Doing your taxes isn’t fun, but it’s a necessary part of running a business. And every DJ is a business, even if they only DJ part time. DJs who are good at managing their finances are able to make more money and focus on the gigs that they love.
Here’s a list of 5 tax tips for DJs. Hopefully, it will help you master your finances so you can focus on DJing.
1. Dedicated business card
By using a single card for all purchases related to your DJ business, you will be able to track down expenses much easier come tax time. This will help ensure you don’t neglect write-offs because it’s too much work to search for them.
2. Home office and vehicle write-offs
The home office and vehicle write-offs are some of the biggest you can take advantage of. Check these out when filing your taxes. Your tax software will walk you through the steps to let you know if you can write them off.
3. Section 179
The Section 179 deduction allows you to write off large capital expenses (e.g., a new mixer) in the current year vs. having to depreciate them over time. This makes doing your taxes much easier and helps lower your taxable income in the year you purchased the new asset.
4. Music write-offs
One of the best things about having a DJ business is that you can write off all the money you spend on music! Search for things like “Beatsource” and “DJcity” with the date set to last year in your card statements to find your music expenses easily.
5. Travel costs
Whenever you travel for your DJ business, you’re able to write off your transportation, lodging, and meal expenses. Search your card statements for the dates you were away from home to easily record your travel expenses.
