[marbemac]

I'm confused about these lines:

"As self-employed, independent contractors, though, UberX drivers receive a Form 1099-MISC...Subsequently, UberX drivers are hit with a 5.6 percent tax deduction for each mile they drive...if he or she drove 100 miles, he or she will be taxed $56 (5.6 percent tax x 100 miles driven)."

Why is this the case? In my experience with 1099s, they have nothing to do with miles driven. In any case, I don't understand how 5.6% of 100 = $56. Could somebody please elaborate on this?

[gamblor956]

The deduction is $0.56/mile, for a $56 deduction (not a tax) for every 100 miles driven. The deduction is in lieu of the separate deductions for gas, wear and tear, insurance, etc., so the driver must choose either to take the mileage deduction or to separately deduct their driving-income expenses.

It's not clear why UberX drivers are being hit with a deduction by Uber on their 1099s, since they--not Uber--are the ones that get the deduction. It sounds like the writer is simply confused about what is actually happening. Based on the magic math of the rest of the article, I'm guessing that the writer doesn't know what they're talking about.

[chrismcb]

Considering they mentioned several times "5.6 percent per mile driven" I'd go with confused camp... Otherwise you'll drive 100 miles and get a 560 percent tax break!

[smackfu]

Yeah, that's written by a confused person.

There is a $0.56 per mile deduction for business miles, which is $56 per 100 miles. This is not deducted from their take-home income as the author seems to think.