ask me about being a online and live prop.

[kailua]

Any chance rake/time charge can be itemized as a work related expense deduction against your gross salary?

[Eponymous]

[ QUOTE ]
Any chance rake/time charge can be itemized as a work related expense deduction against your gross salary?

[/ QUOTE ]

It's already included in the wins and losses that anyone who reports their poker wins/losses on their taxes. If they've had a winning session, their winnings are already smaller than what they would have been if the rake wasn't there. If they had a losing session, the loss includes the rake. To list the rake again would be double counting.

[kailua]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Any chance rake/time charge can be itemized as a work related expense deduction against your gross salary?

[/ QUOTE ]

It's already included in the wins and losses that anyone who reports their poker wins/losses on their taxes. If they've had a winning session, their winnings are already smaller than what they would have been if the rake wasn't there. If they had a losing session, the loss includes the rake. To list the rake again would be double counting.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks but it appears you may have put the wrong read on my inquiry.

Daddypoker23 has estimated that the majority of props are losing or breakeven players at best. This negates any tax concerns resulting from their playing sessions. Also as you stated, the rake/time charge has already been factored into their yearly totals and even if they were winning players, they could not “double count.”

However these losing/breakeven props receive a base salary on which they are taxed and “are” required to file. Since they achieve zero yearly income directly from their poker sessions, I imagine they list prop as occupation on thier1040 and are taxed strictly on their base salary as props.

Considering that their occupation demands that to conduct business they “rent” a chair at a table (in this case - time charge) for up to eight hour per work day, it would appear that this fee could be classified as a business expense for itemizing purposes. It would not appear to represent a double deduction.

If on the other hand they filed as winning players, or if the amount of rake/time charge totaled for the year was all that prevented them from being profitable, another attempted deduction would represent double charging.

I agree the whole question is overly convoluted, which is why I tried to keep it short the first time around.