So you’re going overseas to meet some potential clients or conduct business as usual. Visiting with potential customers will be the single most effective way to sell overseas, yet this will cost both time and money.
Travel & Tax
In New Zealand you are allowed to claim a deduction for travel expenses incurred in the course of business. The IRD will usually require that you keep records of the following:
- Itinerary
- Firms Visited & Business Conducted
- Diversions from the Itinerary for personal reasons
- Individual Expenses
- Total Cost
Itinerary
You must have an itinerary for the trip (use TripIt) which will mean you’ll need to contact potential customers in advance to arrange meetings with them. (Sample business trip itinerary)
It’s again important to take notes while conducting business (use Evernote) in order to back up your claim that you are actually doing business.
Expenses
Using Evernote, or the Xero app is useful when you’re getting lots of paper receipts overseas. These can then be entered as an expense claim in Xero on return, or you could pay a per diem.
"If I have personal days, which travel costs can I claim?"
This will depend on your itinerary and how much business you did. Usually if there is a connection between the travel and earning income then you will be able to claim at least a portion of the travel costs.
Should you have any questions about the above please get in touch
Disclaimer: Information provided to the best of the authors knowledge at time of publication. Laws are subject to change and independent advice should be sought. The above information is general in nature and should not be construed or relied on as a recommendation.