Also, keep all your receipts organized anyway - tax laws can change and you never know if there might be future opportunities to claim these expenses retroactively.
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Anastasia Popov
•That's really smart advice about the volunteer departments! I hadn't thought about that angle. Do you know if the volunteer commitment affects your ability to get hired full-time elsewhere, or are most departments pretty understanding about volunteer obligations?
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