Melissa recently paid $640 for round-trip airfare to San Francisco to attend a business conference for three days. Melissa also paid the following expenses: $590 fee to register for the conference, $255 per night for three nights’ lodging, $170 for meals, and $605 for cab fare. (Leave no answers blank. Enter zero if applicable. Do not round intermediate calculations. Round your final answer to the nearest dollar amount.)a. What amount of the travel costs can Melissa deduct as business expenses?b. Suppose that while Melissa was on the coast, she also spent two days sightseeing the national parks in the area. To do the sightseeing, she paid $1,270 for transportation, $825 for lodging, and $340 for meals during this part of her trip, which she considers personal in nature. What amount of the travel costs can Melissa deduct as business expenses? c. Suppose that Melissa made the trip to San Francisco primarily to visit the national parks and only attended the business conference as an incidental benefit of being present on the coast at that time. What amount of the airfare can Melissa deduct as a business expense? d. Suppose that Melissa’s permanent residence and business was located in San Francisco. She attended the conference in San Francisco and paid $635 for the registration fee. She drove 196 miles over the course of three days and paid $181 for parking at the conference hotel. In addition, she spent $610 for breakfast and dinner over the three days of the conference. She bought breakfast on the way to the conference hotel and she bought dinner on her way home each night from the conference. What amount of the travel costs can Melissa deduct as business expenses?

Please refer explanation

Explanation:

A. What amount of the travel costs can Melissa deduct as business expenses?

Round trip airfare : $640

Registration for the conference: $590

3 nights lodging : $225 x 3 = $675

Meals : $170 x 50% = $85

Cab fare: $605

Total deductible as business expenses: $640 + $590 + $675 + $85 + $605 = $2595

B. Suppose that while Melissa was on the coast, she also spent two days sightseeing the national parks in the area. To do the sightseeing, she paid $1,270 for transportation, $825 for lodging, and $340 for meals during this part of her trip, which she considers personal in nature. What amount of the travel costs can Melissa deduct as business expenses?

Sightseeing was done purely for her leisure and entertainment and had nothing to contribute towards the business. Hence, no amount ($0) of the costs that were associated with sightseeing can be deducted as a business expense.

c. Suppose that Melissa made the trip to San Francisco primarily to visit the national parks and only attended the business conference as an incidental benefit of being present on the coast at that time. What amount of the airfare can Melissa deduct as a business expense?

Since the main purpose of the trip and taking a plane was for personal reasons and she attended the business conference simply because she was on the coast at that point of time, total airfare expenses would be incurred as a personal expense. Hence, no amount of the airfare expense will be a business expense.

$2595 - $640 = $1955 is the total business expense

D. Suppose that Melissa’s permanent residence and business was located in San Francisco. She attended the conference in San Francisco and paid $635 for the registration fee. She drove 196 miles over the course of three days and paid $181 for parking at the conference hotel. In addition, she spent $610 for breakfast and dinner over the three days of the conference. She bought breakfast on the way to the conference hotel and she bought dinner on her way home each night from the conference. What amount of the travel costs can Melissa deduct as business expenses?

Conference registration: $635

Mileage dedication: 196 x 0.565 = $110.74 (since mileage cost per mile has not been provided, an estimate has been obtain based on San Francisco mileage costs)

Parking fees: $181

Total: $926.74 deductible as business expenses

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