Deducting part-time commercial expenses for tax purposes without income - Hobbyism
June 27, 2021 | 40,00 EUR | answered by Steuerberater Knut Christiansen
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am currently not generating any income from my part-time activity. However, I had high expenses at the beginning, which are on record with the tax office. In 2020, I had expenses (advertising costs, etc.) amounting to 600 euros. Do I have to necessarily declare these expenses in my tax return? Or can I state in my annual written statement that I am not claiming the expenses due to lack of income? I have already proven that my activity is not a hobby and the tax office waived a repayment. I do not want to officially increase the expenses in any case.
My marketing actions are only now having a positive impact this year, and I am now generating income, which is not yet known to the tax office.
Thank you for answering my question.
Kind regards, [Your Name]
Good day and thank you for using frag-einen.com!
I would like to provide you with the following information regarding your question.
In general, it is permissible to claim initial losses for tax purposes. However, overall there must be a total profit that can be substantiated in case of doubt (surplus forecast over several years - typically 30 years). You could potentially claim the costs and then refer the tax office to the income in the year 2021. If you believe that the losses from 2020 may lead to unnecessary inquiries, please do not claim them at all. Do not even indicate them and then waive tax consideration.
I hope this answers your question, otherwise feel free to ask follow-up questions for free.
Please be aware that this forum cannot replace comprehensive and personal tax advice, but is primarily intended to provide an initial tax assessment. By adding or omitting relevant information, the legal assessment of your issue could be different.
Best regards,
Knut Christiansen
Tax consultant
