Business Meal Deduction Calculator

How it is calculated

The tool multiplies the meal cost by the deductible percentage you enter and splits the bill into two parts: deductible = cost × pct ÷ 100 and non-deductible = cost × (100 − pct) ÷ 100. Here cost is the total meal bill in dollars and pct is the share of it your tax rules let you write off, entered as a plain percent (50 means 50%, not 0.5). The percentage is not looked up for you: tax rules differ by country and year, so take the rate from your own tax authority or accountant. Both parts always add back up to the bill. The tool accepts a percent from 0 to 100 and a cost of zero or more; anything outside that range, or an empty field, returns no result. Amounts are shown rounded to cents.

Common mistakes

• Typing 0.5 instead of 50 in the percentage box. The field is a percent, so 0.5 means one half of one percent and the deduction comes out almost zero.
• Entering the bill after tip, tax and drinks when only part of it qualifies. Enter the amount your rules treat as deductible, or run the tool twice for the separate parts.
• Treating the deductible figure as tax saved. It is only the amount you subtract from taxable income; the actual saving is that amount times your marginal tax rate.
• Using a percentage above 100 for a fully deductible meal. The valid range is 0 to 100, so use 100 for full deduction; values above it give no result.