This is a myth I hear often, mostly from the advice of others. This advise makes people feel apprehensive to claim some or all of the home-based tax write-offs.

As a home-based business the government recognizes you as a "small business" therefore you are eligible to claim tax write-offs. But it's important to know what you can and cannot write-off and have solid record keeping.

If you are not claiming it you are not getting the tax advantages!

In the end it's your choice if you want to pay more income tax than necessary! But you have to know what you can and cannot write-off, and what is reasonable. The government knows what are suitable expense levels in your industry and they can also guesstimate the costs of running a business from your home. If they think something is off they might just come asking about prior years returns asking for documentation!

My mantra is always focused on the importance of record keeping, being audit proof while at the same time being confident that you can write-off almost anything!

Stuffing receipts into a file folder, box or bag expecting to “think about it next year” is not the way to do this! It's costing you THOUANDS... I have proved this over and over again for the last decade!

At the end of the day, this is your business and your tax dollars! You get to decide to either keep more of your hard earned money or allow the government to take it! Because they will... even if they know you missed a ton of tax write-offs.

If you are feeling overwhelmed with all your receipts and the thought of claiming home-based tax write-offs perhaps a 9 minute video might give you a sense of reassurance and confidence it's not that complicated. In this video I covered a lot of topics including:

• Having a System
• Being Audited 
• Profit & Loss Statement (P&L)
• Investing in your Business
• Vehicle Expenses
• Fear of the Taxman (Being Audited)
• Tax Preparers Giving Bad Advice
• Required Documentation
• History of Taxation (Fear of Taxman)
• Tax Write-Offs, Another Necessary Business Skill

This is Myth #4 in a 7 part series:

• Myth #1: My Accountant Does That For Me At Tax Time
• Myth #2: Can’t Claim Tax Write-Offs No Business Income
• Myth #3: The Government Wants Me to Pay More Taxes
• Myth #4: If You Claim It, You Will Get Audited
• Myth #5: You Can Use Google To Find All Your Answers
• Myth #6: Tax Software Will Do All This For You
• Myth #7: Direct Sales (Network Marketing) Is Not A Real Business