Expense rules in United States.
All IRS and GSA rules: no federal VAT (state sales tax), IRS Standard Mileage Rate, GSA Per Diem CONUS and inapplicable 13th Directive recovery in the United States.
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1Expense rules & reclaimable VAT
| Category | VAT | Reclaim | Cap / Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business meals | 0–10% | 50% deductible | IRS Pub 463 |
| Travel meals | 0–10% | 50% deductible | M&IE per diem option |
| Accommodation | 0–15% | 100% deductible | If legitimate business |
| Fuel | 0–10% | In mileage | Covered by IRS rate |
| Train / flight | 0% | 100% deductible | Coach class generally |
| Taxi / Uber | 0–10% | 100% deductible | Receipt required |
| Client gifts | 0–10% | Cap $25 | $25/recipient/year cap |
| Parking / toll | 0% | 100% deductible | Receipt required |
Standard M&IE
GSA standard CONUS per diem 2024.
Lodging
Standard CONUS cap.
Retention
IRS records: 3 years (4 recommended).
2Mileage allowance
| Mode | Allowance | Cap | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car (business) | $0,67/mi | Unlimited | IRS 2024 Standard Rate |
| Car (medical/military move) | $0,21/mi | — | IRS 2024 reduced |
| Car (charitable) | $0,14/mi | — | Code §170(i) fixed |
| km → mi conversion | $0,416/km | — | 1 mi = 1.609 km |
Standard Rate 2024
1.5¢ increase vs 2023.
Commute
Home-to-work not deductible (Pub 529).
Logbook
Contemporaneous: date, miles, purpose.
3Per diem and travel allowances
| Destination | Meal | Lodging / night | Daily rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard CONUS | $68/j | $107/nuit | $175/j |
| Washington DC | $92/j | $258/nuit | $350/j |
| New York City | $92/j | $335/nuit | $427/j |
| San Francisco | $92/j | $299/nuit | $391/j |
| Foreign — Paris | $166/j | $321/nuit | $487/j |
| Foreign — London | $165/j | $381/nuit | $546/j |
| Foreign — Tokyo | $153/j | $278/nuit | $431/j |
Travel day rule
M&IE reduced to 75% on travel days.
High-low method
IRS simplified alternative 2024.
Lodging receipts
Hotel receipts always required (vs M&IE).
4Foreign VAT recovery
| Zone | Mechanism | Deadline | Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Federal sales tax | N/A | — | No federal VAT |
| State sales tax | Not recoverable | — | Consumption tax, no credit |
| Resale certificate | Limited | — | B2B exemption only |
| US VAT recovery foreign | None | — | No general mechanism |
No federal VAT
US unique among developed countries.
Sales tax variable
5 no-tax states (AK, DE, MT, NH, OR), CA max.
Use tax
Foreign companies selling to US must collect if nexus.
Industrialize your US expenses with Illizeo.
Multi-currency USD↔EUR↔CHF, IRS mileage rate, GSA per diem CONUS + foreign: all the rules above are natively integrated into Illizeo.
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