Chris Keen Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 Make any personal calls on that company cell phone? That's a "fringe benefit" of your job, according to a 20-year-old law, and the IRS is looking to collect. The Wall Street Journal reports that the IRS wants to step up enforcement of the 1989 law, which holds that employees who make personal calls on a company cell phone are getting a "fringe benefit" from their employers—a benefit that should count as taxable income. The law has been "long ignored" by employees and employers alike, according to the Journal, namely because most companies don't have the time or the inclination to tabulate exactly how many minutes you're on the phone with clients versus how often you're gabbing with friends and family. But now, the IRS is floating a couple of proposals to make compliance easier—for employers, anyway. One would be to simply treat 25 percent of your company cell phone bill as a "fringe"—and therefore taxable—benefit, the Journal reports. Or, an employer could use "statistical sampling" to guesstimate how many of your cell minutes are work-related and which aren't. OK, but what if you swear on a stack of bibles that you rarely, if ever, use your company phone for personal calls? That's fine, the IRS says—but you'll have to produce separate work and personal cell phone bills to prove it. Think it's a crazy idea? Apparently the IRS is thinking it over and will make a decision by September, the Journal reports. Meanwhile, guess who's on your side against the IRS? The big cell phone carriers, who (according to the WSJ story) are worried that companies will drop employee cell phone contracts if the IRS goes ahead with its proposal. (Instead, employers might simply reimburse you for business calls made on your personal phone.) So, quick show of hands: How many of you have a company-issued cell phone, and if so, do you use it for personal calls? And should personal calls count as a "fringe," taxable benefit? Or should the IRS allow for (at the very least) "minimal personal use" of company phones, especially given that bosses often expect cell-toting employees to be in contact at all times? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uscbigdawg Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 Don't forget to add in ALL healthcare benefits and other employer "perks" as taxable income. It's comin'....fast. Rich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zhunter Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 I am afraid to give my thoughts on this one. Not for me, but for my wife's phone. What a JOKE!!! The IRS is going to be the #1 employer in this country if this craps continues Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 Sounds a lot like the policy they already have for company supplied cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j1b Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 They said they wanted change . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flatland Shooter Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 For you office workers, I've always considered heat and air conditioning a luxury. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scirocco38s Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 The company I work for already has a deduction from my pay for the company car. They charge me $100/month for personal use of the vehicle and at the end of the year I send in another document for any milage over 10% of the total mileage. The company is now using the economic disaster along with all the cost reductions they are trying, they have already floated the idea of charging us for our paersonal use of the cell phone(taking a percentage of the total bill). They are also thinking of charging us for the internet connection they pay for at my house(again a percentage) even though they are the ones requiring it as I cannot perform some of my interdepartmental work and communications. All this has come about since our company was taken over by a bunch of GE and Agilent execs that tried this stuff at their old companies and it failed there buut this time they will make it work. What they dont realize it that everytime they charge the employee for these items instead of just letting it be part of doing business they end up spending more policing it. The people that police it dont contribute 1 dollar to the company and the field guys they are policing just get their money back in other ways. Most of the time ending up costing the company twice as much than if they had just left things as they were. These are the guys with the MBA's, these are the guys that have run most of the bug american companies into the ground(GM, GE, and a host of others), these are the same guys that are raping the companies and then leaving them with a huge bonus as they walk away to ruin another. US corporations as well as the government never ever learn, they are to interested in the nickel while they step over the dollar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Keen Posted June 13, 2009 Author Share Posted June 13, 2009 I too already get charged for company vehicle use, although it is only $30 every 2 weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mscott Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 We have a meeting next week about budgets and policies, so I'm sure the phone and other things might get brought up. It was mentioned a couple of years ago about having the phone as a taxable perk, but decided it wasn't worth the expense to keep up with who owed what. They came up with personal calls being worth 9 cents a minute somehow even if it was a free call to another cell phone. Sometimes change isn't good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zhunter Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 I'll keep my phone, you can have your change Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthMuffin Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 So when my work calls me on my personal cell phone they'll now be paying a part of my annual taxes, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Cheely Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 Every single engineer at my company has a cell phone. It's automatic so that we can keep in contact while we're out and about on the property. Gotta love a recession for drumming up new ways to tax us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vluc Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 (edited) Let's see, my office provides lunch to the staff, so they should be taxed for the food provided? Land lines that get/make personal calls, internet access, uniforms... Edited June 13, 2009 by vluc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mscott Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 Let's see, my office provides lunch to the staff, so they should be taxed for the food provided? Land lines that get/make personal calls, internet access, uniforms... You got it!!! We are supposed to be taxed for .75 cents if we are out and about in a company vehicle and use it to stop for lunch. We are also already taxed for the clothing allowance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lugnut Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 NP, I never use my company phone for personal use... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SDM Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 I've used the toilet at my work, is that taxable? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Keen Posted June 13, 2009 Author Share Posted June 13, 2009 Let's see, my office provides lunch to the staff, so they should be taxed for the food provided? Land lines that get/make personal calls I've used the toilet at my work, is that taxable? Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh ................. Dont give them any ideas! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sci Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 I've used the toilet at my work, is that taxable? Send them the appropriate paper work and ask for an opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry cazes Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 (edited) So, quick show of hands: How many of you have a company-issued cell phone, and if so, do you use it for personal calls? And should personal calls count as a "fringe," taxable benefit? Or should the IRS allow for (at the very least) "minimal personal use" of company phones, especially given that bosses often expect cell-toting employees to be in contact at all times? I have a company issued phone but I AM self employed with an excellent tax accountant By the way, I believe that this should be considered a fringe benefit for the rest of you. Edited June 13, 2009 by larry cazes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indijan Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 I've used the toilet at my work, is that taxable? Nah, not for the use of the toilet, BUT the toilet-paper you should be taxed for. Bring a tapemeasure the next time you go to the toilet, and try to stipulate how many inches of paper you use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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