I am receiving a 1099 from my employer. I am a freight truck dispatcher for a trucking company. I also have a home office that I work from occasionally, and I take time to send out advertisement and business cards to local companies in my personal vehicle. Exactly what can I use as deductions? For example, gas receipts, auto repair receipts, grocery receipts, utility bill receipts, perhaps? This is the first time I have ever received a 1099, so I am in the dark about this thing. I moved out of state, as well, for this job. Can you help me?

If you are using your personal car for perosnal and business, you will have had to keep track of business milage and can deduct those business miles drove using the allowed amount per mile. Be sure and keep a milage book on the dash. Home office if you have a real office, not a desk in the dining room. But as a 1099, you are a contractor, so they are not your "employer" you are your own employer and merely contract with them to supply certain services. So you would not be receiving a hourly wage, but a contract amount for your services So you are basically self employed, they would not be holding taxes out, so you would have filed your estimated quarterly taxes, and will will have to pay the full 15 percent of the self employment tax ( social security tax) not just the 7.5 percent you pay as an employee.

If this is your first time, and you are lost, hire a tax expert to show you what you can and can't deduct. Money well spent

Agreed.

I do taxes for several truckers. The complexity of their return makes my fees for them some of the highest I charge.

But guess what? They ALL say what I charge is a bargain compared to them trying to do it themselves.

Your time is worth something! An experienced tax professional will save you DAYS of your valuable time.