I have residence in Illinois, but have been working as a contractor in Texas. Other people I work with are from Mississippi and Louisiana. I have been told since I got on the job that my rent/some living expenses can be written off since I am away from home. They all do it every year. Is that still true for Illinois? I am having trouble finding information on this.

For the FIRST year, you can deduct your daily living expenses (food, rent, utilities, incidental costs) IF you believe the job will last for less than one year. If you KNOW the job is for longer than one year, then you CANNOT legally deduct the daily lving costs, because the IRS no longer considers the job to be temporary in nature.

You would deduct the costs using Form 2106 and itemizing on Schedule A.

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