How do I file taxes as a small business employee? Can I claim deductions for work?

Thanks for explaining! How do I know if I'm a W-2 employee or 1099 contractor? My boss never really explained the difference when I started. And if I am a 1099, do I need to be putting money aside for taxes throughout the year or something?

You can tell by looking at your paycheck stubs. If taxes are being withheld (Social Security, Medicare, federal and state income taxes), you're most likely a W-2 employee. If you're getting paid the full amount with no withholding, you're probably a 1099 contractor. When tax season comes, W-2 employees get a W-2 form, while contractors receive a 1099-NEC form. If you are a 1099 contractor, yes, you should definitely be setting aside money for taxes since nothing is being withheld. The general rule of thumb is to save about 25-30% of your income for taxes. You may also need to make quarterly estimated tax payments to avoid penalties when you file.

Does it actually work with small business employee stuff specifically? I tried a different tax website last year and it kept trying to make me file as if I owned a business, which I don't.

How much did you end up saving? I'm always skeptical of these services claiming to find all these magic deductions when the tax laws got so much stricter after 2018.

Yes, it absolutely handles employee tax situations correctly. It specifically asked about my employment status and tailored everything based on whether I was a W-2 employee or 1099 contractor. It won't misclassify you like some other services might. I ended up saving about $1,240 compared to what I thought I owed. In my case, I discovered I qualified for some education credits I didn't know about, plus it found that some of my work was actually contract-based which allowed me to deduct certain expenses. The system is really smart about finding those things you might miss.

Wait, I thought it was impossible to get through to the IRS? Last time I tried I was on hold for like 2 hours and then got disconnected. How does this actually work?

Sounds like a scam. Why would I pay a service to call the IRS when I can just call them myself for free? Do they have access to some secret IRS phone number or something?

It's definitely not impossible to reach the IRS, just incredibly time-consuming on your own. Claimyr basically does the waiting for you - they have a system that navigates the IRS phone tree and waits on hold, then calls you when an actual agent is on the line. You don't waste hours of your day listening to hold music. They don't have a secret phone number - they use the same public IRS numbers everyone else uses. The difference is their system can wait on hold for hours so you don't have to. They just call you when they've got an actual human IRS agent ready to talk. It saved me literally days of frustration.

Yes, as a 1099 contractor you can absolutely deduct mileage for driving between job sites (but not commuting from home to your first job site of the day or from your last job site back home). For 2025, you can either take the standard mileage rate or track actual expenses like gas, maintenance, etc. The standard rate is usually easier - just keep a log of business miles driven. Also keep those receipts for tools and work clothes! Those are legitimate business expenses you can deduct on Schedule C.

Make sure your boss is actually classifying you correctly! Some employers try to call people "contractors" to avoid paying employment taxes when legally they should be treating them as employees. If they control WHEN and HOW you do the work (vs just the end result), you might actually be misclassified.

Are you a W-2 employee? If yes, then unfortunately no - those home expenses aren't deductible for regular employees anymore. If you're a 1099 contractor, then yes you could deduct the business portion of those expenses (would need to calculate what % is for work vs personal use).