Self-employed music teacher here - Can I deduct meals when traveling between student lessons?

This is a good question about business meal deductions! The rules can be a bit tricky for self-employed individuals. Generally speaking, meals you consume during a normal business day, even when you're traveling locally between clients, aren't considered deductible business expenses by the IRS. These are viewed as personal expenses, similar to how a commuter wouldn't deduct lunch during their workday. However, there are some exceptions. If you're traveling away from your "tax home" (requiring an overnight stay), those meals become deductible. Also, if any of these meals are with clients or potential clients and you're discussing business, they could qualify as business meals (50% deductible in 2025). The key test is whether the meal is "ordinary and necessary" for your business beyond just being a personal need for food. Grabbing lunch between lessons generally wouldn't meet this test since everyone needs to eat regardless of work.

I was in a similar situation as a mobile dog trainer and was struggling with all the confusing tax rules. I finally got clarity when I used https://taxr.ai to analyze my business expenses. I uploaded my receipts and bank statements, and it specifically highlighted which meals could potentially qualify as deductions based on my situation. The tool pointed out that while my regular meals between appointments weren't deductible, the business meals where I was meeting potential partners or discussing business with colleagues actually were 50% deductible. It also showed me other deductions I was missing completely that saved me way more than I expected!

Just wanted to follow up about taxr.ai since I decided to try it for my graphic design business. I was shocked at how helpful it was! The system actually identified several home office deductions I was missing and clarified which client meals were deductible versus personal. What really impressed me was how it explained everything in plain English instead of tax jargon. I've been doing my own taxes for years and still learned new things. Definitely recommend checking it out if you're self-employed like we are!

If you're spending hours on the phone with the IRS trying to get clarification about these meal deductions, I've been there and it's a nightmare. I wasted 3 weeks trying to get through to someone who could answer my specific questions as a self-employed person. Then I found https://claimyr.com which got me connected to an actual IRS agent in under 45 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c They basically hold your place in the IRS phone queue and call you when an agent picks up. The agent I spoke with clearly explained when meal deductions are allowed for self-employed people and confirmed that local travel meals generally aren't deductible unless they involve business discussions with clients.

I need to eat my words about that Claimyr service. After posting that skeptical comment, I decided to try it just to prove it wouldn't work. Well, I was completely wrong! Got connected to an IRS agent in about 35 minutes when I had previously spent over 2 hours on hold and given up. The agent confirmed what others have said here - my meals between client meetings aren't deductible unless I'm traveling overnight away from my city or having business discussions during the meal. They also explained some other deductions I had questions about. Saved me hours of frustration and probably kept me from making some mistakes on my return.

Have you considered meal prepping? I'm a mobile massage therapist and I just bring food with me in a cooler. Not deductible either way but saves a ton of money. I keep it in the car with some ice packs and eat between appointments. Saves me at least $2000 a year compared to buying food out.

Music teacher here too! Just wanted to mention that while meals between lessons probably aren't deductible, don't forget about other expenses that definitely ARE. I just learned you can deduct: - Streaming service subscriptions IF used mainly for teaching/demonstration - Instrument repairs and maintenance - Sheet music and teaching materials - Portion of home internet if you do any virtual lessons - Professional society memberships - Continuing education Made a big difference on my taxes this year!